James Henderson Kyle (February 24, 1854July 1, 1901) was an American politician. One of the most successful members of the
Populist Party, he served for 10 years as a member of the
United States Senate from
South Dakota, from 1891 until his death.
Kyle, South Dakota was named after him.
Biography
James Kyle was born at his family's farm in
Cedarville, Ohio. His parents were Thomas and Jane Kyle and he had at least five siblings. His great-grandparents were
Scottish
Scottish usually refers to something of, from, or related to Scotland, including:
*Scottish Gaelic, a Celtic Goidelic language of the Indo-European language family native to Scotland
*Scottish English
*Scottish national identity, the Scottish ide ...
and
Irish immigrants. At the age of 11 he moved with his family to
Urbana, Illinois.
As a young man Kyle had much difficulty choosing his career, but gained much education and supported himself by farming and teaching. He studied civil engineering at the University of Illinois and later graduated from
Oberlin College
Oberlin College is a Private university, private Liberal arts colleges in the United States, liberal arts college and conservatory of music in Oberlin, Ohio. It is the oldest Mixed-sex education, coeducational liberal arts college in the United S ...
in 1878. He considered a career in law but eventually decided to become a
Congregational minister and graduated from Western Theological Seminary in Pennsylvania in 1881. He then moved to
Salt Lake City, Utah in 1882 to become pastor of a church and director of a seminary there. In 1885 he moved to South Dakota because it was better for his wife's health. He continued to be a minister until 1891.
In 1890 he entered politics at the urging of many people after he made a passionate political address. This was shortly after South Dakota became a state. He was first elected to the state senate but shortly after that he was elected to the United States Senate. He refused to join a political party and was one of few people to enter the Senate as an independent, but he was supported by the state Democratic party at this time. During his first term in the Senate he joined the emerging Populist Party. Kyle was re-elected to the Senate by the state legislature in 1897.
Soon after, as the Populist Party was disintegrating, Kyle
switched Switched may refer to:
* Switched (band), an American music group
* ''Switched'' (novel), first book in the young adult Trylle series by Amanda Hocking
* ''Switched!'' (American TV series)
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* "Switched" (' ...
to the
Republican Party
Republican Party is a name used by many political parties around the world, though the term most commonly refers to the United States' Republican Party.
Republican Party may also refer to:
Africa
*Republican Party (Liberia)
* Republican Part ...
.
Kyle served on many committees in the Senate. From 1893 to 1895 and from 1897 to 1901 he was the chairman of the Committee on Education and Labor, and from 1895 to 1897 he was the chairman of a committee to establish a university of the United States. Kyle was one of the main sponsors of a bill to create the holiday
Labor Day
Labor Day is a federal holiday in the United States celebrated on the first Monday in September to honor and recognize the American labor movement and the works and contributions of laborers to the development and achievements of the United St ...
. Kyle strongly supported the
Spanish–American War. Kyle was known as a hard-working, articulate senator who defended the rights of workers. From 1898 to 1901 he served as a member of the National Industrial Commission.
Kyle began to suffer from serious health problems in 1898. He died at the age of 47 in
Aberdeen, South Dakota where he had lived from the late 1880s until 1891.
Kyle was married to Anna Eliza Dugot Kyle and they had two children.
See also
*
Politics of the United States
*
References
External links
Very favorable biography of Kyle
Memorial addresses on the life and character of James H. Kyle, late a representative from South Dakota delivered in the House of Representatives and Senate frontispiece 1902
{{DEFAULTSORT:Kyle, James H.
1854 births
1901 deaths
People from Cedarville, Ohio
American people of Scotch-Irish descent
South Dakota Independents
People's Party United States senators from South Dakota
Republican Party United States senators from South Dakota
South Dakota state senators
Politicians from Aberdeen, South Dakota
19th-century American politicians