Oakes Ames | |
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| Member of theU.S. House of Representatives fromMassachusetts's2nd district | |
| In office March 4, 1863 – March 3, 1873 | |
| Preceded by | James Buffington |
| Succeeded by | Benjamin W. Harris |
| Personal details | |
| Born | (1804-01-10)January 10, 1804 Easton, Massachusetts, U.S. |
| Died | May 8, 1873(1873-05-08) (aged 69) Easton, Massachusetts, U.S. |
| Political party | Republican |
| Spouse | Evelina Orville Gilmore |
| Children | Oakes andOliver |
| Relatives | Oliver Ames Sr. (father) Oliver Ames Jr. (brother) |
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Oakes Ames (January 10, 1804 – May 8, 1873) was an American businessman, investor, and politician. He was a member of theUnited States House of Representatives fromMassachusetts. As a congressman, he is credited by many historians as being the single most important influence in the building of theUnion Pacific portion of thetranscontinental railroad. He is also noted for the subsequentscandal that alleged the improper sale of stock of the railroad's construction company.
Ames was born inEaston, Massachusetts, the son of Susanna (Angier) Ames andOliver Ames Sr., ablacksmith who had built a business of making shovels, theAmes Shovel Shop, and became nicknamed "King of Spades".[1][2] In his youth, he obtained a public school education and later worked in the family workshops to learn each step of the manufacturing process. He eventually became a partner in the business, and with his brotherOliver Ames Jr. he established the firm Oliver Ames & Sons. Driven by the settlement of theMidwest, by the discovery of gold in California and Australia, as well as by railroad construction, the shovel manufacturing business boomed. During theCivil War, the firm prospered with contracts for swords, shovels, and other tools and implements.[3] Ames made a large fortune.
He was influential in the establishment of theRepublican Party in Massachusetts. In 1860, he became a member of the executive council of Massachusetts, and from 1863 to 1873 he served in Congress as a U.S. Representative for the Second District of Massachusetts. While there, he became a member of the Committee on Railroads during the early building of the transcontinental railroad. In 1865,President Abraham Lincoln appealed to him to take control of the Union Pacific (UP) portion of the project, which had become mired down because of the war, and had built only 12 miles (19 km) of track.
Through his influence he obtained contracts for his family firm in the construction of the Union Pacific and staked nearly all the family's holdings as capitalization for the project. The contracts were later transferred to theCredit Mobilier Company of America after Ames ousted its founderThomas Durant. His brother Oliver was appointed president of the UP in 1866. The railroad was completed in 1869.[4]
In 1872, it was disclosed Ames sold shares in Credit Mobilier to fellow congressmen at a price greatly below the market value of the stock. The subsequent public scandal led to a House investigation, which formally recommended expulsion. On February 28, 1873, the House passed a resolution formallycensuring Ames "in seeking to secure congressional attention to the affairs of a corporation in which he was interested, and whose interest directly depended upon the legislation of Congress, by inducing members of Congress to invest in the stocks of said corporation."[5] Detractors referred to him as "Hoax Ames".[6] Ames died soon afterward atNorth Easton, Massachusetts, May 5, 1873, due to a stroke.[7][2]
On May 10, 1883, the 14th anniversary of the completion of the railroad, thestate legislature of Massachusetts passed a resolution exonerating Ames.[3] His sonOliver Ames served asGovernor from 1887 to 1890.[8]
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The contributions of Ames and his brother Oliver in the building of the Union Pacific are commemorated in theOliver and Oakes Ames Monument at Sherman Summit, nearLaramie, Wyoming, along the original route. Thepyramidal monument was designed by famous architectHenry Hobson Richardson (who designed a number of projects for the Ames family) with sculpted plaques of the Ames brothers byAugustus Saint-Gaudens. At the time of its construction, the monument was located at the highest point attained by the UP's transcontinental route. With a change in the route of the railroad, the monument today is not on any major transportation route.
The city ofAmes, Iowa is named for Oakes,[9] as is likely the community ofAmes, Nebraska, and Ames Avenue inOmaha.
Johnson, Rossiter, ed. (1906). "Ames, Oakes".The Biographical Dictionary of America. Vol. 1. Boston: American Biographical Society. pp. 104–105. "Ames, Oakes".The Biographical Dictionary of America. Vol. 1. 1906. pp. 104–105.
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| Preceded by | Member of theU.S. House of Representatives fromMassachusetts's 2nd congressional district 1863–1873 | Succeeded by |
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