Samuel Dibble (September 16, 1837 – September 16, 1913) was a lawyer, educator and

U.S. Representative The United States House of Representatives, often referred to as the House of Representatives, the U.S. House, or simply the House, is the lower chamber of the United States Congress, with the Senate being the upper chamber. Together they c ...

from

South Carolina )''Animis opibusque parati'' ( for, , Latin, Prepared in mind and resources, links=no) , anthem = " Carolina";" South Carolina On My Mind" , Former = Province of South Carolina , seat = Columbia , LargestCity = Charleston , LargestMetro = ...

Birth and childhood

Samuel Dibble was born in

Charleston, South Carolina Charleston is the largest city in the U.S. state of South Carolina, the county seat of Charleston County, and the principal city in the Charleston–North Charleston metropolitan area. The city lies just south of the geographical midpoint o ...

, the oldest son of Philander Virgil (1808-1883) and Frances Ann (Evans) Dibble (1815-1891). Philander and his brother Andrew Dibble (1800-1846) moved from

Bethel, Connecticut Bethel () is a New England town, town in Fairfield County, Connecticut, United States. Its population was 11,988 in 2022 according to World Population Review. The town includes the Bethel (CDP), Connecticut, Bethel Census Designated Place. Inte ...

, to Charleston engaging in business together as

hatters Hat-making or millinery is the design, manufacture and sale of hats and other headwear. A person engaged in this trade is called a milliner or hatter. Historically, milliners, typically women shopkeepers, produced or imported an inventory of g ...

. Ann Evans was a descendant of the Gabeau family of

French Huguenots The Huguenots ( , also , ) were a Religious denomination, religious group of French people, French Protestants who held to the Reformed, or Calvinist, tradition of Protestantism. The term, which may be derived from the name of a Swiss politica ...

and the Henley family of England. Dibble is a direct descendant of Thomas Dibble who came from England to

Dorchester, Massachusetts Dorchester (colloquially referred to as Dot) is a Boston neighborhood comprising more than in the City of Boston, Massachusetts, United States. Originally, Dorchester was a separate town, founded by Puritans who emigrated in 1630 from Dorchester ...

, in 1630 as part of the

Puritan migration to New England (1620–1640) The Puritan migration to New England was marked in its effects from 1620 to 1640, declining sharply afterwards. The term Great Migration usually refers to the migration in the period of English Puritans to Massachusetts and the Caribbean, espe ...

and in 1635, Thomas Dibble was one of the founders of

Windsor, Connecticut Windsor is a town in Hartford County, Connecticut, United States, and was the first English settlement in the state. It lies on the northern border of Connecticut's capital, Hartford. The population of Windsor was 29,492 at the 2020 census. Po ...

. Young Dibble pursued an academic course in Bethel, Connecticut (his father's birthplace), and Charleston, South Carolina.

College and law school years

Starting in 1853, Dibble attended the

College of Charleston The College of Charleston (CofC or Charleston) is a public university in Charleston, South Carolina. Founded in 1770 and chartered in 1785, it is the oldest university in South Carolina, the 13th oldest institution of higher learning in the Unit ...

for two years, and graduated A. B. from

Wofford College Wofford College is a private liberal arts college in Spartanburg, South Carolina. It was founded in 1854. The campus is a national arboretum and one of the few four-year institutions in the southeastern United States founded before the America ...

Spartanburg, South Carolina Spartanburg is a city in and the county seat, seat of Spartanburg County, South Carolina, United States. The city of Spartanburg has a municipal population of 38,732 as of the 2020 United States census, 2020 census, making it the 11th-largest c ...

, in July, 1856, under the presidency of Rev. William M. Wightman, being the first graduate of that institution. While at Wofford, Dibble was a member of the Calhoun Literary Society. Dibble later received the degree LL. D. from his alma mater. After graduating he taught at Shilow Academy and Pine Grove Academy in Orangeburg District from 1856–57 and was assistant teacher of the preparatory department of

in the spring of 1858. Dibble also studied law between 1858-59 under Jefferson Choice of Spartanburg, and Lesesne and Wilkins of Charleston, and was admitted as an attorney of law in December, 1859, and as a solicitor in equity in 1865 having studied equity under Hon. Charles H. Simonton. In January, 1860, he began his practice of law in Orangeburg, South Carolina. He served in the

Confederate States Army The Confederate States Army, also called the Confederate Army or the Southern Army, was the military land force of the Confederate States of America (commonly referred to as the Confederacy) during the American Civil War (1861–1865), fighting ...

throughout the

Civil War A civil war or intrastate war is a war between organized groups within the same state (or country). The aim of one side may be to take control of the country or a region, to achieve independence for a region, or to change government policies ...

. He resumed the practice of law in Orangeburg, South Carolina and also edited the Orangeburg News.

Military service

On January 3, 1861, Samuel Dibble volunteered as a private in the Edisto Rifles in Col. Johnson Hagood's First Regiment of South Carolina Volunteers later attaining the rank of first lieutenant. The company later became a part of the Eutaw Regiment, Twenty-Fifth South Carolina Volunteers under Col. Charles H. Simonton, a part of Hagood's Brigade, Hokes' Division of the Army of Northern Virginia. He was also a lieutenant of

Wade Hampton III Wade Hampton III (March 28, 1818April 11, 1902) was an American military officer who served the Confederate States of America during the American Civil War and later a politician from South Carolina. He came from a wealthy planter family, and ...

Politics

Samuel Dibble served as member of the State house of representatives in 1877 and 1878. Trustee of the University of South Carolina at Columbia in 1878. He served as member of the Board of School Commissioners of Orangeburg County. He served as delegate to the Democratic National Convention in 1880. Presented credentials as a

Democrat Democrat, Democrats, or Democratic may refer to: Politics *A proponent of democracy, or democratic government; a form of government involving rule by the people. *A member of a Democratic Party: **Democratic Party (United States) (D) **Democratic ...

ic Member-elect to the Forty-seventh Congress to fill a vacancy thought to exist by reason of the death (pending a contest) of Michael P. O'Connor, and served from June 9, 1881, to May 31, 1882, when the seat was awarded to Edmund W.M. Mackey under the original election. Dibble was elected to the Forty-eighth and to the three succeeding Congresses (March 4, 1883 – March 3, 1891). He served as chairman of the Committee on Public Buildings and Grounds (Forty-ninth and Fiftieth Congresses). He declined to be a candidate for reelection in 1890.

Later life

He engaged in banking and other business interests in

Orangeburg, South Carolina Orangeburg, also known as ''The Garden City'', is the principal city in and the county seat of Orangeburg County, South Carolina, United States. The population of the city was 13,964 according to the 2010 United States Census and declined to 12 ...

. He died near

Baltimore, Maryland Baltimore ( , locally: or ) is the List of municipalities in Maryland, most populous city in the U.S. state of Maryland, fourth most populous city in the Mid-Atlantic (United States), Mid-Atlantic, and List of United States cities by popula ...

, September 16, 1913, his 76th birthday. He was interred in Sunny Side Cemetery,

Sources

References

*
Samuel Dibble, Wofford CollegeVanBuren Lamb, Jr.,Your AncestorsDescendants of the Founders of Ancient Windsor

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Dibble, Samuel 1837 births 1913 deaths College of Charleston alumni Wofford College alumni Confederate States Army officers Democratic Party members of the United States House of Representatives from South Carolina 19th-century American politicians People of South Carolina in the American Civil War Members of the United States House of Representatives removed by contest