William E. Dodge

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William E. Dodge

William Earl Dodge (born September 4, 1805 in Hartford , Connecticut , † February 9, 1883 in New York City ) was an American businessman and politician .

Dodge was born in Hartford, the second son of David Low Dodge , founder of the New York Peace Society . His wife was Melissa Phelps (1809-1903), daughter of Anson Green Phelps and Olivia Egleston. Because of its business success, Dodge was also known as one of Wall Street's "Merchant Princes" who dominated the economy in the years before the Civil War . Dodge also campaigned for the rights of the slaves and Indians of North America . From April 1866 to March 1867 he represented New York State as a Republican in the US House of Representatives . He was also a founding member of the YMCA .

Business success

In 1834, Dodge and his father-in-law Anson Green Phelps founded the Phelps, Dodge and Company mining company . At first they traded in American products in exchange for copper, iron, tin and other metals from England to America. In 1881, however, they got into the mining business themselves and bought mines in Arizona . Today Dodge Phelps Corporation is one of the largest mining companies in the world.

A consortium of businessmen, led by Dodge, bought large wooded areas in Georgia during the Civil War. They built the Macon and Brunswick Railroad to connect the city of Macon with the hinterland. In 1870 Dodge County was established and the foundation stone for the city of Eastman was laid at Railroad Station 13. Dodge, the county's namesake, only visited the area once when he inaugurated a two-story courthouse.

A statue of William E. Dodge sits on the north side of Bryant Park in New York City.

Commitment to the Indians

Dodge was heavily involved in the reform movement for better treatment of the Indians. He supported projects by Peter Cooper and Ulysses S. Grant to make peace with the Indians. In 1869, Dodge toured Indian Territory (now Oklahoma ) and Kansas as a member of the government's Indian Commission to discuss US Indian policy with representatives from the Cheyenne , Arapaho, and Kiowa . He also promoted the prosecution of the cavalry commander who was responsible for the 1870 massacre in Montana , where 173 Blackfoot Indians lost their lives. Dodge also used his influence in Washington to give the Indians an education.

literature

  • Lowitt, Richard (1954): A Merchant Prince of the Nineteenth Century: William E. Dodge. New York: Columbia University Press

Web links

personal data
SURNAME Dodge, William E.
ALTERNATIVE NAMES Dodge, William Earl (full name)
BRIEF DESCRIPTION American businessman and politician
DATE OF BIRTH September 4, 1805
PLACE OF BIRTH Hartford , Connecticut
DATE OF DEATH February 9, 1883
Place of death New York City