Henry M. Hoyt
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Henry Martyn Hoyt (8 June 1830 – 1 December 1892) was Governor of Pennsylvania from 1879 to 1883, as well as a general in the Union army during the American Civil War.
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[edit] Early life and career
Hoyt was born in Kingston, Pennsylvania. Initially a mathematics professor and later a lawyer, Hoyt first held elected office as a district attorney. A member of the Whig Party, Hoyt participated in John Fremont's 1856 presidential campaign.
[edit] Military career
As a soldier in the Civil War, Hoyt was commissioned as colonel of the 52nd Pennsylvania Infantry, leading it during the Peninsula Campaign and subsequent actions of the Army of the Potomac until January 1863, the regiment was ordered to Charleston, South Carolina.
He participated in the siege of Morris Island under Brig. Gen. Quincy A. Gillmore. Hoyt led troops was in a rare night attack on Fort Johnson, steathily arriving in the darkness via boats. He initially captured the fort, but was unable to it for lack of reinforcements and he and many of his men were captured in a Confederate counterattack. After being confined in Macon, Georgia, Hoyt was taken back to Charleston, and escaped briefly before being recaptured.
Upon his eventual exchange, he rejoined his regiment, with which he remained till the close of the war, when he was mustered out with the rank of brevet brigadier general.
[edit] Law career
After the war, Hoyt returned to his law practice. After briefly serving as a judge, he rose in influence with the Republican party and chaired the state Republican party from 1875 to 1876. He won the governor's seat in 1878, the third consecutive Civil War general to hold the office. During his term, the debt of the state was reduced to $10,000,000, and refunded at the rate of three per cent.
In 1881 he received the degree of LL. D. from the University of Pennsylvania and also from Lafayette College. He authored two books—"Controversy between Connecticut and Pennsylvania" (Philadelphia, 1879) and "Protection vs. Free Trade" (New York, 1885).
[edit] References
- This article incorporates text from the public domain Appleton's Cyclopedia of American Biography.
| Preceded by John Frederick Hartranft |
Governor of Pennsylvania 1879–1883 |
Succeeded by Robert Emory Pattison |
| Preceded by John K. Richards |
Solicitor General 1903–1909 |
Succeeded by Lloyd Wheaton Bowers |
| Governors of Pennsylvania |  |
|---|---|
| Mifflin • McKean • Snyder • Findlay • Hiester • Shulze • Wolf • Ritner • Porter • Shunk • Johnston • Bigler • Pollock • Packer • Curtin • Geary • Hartranft • Hoyt • Pattison • Beaver • Pattison • Hastings • Stone • Pennypacker • Stuart • Tener • Brumbaugh • Sproul • Pinchot • Fisher • Pinchot • Earle • James • Martin • Bell • Duff • Fine • Leader • Lawrence • Scranton • Shafer • Shapp • Thornburgh • Casey • Ridge • Schweiker • Rendell |
| United States Solicitors General |  |
|---|---|
| Bristow • Phillips • Goode • Jenks • Chapman • Taft • Aldrich • Maxwell • Conrad • Richards • Hoyt • Bowers • Lehmann • Bullit • Davis • King • Frierson • Beck • Mitchell • Hughes • Thacher • Biggs • Reed • Jackson • Biddle • Fahy • McGrath • Perlman • Cummings • Sobeloff • Rankin • Cox • Marshall • Griswold • Bork • McCree • Lee • Fried • Starr • Days • Dellinger • Waxman • Olson • Clement |
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