Henry M. Hyams

Henry M. Hyams
7th Lieutenant Governor of Louisiana
In office
1860–1864
Governor Thomas Overton Moore
Preceded by William F. Griffin
Succeeded by Benjamin W. Pearce
Member of the Louisiana Senate
In office
1855
Personal details
Born March 4, 1806
Charleston, South Carolina
Died June 25, 1875 (aged 69)
New Orleans, Louisiana
Resting place Lafayette Cemetery, New Orleans, Louisiana
Nationality American
Political party Democratic Party
Spouse(s) Laurel Matilda Smith
Occupation Lawyer, politician
Religion Judaism

Henry M. Hyams (March 4, 1806 - June 25, 1875) was an American politician. He served as the 7th Lieutenant Governor of Louisiana from 1862 to 1864 under Governor Thomas Overton Moore.

Early life

Henry M. Hyams was born on March 4, 1806 in Charleston, South Carolina.[1][2] His father was Samuel Myers Hyams (1766-1843) and his mother, Miriam Levy (1780-1821).[1] His cousin was Judah P. Benjamin (1811–1884).[3][4][5][6]

Career

Hyams was admitted to the Louisiana bar in 1830 and joined the law firm Dunbar and Elgee in Alexandria, Virginia, becoming one of the first Jews living in Alexandria.[6] He also operated a plantation.[6]

Hyams later practised the Law in New Orleans, Louisiana.[2][6] He then served as a clerk of the District Court of Natchitoches Parish, Louisiana.[1] He was elected to the Louisiana State Senate as a Democrat in 1855.[2] He then served as the Lieutenant Governor of Louisiana from 1862 to 1864.[3][4][5][7][8][9]

Hyams supported slavery.[2] Indeed, as early as the 1830s, he joined a vigilante to defend the institution of slavery.[2]

Personal life and death

Hyams was an observant Jew.[7] He married Laurel Matilda Smith (1817-1875), the daughter of Isaac Ambrose Smith and Elizabeth Ingraham.[1] He had three sons and a daughter:

Hyams died on June 25, 1875 in New Orleans, Louisiana.[1] He was buried in Lafayette Cemetery in New Orleans.[1]

References

  1. 1 2 3 4 5 6 FindAGrave: Henry M. Hyams
  2. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 Louisiana State University Libraries: Hyams (Henry M. and Family) Papers
  3. 1 2 Robert N. Rosen, The Jewish Confederates, Columbia, South Carolina: University of South Carolina Press, 2000, p. xi
  4. 1 2 Eli N. Evans, Judah P. Benjamin: The Jewish Confederate, New York City: Simon and Schuster, 1988, p. 29
  5. 1 2 Marcie Cohen Ferris, Mark I. Greenberg, Jewish Roots in Southern Soil: A New History, Lebanon, New Hampshire: University Press of New England, 2006, p. 109
  6. 1 2 3 4 Encyclopedia of Southern Jewish Communities - Alexandria, Louisiana, Institute of Southern Jewish Life
  7. 1 2 3 4 5 Robert N. Rosen, The Jewish Confederates, Columbia, South Carolina: University of South Carolina Press, 2000, p. 143
  8. ↑ Jonathan D. Sarna, Adam Mendelsohn, Jews and the Civil War: A Reader, New York City: NYU Press, 2010, p. 37
  9. ↑ Samuel S. Hill, Religion in the Southern States: A Historical Study, Macon, Georgia: Mercer University Press, 1983, p. 143
Political offices
Preceded by
William F. Griffin		 Lieutenant Governor of Louisiana
1860-1864 		Succeeded by
Benjamin W. Pearce
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