Henry C. Bates

Henry Clay Bates (1843-1909)

Henry Clay Bates (January 29, 1843 – March 12, 1909) was a Vermont lawyer and politician who served as the 40th Lieutenant Governor of Vermont and as a federal judge.

Biography

Henry Clay Bates was born in Derby Line, Vermont on January 29, 1843.^[1][2]

He taught school in Vermont and Maine and studied law before enlisting for the Civil War. Bates served as a member of Company C, 4th Massachusetts Heavy Artillery.^[3][4]

After the war he was an active member of the Grand Army of the Republic.^[5]

Bates resumed his legal studies after leaving the Army, attained admission to the bar in 1866 and practiced law in St. Johnsbury.^[6]

A Republican, he served in numerous local offices, including Superintendent of Schools of Guildhall and Town Meeting Moderator of St. Johnsbury.^[7]

Bates also served as Caledonia County State's Attorney from 1880 to 1882 and 1892 to 1894.^[8][9]

From 1886 to 1890 Bates was a member of the Vermont Senate and served as Senate President.^[10]

Bates served in the Vermont House of Representatives from 1896 to 1897.^[11]

In 1898 he won election as Lieutenant Governor and served until 1900.^[12]

He participated in numerous county and state Republican conventions, and was a Delegate to the 1900 Republican National Convention.^[13][14]

In 1901 Bates was appointed one of the United States Judges for the Philippines Territory.^[15] He served until his 1907 resignation, afterwards living in retirement in Berkeley, California.^[16]

Bates died in Berkeley on March 12, 1909 after having been ill as the result of his service in the Philippines.^[17][18][19] He was buried at Smithland Cemetery in Smithland, Iowa, where his wife's family resided.^{[20][21][22][23]}

References

1. Biography of the Bar of Orleans County, Vermont, by Frederick W. Baldwin, 1886, pages 241 to 243
2. Who's Who in New England, by Albert Nelson Marquis, Volume 1, 1909, page 85
3. The New England Magazine, America Company Publishers, Boston, Volume 33, (September 1905-February 1906), 1906, page 746
4. Herringshaw's National Library of American Biography, published by American Publishers' Association, Chicago, Volume 1, 1909, page 261
5. Journal of the National Encampment, published by Grand Army of the Republic, pages 21 to 23, 1887, page 27
6. The town of St. Johnsbury, Vt.: A Review of One Hundred Twenty-five Years to the Anniversary Pageant of 1912, published by The Cowles Press, St. Johnsbury, 1912, pages 441 to 442
7. Vermont School Report, published by Vermont Department of Education, 1872, page 186
8. Gazetteer of Caledonia and Essex Counties, Vt. 1764-1887, compiled and published by Hamilton Child, 1897, page 54
9. Journal of the Senate of the State of Vermont, published by Vermont General Assembly, 1881, page 465
10. Journal of the Senate of the State of Vermont, published by Vermont General Assembly, 1886, pages 5, 328
11. Successful Vermonters: A Modern Gazetteer of Caledonia, Essex, and Orleans Counties, by William Hartley Jeffrey, pages 54 to 56
12. Vermont Historical Reader, by Edward Conant, 1907, page 166
13. Newspaper article, The Republican League, New York Times, February 16, 1888
14. Official Proceedings of the Republican National Convention, published by the convention, 1900, page 78
15. Albany Law Journal, published by Albany Law School, Volumes 63-65, (January 1901 to January 1902), 1902, page 166
16. War Department Annual Reports, published by United States War Department, 1909, page 616
17. Newspaper article, Work on Islands Fatal to Jurist, San Francisco Call, March 13, 1909
18. Law Notes, published by Edward Thompson Company, Volume 13 (April 1909 to March 1910), 1910, page 35
19. Newspaper article, An Eminent Son of Vermont, Boston Evening Transcript, March 15, 1909
20. VermontCivilWar.Org Database, Soldiers credited to, born in, or buried in Derby, VT, accessed December 4, 2011
21. Henry C. Bates at Find a Grave
22. Laura Jenness Bates at Find A Grave
23. Polly R. Jenness at Find A Grave