Alexander Hamilton Rice | |
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| 32nd Governor of Massachusetts | |
| In office January 6, 1876 – January 2, 1879 | |
| Lieutenant | Horatio G. Knight |
| Preceded by | William Gaston |
| Succeeded by | Thomas Talbot |
| Member of the U.S. House of Representatives fromMassachusetts | |
| In office March 4, 1859 – March 4, 1867 | |
| Preceded by | Linus B. Comins |
| Succeeded by | Ginery Twichell |
| Constituency | 4th district (1859–1863) 3rd district (1863–1867) |
| Mayor of Boston | |
| In office 1856–1858 | |
| Preceded by | Jerome V.C. Smith |
| Succeeded by | Frederic W. Lincoln Jr. |
| President of theBoston School Committee | |
| In office 1854 | |
| President of the Boston Common Council | |
| In office 1854 | |
| Preceded by | Henry Gardner |
| Succeeded by | Joseph Story |
| Member of theBoston Common Council from Ward 11 | |
| In office 1853–1854 | |
| Personal details | |
| Born | (1818-08-30)August 30, 1818 |
| Died | July 22, 1895(1895-07-22) (aged 76) |
| Political party | Republican |
| Spouse(s) | Augusta E. McKim (d. 1868) Angle Erickson Powell |
| Signature |  |
Alexander Hamilton Rice (August 30, 1818 – July 22, 1895) was an American politician and businessman fromMassachusetts. He served as Mayor ofBoston from 1856 to 1857, aU.S. Congressman during theAmerican Civil War, and as the30th Governor of Massachusetts from 1876 to 1879. He was part owner and president of Rice-Kendall, one of the nation's largest paper products distributors.
Educated atUnion College, Rice was for many years involved in the paper business, and entered Boston politics in 1853. As mayor, he helped broker an agreement that began development of itsBack Bay area. His Congressional service included the introduction of the failedCrittenden Compromise, oversight of naval affairs during the Civil War, and resistance toRadical Republican actions. As governor, he promoted social reform legislation and reductions in working hours.
Alexander Hamilton Rice was born inNewton Lower Falls, Massachusetts, to Thomas and Lydia (Smith) Rice, on August 30, 1818. His father, aBrighton native, owned a paper manufacturing business inNewton, and both parents had deep colonial roots.[1][2] His uncleCharles was a brigadier general in the Massachusetts state militia and also served as a state legislator.[3][4][5]
Rice was first educated in the Newton public schools, and then at private schools inNeedham and Newton.[1][6] He first clerked at aBoston dry goods store, and then apprenticed in the Boston paper distributor Wilkins, Carter, and Company in Boston.[6] In 1840 he enteredUnion College inSchenectady, New York, graduating as class valedictorian in 1844.[7] He was injured in a fall from a horse in 1844,[1] which disfigured his face and gave him a speech impediment.[8] This prompted him to give up thoughts of pursuing a career in law, and he instead focused on business.[7] He was eventually able to overcome his speech problems, and later became well known as a commanding speaker.[9]
After his graduation, Rice entered into partnership with the proprietors of Wilkins, Carter, forming what eventually became known as the Rice-Kendall Company.[6] The firm owned a large warehouse in Boston and was one of the leading paper distributors in the city. The warehouse was destroyed in theGreat Boston Fire of 1872, but this did not significantly damage the business.[10] The company owned several paper mills in New England and distributed paper products to newspaper and book publishers nationwide.[11] Rice also invested in paper manufacturing operations, serving as president of both the Keith Paper Company inTurners Falls, Massachusetts and the American Sulphite Pulp Company.[1]
In 1853, Rice entered local politics, winning election to theBoston City Council, representing the eleventh ward. He served for two years, and in 1854 was also the council president.[7][12] In 1854, he also served as president of theBoston School Committee.[7] Rice was electedmayor of Bostonin 1856 (as a "Citizens" candidate opposed to theKnow Nothings), and served two one-year terms.[8] During his tenure, an agreement was reached between the city, state and owners of a tidal waterworks concerning development of theBack Bay, then a smelly swamp laden with trash and sewage. The agreement authorized the construction of what is now Arlington Street, and specifically set aside as parkland the area between it and Charles Street, which is now theBoston Public Garden.[13] He later sat on the committees responsible for the commissioning and installation of the statues ofGeorge Washington andCharles Sumner in the Public Garden.[14] He also authorized construction of thecity's first hospital,[15] and repurposed the city's almshouse onDeer Island for use as an insane asylum and workhouse, the state having taken over care of the indigent.[16]
Rice participated in the founding of theRepublican Party in Massachusetts.[8] He was elected to theU.S. House of Representatives in 1858, and served four terms, from 1859 to 1867. He waschairman of theCommittee on Naval Affairs from 1863 to 1865.[7] He was a conservative Republican, opposed toRadical Republican positions on the abolition of slavery,[17] and was considered by labor interests to favor positions of the "moneyed class".[18] He introduced theCrittenden Compromise to the House in January 1861; his speech on this last-ditch attempt to preventcivil war received a lukewarm reception.[19] After the war, he was elected as a Third Class Companion of theMilitary Order of the Loyal Legion of the United States in recognition of his support for the Union.[20]
Rice refused to stand for reelection,[18] and then left politics for a time, devoting himself to his business interests. In 1872, after the Boston fire, he served on a relief committee that assisted in dealing with its aftermath.[21] In 1871, Rice was one of a number of contenders for the Republican nomination forGovernor of Massachusetts, a contest which was dominated byBenjamin Butler and won byWilliam B. Washburn.[22][23] In 1875, he won the nomination, and defeated incumbent DemocratWilliam Gaston in the general election. He served three one-year terms before retiring from politics for good.[14]
Legislation enacted during Rice's tenure included a child labor law mandating a minimum age of fourteen for factory work.[14] He generally supported legislation improving social conditions, but was unsuccessful in enacting a proposed reorganization of the state's major charities.[8] He also let stand the state's "local option" alcohol law, for which he was criticized bytemperance activists.[24] He also chaired a committee formed in 1876 to oversee the rescue from demolition of the historicOld South Meeting House. As a result of the committee's work, ownership of the building was passed to a nonprofit dedicated to its preservation.[25][26]
One issue that had dominated Rice's race against Gaston in 1875 concerned the juvenile murdererJesse Pomeroy. Pomeroy, then fourteen years old, had been convicted in December 1874 of first degree murder for killing a girl earlier that year, and had been sentenced to death. There was public clamor favoring his execution, especially after he attempted to escape from prison. Gaston, despite two rulings by theGovernor's Council that clemency be denied, refused to sign the execution order, an unpopular move that probably cost him votes. Rice also refused to sign the execution order, but his Council eventually recommended commutation of Pomeroy's sentence to life in solitary confinement.[27]
Rice died at the Langwood Hotel inMelrose, Massachusetts, on July 22, 1895,[28] after a lengthy illness.[24] He was buried at Newton Cemetery.[29]
Rice was married twice. In 1845, he married Augusta McKim, with whom he had three children before her death in 1868. He had one son by his second wife, Angie Erickson Powell ofRochester, New York.[6][30] His grandsonAlexander Hamilton Rice Jr. was a physician and explorer inSouth America.[2][31]
The city of Boston named a school in Rice's honor in 1868. Later renamed the Rice-Bancroft School, the building, located at Dartmouth and Appleton Streets in Boston'sSouth End, now houses residential condominiums.[32]
{{cite book}}:ISBN / Date incompatibility (help)| Party political offices | ||
|---|---|---|
| Preceded by | Republican nominee forGovernor of Massachusetts 1875,1876,1877 | Succeeded by Thomas Talbot |
| Political offices | ||
| Preceded by | Mayor ofBoston, Massachusetts 1856–1857 | Succeeded by |
| Preceded by | Governor of Massachusetts January 6, 1876 – January 2, 1879 | Succeeded by |
| U.S. House of Representatives | ||
| Preceded by | Member of the U.S. House of Representatives fromMassachusetts's 4th congressional district March 4, 1859 – March 3, 1863 | Succeeded by |
| Preceded by | Member of the U.S. House of Representatives fromMassachusetts's 3rd congressional district March 4, 1863 – March 3, 1867 | Succeeded by |
Chairs of theUnited States House Committee on Armed Services | ||
|---|---|---|
| Military Affairs Committee (1822–1947) |  | |
| Naval Affairs Committee (1822–1947) | ||
| Armed Services Committee* (from 1947) | ||
*Alternately namedNational Security in 104th and 105th Congresses. | ||
| International | |
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| National | |
| People | |
| Other | |
