#35 Charles Foster

Charles Foster

Born: April 12, 1828 

Died: January 9, 1904
Political Party: Republican
Term of Office: January 12, 1880 - January 14, 1884
Buried: Fountain Cemetery Fostoria, Ohio
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     Charles Foster was born in Seneca County, Ohio in 1828. When he was young his father opened a store that would grow to be very successful. Foster's education was limited as he was required to stay at home and work in the family store as his father experienced health problems. At the age of 18, Foster became a partner in the family store. In 1854, when 2 nearby towns merged into 1. The new community was named Fostoria in honor of the Foster family. I thought that this was interesting since Fostoria is well known to me. It's only about a half hour from where I grew up and my Mom actually worked in a factory there for 30 years.

    When the Civil War broke out Foster did not join the military. Instead he helped the war effort in other ways like recruiting and he became well known for his generosity in extending lines of credit to families of deployed Union soldiers.

   Foster entered politics in 1870 when he was elected to the U.S. House of Representatives. He would serve 4 - 2 year terms in Congress before loosing reelection in 1878. Along the way he supported the successful Presidential campaign of Ohio Governor Rutherford B. Hayes.

   Foster ran for Governor of Ohio in 1879 and won. As Governor he worked on making the state government run more efficiently. He won reelection in 1881, but his support of the temperance movement and raising taxes on liquor caused him to loose reelection to a 3rd term in 1883.

    After returning home, Foster served as President of the Northwestern Ohio Natural Gas Company. 

    Foster  reentered politics in 1891 when President Benjamin Harrison chose him as his Secretary of the Treasury. He remained in that position until the end of Harrison's administration. 

    Throughout the course of his life, Foster expanded his vested interest beyond his family store. These investments included oil, railroads, rubber and mining. 

    In January 1904, Foster was visiting a friend in Springfield, Ohio. He intended on attending the inauguration of Governor Myron T. Herrick in a few days. But he passed away unexpectedly through the night on January 9, 1904. 

    When I read the story it seemed familiar. I am currently going through and expanding on some of these older pages. One of the more recent Governor gravesites that I have visited is the gravesite of Asa Bushnell in Springfield. Foster died in Springfield a few days before Herricks Inauguration. Bushnell was from Springfield, he attended Herricks Inauguration, but took sick afterwords and died in Columbus a few days later.  I guess it was an eventful week in Ohio Governor history. 

I visited the gravesite of Governor Charles Foster on January 15, 2012. I had really been enjoying updating all these blogposts on Governor gravesites in the previous few days. I really wanted to start getting more of them. By far the closest Governor gravesite to where I live is Charles Foster in Fostoria. I have driven through Fostoria many times over the years and have never stopped to find Governor Foster. So after church I made the 15 minute drive over to Fostoria from Findlay and got another Governor gravesite. 

When you enter Fostoria you see these historical markers noting that Charles Foster lived here

Foster family gravesite Fountain Cemetery Fostoria, Ohio

Governor Fosters individual marker

Charles Foster and I

#28 Jacob D. Cox

Jacob D. Cox

Born: October 27, 1828
Died: August 4, 1900
Political Party: Republican
Term of Office: January 8, 1866 - January 13, 1868
Buried: Spring Grove Cemetery Cincinnati, Ohio
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   Jacob D. Cox was born in Montreal, Canada in 1828.  His father was a construction contractor from New York and was working on the Church of Notre Dame in Montreal at the time of Jacob's birth. After the church was build, the Cox family moved back to New York. Cox was a descendant of Mayflower Pilgrim leader William Brewster.

  Cox graduated from Oberlein College in 1851 with a degree in theology. At Oberlein he married the daughter of the College President. After a falling out with his in laws he moved to Warren, Ohio and became the superintendent of the local school there. He also studied law, and was admitted into the Ohio bar in 1853.

   In the 1850's the Whig party died out as the Republican party was on the rise. Cox helped organize the Republican Party around Warren and was elected to the Ohio State Senate in 1859. In the Senate he met future President James A. Garfield and formed an alliance with him and another Oberlein graduate James Monroe (not the President). Cox, Garfield and Monroe became know as the "Radical Triumvirate" as they helped Governor William Dennison pass legislation leading up to the Civil War. In 1860, Cox became Brigadier General of the State Militia.

   As the war began, Cox left the State Senate and was appointed commander of Camp Jackson - a staging area that soldiers met before being deployed to field duty. Cox served in the Army throughout the war, raising to the rank of Major General. He would eventually lead troops in many battles, most notably Antietam and Atlanta. Later in life, Cox reflected on his time in the war and wrote several military history books.

   In 1865, Cox became Ohio's Union Parties Candidate for Governor. He won the election and resigned his service in the military upon taking office. In spite of his prewar abolitionist leanings, Cox did not support former slaves being given the right to vote. He also supported President Andrew Johnson's Reconstruction policies, which ultimately left him unpopular with fellow Republicans. He chose not to run for reelection in 1867 and opened up a law practice in Cincinnati.

   In 1869, President Grant chose Cox to be his Secretary of the Interior. Cox resigned as Secretary of the Interior after a year and a half due to his opposition to President Grant's compliance with the spoils system.

    From 1873 - 1878, Cox moved to Toledo and served as President of the Toledo and Wabash Railroad. While in Toledo, he was elected to a single term in the U.S. House of Representatives, serving from 1877-1879. He then moved back to Cincinnati, where he served time as both Dean of Cincinnati Law School and President of the University of Cincinnati. Cox later declined President McKinley's offer as Minister to Spain. He died in Massachusetts in 1900.

Governor Jacob D. Cox gravesite Spring Grove Cemetery Cincinatti, Ohio

Cox family gravemarker

Picture from my April 2017 revisit.

Governor Cox, my boys and I on my April 2017 revisit

#30 Edward F. Noyes

Edward F. Noyes

Born: October 3, 1832
Died: September 4, 1890
Political Party: Republican
Term of Office: January 8, 1872 - January 12, 1874
Buried: Spring Grove Cemetery Cincinnati, Ohio
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  Edward F. Noyes was born in Massachusetts. After his parents died when he was 3 years old he went to live with his Grandfather in New Hampshire. After graduating college at Dartmouth, Noyes moved to Cincinnati to attend Cincinnati Law School. He started practicing law in Cincinnati after his 1858 Law School graduation.

   When the Civil War broke out, Noyes helped organize the 39th Ohio Volunteer Infantry Regiment  and was commissioned the rant of Major. Noyes eventually earned the rank of Colonel. He served in the regiment for 3 years. On July 4, 1864, Noyes was injured in battle and as a result of the injury his left leg had to be amputated. 3 months later Major General Joseph Hooker appointed Noyes command of Camp Dennison in Ohio. Noyes later resigned from the Army to become City Colicitor of Cincinnati in April 1865.

   Noyes became more involved in politics and ran for Governor in 1871, beating the Democratic candidate George McCook. As Governor, Noyes pushed for stricter coal miner inspection laws and fish conservation. But his time as Governor was mostly uneventful. Noyes lost reelection in 1973 by 817 votes to William Allen.

     Noyes remained active in Ohio Republican politics and at the Republican National Convention in 1876, the Ohio delegation chose Noyes to nominate Rutherford B. Hayes for President of the United States. Noyes campaigned hard for Hayes and was ultimately rewarded with the position of Minister to France during the Hayes administration.

   After Noyes time as ambassador, he returned to Cincinnati to work in his law practice as he remained active in Republican politics. In 1889, Noyes was elected as a justice on the Cincinnati Supreme Court. He died unexpectedly in 1890.

    Governor Noyes was one of 3 Governors graves that I visited in Spring Grove cemetery in September 2010. I was pushed for time and so the other 6 Governors in Spring Grove I visited on a later trip.  Like many of my early Governor grave visits I failed to get a picture of me with the grave on my first trip. Since I have been editing these older posts I didn't like the way some of the pictures from the first trips turned out. So between wanting to get pictures of myself with some and better pictures of others. I really wanted to revisit Spring Grove. So I did in late April 2017. I had a window of about an hour to visit all 9 Governors. My kids and I did it about 45 minutes. In the process one of the worst thunder storms I've ever experienced hit the cemetery. Sadly the picture my daughter took of me at Governor Noyes gravesite didn't turn out to well. And I was in to big of a hurry to verify how it turned out. No big deal though. I'm sure I'll be back again. A lot of history in the area to see.

Governor Edward Noyes gravesite Spring Grover Cemetery Cincinnati, Ohio

Noyes family gravesite

Picture from my April 2017 revisit

Governor Noyes and I. A bit blurry in the rain

#23 Salmon P. Chase

Salmon P. Chase

Born: January 13, 1808
Died: May 7, 1873
Political Party: Republican
Term of Office: January 14, 1856 - January 9, 1960
Buried: Spring Grove Cemetery Cincinnati, Ohio
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   Salmon P. Chase was born in New Hampshire in 1808. His father died when he was 9 years old. He was 1 of 11 children and his mother couldn't support all of them. So he was sent to live with his Uncle Philander Chase in Ohio. When his Uncle moved to England, Chase moved back to New Hampshire where he attended Dartmouth College, where he graduated with honors in 1826. Chase moved to Washington DC where he studied law. He would eventually open up his law practice in Cincinnati.

    In his personal life, Chase was married 3 times and had several children. All 3 wives died young and only 2 of his children grew to be adults and would out live him. After his 3rd wife died in 1852, Chase decided to not remarry.

   As a lawyer, Chase earned a reputation as an abolitionist, defending slaves in many Fugitive Slave cases. In 1850, he was chosen to be a U.S. Senator from Ohio. In the Senate he continued his work in opposing slavery.

   In the election of 1855, Chase was chosen as the Republican parties first Candidate for Governor of Ohio. Chase won the election beating sitting Democratic Governor William Medill and former Governor and Know Nothing Party Candidate Allen Trimble. Chase would go onto win reelection in 1857. As Governor, he continued to focus on the issue of slavery, but also fought for women's rights and reforms in the state militia, education and the prison system.

   Chase unsuccessfully pursued the Republican nomination for President in 1856, 1860, 1864 and 1868. In 1860 the Ohio legislature sent Chase back to Washington as a U.S. Senator. But 2 days later he resigned to become President Lincoln's Secretary of the Treasury. As Secretary of the Treasury during the Civil War it was his job to figure out how to finance the Union war effort. He didn't always get along with President Lincoln. Which led to his resignation in July of 1864. However, when Chief Justice of the Supreme Court Roger Taney died 3 months later, Lincoln chose Chase to replace him. As Chief Justice, Chase administered the oath of office to Andrew Johnson upon Lincoln's death. He also presided over Johnson's Impeachment trial and confirmed the pardon of former Confederate President Jefferson Davis, as well as presiding over a number of important court cases.

   Chase remained Chief Justice until his death in 1873. He laid in state in the U.S. Capital Building and was buried in Washington DC. His body was later moved to Cincinnati. In 1934, Chase was honored when the Treasury department put his face on the 10,000 dollar bill. 



    I visited the gravesite of Salmon P. Chase in September 2011. I had been wanting to go down to the Cincinnati area to see several Presidential sites. I also wanted to make it to Spring Grove Cemetery. Along with Salmon P. Chase there are several big names buried there including both Procter and Gamble, Bernard Kroger, David Frisch, the parents of both President Taft and Grant, and 9 Governors of Ohio. Chase was on the top of my list to see there, while all of the other Governors were put at the bottom. As it turned out I had a limited amount of time in Spring Grove. By the time I got back to the Governors on the bottom of my list, I was only able to find 2 more of them before I had to head out. So in total I only got 3 of the 9 Governors there. But I was able to get the other 6 Governor's in the cemetery on another visit. 















Statue of Chase on the lawn of the State Capital Building in Columbus

Chase's gravesite in Spring Grove Cemetery Cincinatti, Ohio. His daughter, Kate Chase Sprague was a Washington DC socialite around the time of the Civil War

A nice view from the Chase gravesite

My cousin came along on this one so that I didn't need to take my own picture

This picture from an April 2017 revisit

It's a steep his up to Governor Chase's gravesite. My boys enjoyed the hike up.

April 2017 revisit with my boys

#46 and #48 James M. Cox

James M. Cox

Born: March 31, 1870
Died: July 15, 1957
Political Party: Democrat
Term of Office: January 13, 1913 - January 11, 1915 and
                        January 8, 1917 - January 10, 1921
Buried: Woodland Cemetery Dayton, Ohio
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  James M. Cox was born in 1870 to a farming family. As a young adult he became a teacher and eventually worked his way into journalism. He would become owner and editor of the Dayton Daily News and the Springfield News, among others...

    Cox entered politics in 1908 when he was elected to a seat in the U. S. House of Representatives. After 2 terms in Congress he ran for Governor in 1912 and won. In his 1st term as Governor, Ohio under went a great deal of Progressive reforms. Ohio officially adopted direct primaries, initiative and referendum. The state passed laws that dealt with education reform, prison reform and workmen's compensation.

    Cox lost reelection in 1914 to Republican Candidate Frank B. Willis. But Cox came back in 1916 and won the election, beating Governor Willis. Cox went on to serve 2, 2 years terms. Making him the first Governor to serve 3 full terms in office. In his 2nd and 3rd terms in office, Cox had to mobilize troops in Ohio for WW1. It was also time consuming in making sure that labor disputes in factories wouldn't disrupt the manufacturing of war supplies.


    In 1920, Governor Cox was picked to be the Democratic Parties Candidate for President. His running mate for Vice President was a pre polio Franklin D. Roosevelt. They ran against the Republican ticket of Ohio Senator Warren G. Harding for President and Massachusetts Governor Calvin Coolidge for Vice President. This is the only Presidential election in which Ohio would gain a President, no matter the outcome. The Harding Coolidge ticket won the election. This made Cox the only Presidential or Vice Presidential candidate that year to never become President. When FDR ran for President in 1932, 1936, 1940, and 1944, Cox was there to help campaign for him.

    In 1923, Cox founded the media conglomerate Cox Enterprises. Which consisted of several news papers and radio stations throughout the country. Cox Enterprises still exists today one of his daughters is a major shareholder.  Cox died in 1957 at the old age of 87.


    I visited the gravesite of Governor James M. Cox in January of 2011 after visited the Wright Patterson Air Force Base in Dayton, Ohio. Wright Patterson has an awesome collection of Presidential Air planes that I had really been wanting to see for awhile. After the Museum we headed over to Woodland Cemetery in Dayton to see the gravesite of the Wright Brothers. Governor Cox also happened to be buried there. So we paid him a visit as well.

FDR on the left, and Cox on the right, on the campaign trail in 1920.

Individual gravestone for Governor James M. Cox

Governor James M. Cox gravesite Woodland Cemetery Dayton, Ohio

Taking my own picture again

#49 Harry L. Davis

Harry L. Davis

Born: January 25, 1878
Died: May 21, 1950
Political Party: Republican
Term of Office: January 10, 1921 - January 8, 1923
Buried: Lake View Cemetery Cleveland, Ohio
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  Harry L. Davis was born in Cleveland in 1878 to a steelworker father. His Dad also served a few terms in the Ohio State Legislature. He became a steel worker as a young adult. He eventually started the Harry L. Davis Co. in which he sold insurance. For most of his adult life he would balance between politics and insurance.

   In 1909, Davis was elected treasurer of Cleveland. Then in 1915 he was elected Mayor of Cleveland. As Mayor, Davis had to deal with the May Day Riots of 1919, in which Communist and Socialist groups violently protested the imprisonment of renowned Socialist Eugene Debs. Davis's own home was bombed by Communist agitators.

    Davis ran for Governor in 1920 and won, beating the Democratic challenger A. Victor Donahey. As Governor, Davis spearheaded the Administrative Reorganization Code of 1921. This Code was meant to have the state government run more efficiently by cutting 37 different agencies, boards, ects... and replace them with 8 administrative departments, that the Governor would appoint directors of, with advice from the State Senate. The Departments were finance, commerce, highways and public works, agriculture, health, industrial relations, education and public welfare. Davis did not seek reelection in 1922.

   In 1924, Davis received the Republican nomination for Governor, but lost to A. Victor Donahey, who had won the 1922 election. Davis stayed out of politics until 1933 when he was elected to become Mayor of Cleveland again. After leaving the Mayor's office in 1935, he retired from politics and passed away in 1950.

  
      Davis was the 2nd and last Governor Gravesite that I visited when we visited Lake View Cemetery in September 2010. On my March 2017 revisit to Lake View Cemetery I revisited the grave of Governors Davis and Herbert, and this time was able to find Governor Myron T. Herrick which I wasn't able to find before. 



Davis's gravesite is very unassuming and would of been very difficult to find if not for this sign that gives you a rough idea of the location of the gravesite.

One could easily walk right past the Davis gravesite if your not paying attention.

Governor Harry L. Davis gravesite. Lake View Cemetery. Cleveland, Ohio

Governor Davis and I in 2010

Revisit with my kids in 2017

#56 Thomas J. Herbert

Thomas J. Herbert

Born: October 28, 1894
Died: October 26, 1974
Political Party: Republican
Term of Office: January 13, 1947 - January 10, 1949
Buried: Lake View Cemetery Cleveland, Ohio
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   Thomas Herbert was born in Cleveland in 1894. He graduated from Western Reserve University in 1915. He started to attend law school there but dropped out when WW1 broke out. As a fighter pilot, Herbert earned the rank of 1st Lieutenant. He flew combat missions over France and was shot down in 1918. After a 2 year long recovery, Herbert was highly decorated. He earned the British Distinguished Flying Cross, American Distinguished Service Cross and the Purple Heart. He returned to law school after his service and graduated in 1920, passing the Ohio bar exam that same year. In 1929, he became one of Ohio's assistant Attorney Generals, after years in local county offices. In 1938, he won the election to become Ohio's Attorney General. He was so widely respected in that position that he served as President of the National Association of Attorney Generals.

    Herbert sought the Republican nomination for Governor of Ohio in 1944, but didn't get it. He tried again in 1946 and won both the nomination of his party, and the Governorship, beating sitting Governor Frank Lausche. As Governor, Herbert lowered taxes, increased funding to public schools, and started a big road building and paving campaign. He also set aside money to help returning WW2 veterans. Herbert lost reelection in 1948 to former Governor Frank Lausche. All in all, Lausche ran for Governor 6 times in a row, and Herbert was the only one to beat him.

   Herbert remained active in politics and in 1953, President Eisenhower appointed him to be Chairman of the Subversive Activities Control Board. The soul purpose of this control board was to monitor Communist activities in the United States during the Cold War. Herbert left that job when he won a seat as a Justice in the Ohio State Supreme Court in 1957.

Herbert first wife, Janette passed away in 1945. As Governor he remarried. Through my research so far I think that he is the only Governor to get married while in office. But I will need to dig deeper to confirm this.

After one term in the Ohio State Supreme Court, Thomas Herbert retired from politics and passed away in 1974.

     In September 2010, my wife, daughter and I headed up to Cleveland to see the historical sites connected with President James A. Garfield. I had seen most of the sites before, but I forgot my camera on previous trips. So I wanted to get good pictures of everything. Also since my last visits I had started to look into the where abouts of the Ohio Governor Gravesites. 3 of then also happen to be buried in the same cemetery as President Garfield - Lake View Cemetery in Cleveland. Governors Thomas Herbert, Harry Davis and Myron T. Herrick are all buried in Lake View. I was only able to find Governors Herbert and Davis, on this trip. I returned a few times over the next few years. But finally in March 2017 I returned and was able to find Governor Herrick. I also revisited Governors Herbert and Davis while I was at it.

Thomas J. Herbert gravesite. Lake View Cemetery Cleveland, Ohio in 2010

I liked the Ohio State Seal on the top of the gravestone in 2010

Through the editing process I accidentally deleted the picture of me with the gravesite of Governor Herbert from my first stop in 2010. But here are my kids and I there on a 2017 revisit.

 

#47 Frank B. Willis

Frank B. Willis

Born: December 28, 1871
Died: March 30, 1928
Political Party: Republican
Term of Office: January 11, 1915 - January 8, 1917
Buried: Oak Grove Cemetery Delaware, Ohio
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   Frank B. Willis was born in Lewis Center, Ohio in 1871 to poor farmers. He attended Ohio Northern University in Ada, Ohio. After graduation he became a professor there, meanwhile he studied law and was admitted to the Ohio bar in 1906. In stead of setting up a law practice he decided to teach law courses at ONU.

  Willis entered Republican politics in 1900 when he was elected to a seat in the Ohio House of Representatives. After serving 2, 2year terms in state government he lost election to the U.S. House of Representatives. In 1910, he tried again and was elected to a seat in the U.S. House.

  
 In 1914, Willis ran for Governor and beat sitting Governor James M. Cox. As Governor, Willis revamped road laws and made new liquor control laws. He also mobilized troops to help fight Pancho Villa along the Mexican border.  Cox returned and beat Willis in his re election bid in 1916. Cox would go on to be the Democratic Candidate for President in 1920. In 1920, Willis placed  Ohio Senator Warren G. Hardings name in the running at the Republican National Convention. When Harding won the Presidential election that year, it left an opening in the U. S. Senate. Willis won the election for Hardings Senate seat in 1920. A seat that he held for the rest of his life.

In 1928, Senator Willis was in the planning stages to run for the Republican Nomination for President, when he died unexpectedly.



I visited the gravesite of Frank B. Willis on the way back from visiting southern Ohio on Memorial Day weekend 2010. He is buried in a fairly large cemetery, and we only had a picture to go by. Luckily his gravesite has a very unique marker. So we were eventually able to find it. I lost the pictures for this trip, but on Memorial Day weekend 2017, I made it back down for some pictures. 

Governor Willis, my kids and I

#22 William Medill

William Medill

Born: February, 1802
Died: September 2, 1865
Political Party: Democrat
Term of Office: July 13, 1853 - January 14, 1856
Buried: Elmwood Cemetery Lancaster, Ohio
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  William Medill was born in Delaware in 1802 to Irish farmers. After graduating college he studied law and was admitted to the Delaware State bar in 1830. He later moved to Lancaster, Ohio and was admitted to the Ohio bar in 1832.

   Medill entered politics in 1835 by being elected to the Ohio House of Representatives, where he served 4 terms. He was picked by his colleagues to serve as Ohio's Speaker of the House in 1836 and again in 1837. In 1838, Medill was elected to the U.S. House of Representatives, where he served 2, 2 terms before being losing reelection to a 3rd term in 1842. In congress he became known as a strong Democrat who opposed the Bank of the United States.

   In 1845, President Polk appointed Medill to become Commissioner of Indian Affairs. He served in this position for 5 years and oversaw the department of Indian Affairs move from the War department to department of the Interior. In 1850, Ohio had it's Constitutional Convention. Medill was selected by his fellow delegates to serve as President of the Constitutional Convention. At the Convention the office of Lt. Governor was created. In the next election of 1851, Medill was elected Ohio's 1st Lt. Governor, serving under Governor Reuben Wood.

   In 1853, William Medill became Governor of Ohio when Governor Wood resigned to accept an appointment as Consul to Chile. Later that year, Medill won the Governorship in his own right and served another 2 years. As Governor, he suggested that the state privatize means of transportation like canals and turnpikes. Although nothing was ever done about this while he was in office. He lost reelection in 1855 to future Secretary of the Treasury and Chief Justice of the Supreme Court Salmon P. Chase.

   In 1857, President Buchanan appointed Medill as 1st controller of the U.S. Treasury. He served in this position throughout Buchanan's 4 years in office. Medill opposed the Civil War, but in his retirement was to sick and weak to take as active roll in the opposition. He died in Lancaster, Ohio in 1865. Having never married.
 
      I visited the gravesite of William Medill on Memorial Day weekend 2010. My sister in law had a baby boy in the week or so leading up to Memorial Day weekend. So we went down to visit them in southern Ohio. On the way back I had maped out a few places to stop. I noticed that we would be driving through two cities that had a Governor gravesite a piece. The first one was Lancaster, Ohio and the gravesite of William Medill. It was easy to find. So I got a few pictures and then we were on our way. Before leaving Lancaster we stopped by the Birthplace of Civil War General William Tecumseh Sherman. We then continued towards home, but not before we would stop in Delaware, and the gravesite of Governor Frank B. Willis. I somehow lost the pictures of this trip. 

   I revisted the gravesite of Governor Medill a few years later on the way home from one of our trips down to southern Ohio to visit my sister in laws family. And got these pictures.





Revisit to Medill's grave 

Governor Medill and I