U.S. Data Repository http://www.us-data.org/ -- USGenNet Inc. -- Please read the U.S. Data Repository Copyright Statement on the following page: ------------------------------------------------------------------- Elkins, Stephen Benton (1841-1911) ------------------------------------------------------------------- Men of West Virginia, Volume II Biographical Publishing Company George Richmond, Pres.: C. R. Arnold, Sec'y and Treas. Chicago, Illinois, 1903 Pages 622-625 HON. STEPHEN BENTON ELKINS, who has attained eminence as a lawyer, financier and statesman, whose name is familiar to every student of the country's history, is a man of more than exceptional ability as he is also of striking appearance. As Secretary of War in the cabinet of the late President Benjamin Harrison, he displayed great qualities of statesmanship which did much to promote international peace, and as senior United States Senator from West Virginia, he is regarded as one of the most capable and forceful men in the Senate of the United States. Senator Elkins was born on his father's farm, in Perry County, Ohio, September 26, 1841. During his early boyhood, his father removed to Missouri and he there obtained his education in the public schools in his vicinity, and later in the State University of Missouri, graduating from the latter in 1860, at the head of his class. He entered upon the study of the law, but early in the progress of the Civil War he entered the Union Army and served as captain of a company for some lime on the Missouri border. He was admitted to the bar in 1863, and in 1864 went to New Mexico for the practice of his profession. In many ways this field was undesirable as it was then a rough border country, with a population that was two-thirds Spanish. But this condition was no deterrent to a man of the calibre of Senator Elkins. He mastered the Spanish language, becoming through hard study proficient in the tongue, in one year. His capacity was soon so thoroughly tested and proved that clients flocked to him and he gained popularity and influence. Although yet young in years, his fellow citizens recognized his great ability and in 1866 sent him to the Territorial Legislature. He did not disappoint his friends, his work in that body constantly displaying his devotion to the welfare of the Territory. In 1867 he was made Attorney General of New Mexico. In the following year he was appointed by President Johnson, United States district attorney for the Territory, and he was one of the few officials of that administration who met with the approval of President Grant. In this position it became the duty of Senator Elkins to enforce the act of Congress, prohibiting slavery in the territories of the United States and he was the first official who quietly and faithfully executed the law, although he met with dangerous opposition from the rich and influential and even suffered threats of personal violence. In 1873 Senator Elkins was elected a delegate from the Territory to the 43rd Congress, by a majority of 4,000 votes over his Mexican opponent, and in 1875 he was re-elected. In Congress he rapidly gained prominence through his industry, ability and effective support of important measures, and during his second term he was untiring in his efforts to secure the admission of New Mexico as a State. Senator Elkins has always been stanch in his Republicanism, and his four active years in Washington brought him into close association with public affairs and he became a prominent supporter of the policy of protection to American industries. In 1875 he was appointed a member of the Republican National Committee upon which he served through three presidential campaigns. In 1884 the executive committee elected him chairman and it was mainly through his personal friendship for both James G. Blaine and, later, Benjamin Harrison, that both of these distinguished men became candidates for the Presidency. On December 17, 1891, he became Secretary of War, under President Harrison, an appointment which brought to that office a natural born statesman of intellectual strength, an excellent organizer and a most courteous and diplomatic gentleman. After closing his term of service in Congress, in 1878 Senator Elkins removed from New Mexico to West Virginia. Prior to that he had, however, become a man of business as well as a politician and was ranked with the capitalists of the Southwest. For 13 years he was president of the First National Bank of Santa Fe and was one of the largest land owners in the country and an extensive owner of silver mines in Colorado. After removing to West Virginia, in company with his father-in-law, ex-Senator Davis, he devoted himself, apart from political life, to the development of the great natural resources of the State, in the coal and timber business as well as in the construction of railroads. While success has crowned these enterprises and amassed fortunes for their promoter, the benefits accruing to the State in the wake of these developments can scarcely be counted. Thousands of dollars of capital have been invested here, bringing prosperity to the inhabitants and furnishing employment to all who wish to labor. Senator Elkins has been vice-president of the West Virginia Central & Pittsburg Railroad Company since its organization, and of the Piedmont & Cumberland Railroad, and is also president of the Davis Coal & Coke Company. The Republicans of the Legislature of West Virginia, in December, 1892, gave Senator Elkins the complimentary vote for United States Senator. In 1894 he led the Republicans of this State in a struggle, which, for the first time since the period of reconstruction, broke the solid South. It is known in political history as the Elkins-Wilson contest, Mr. Wilson being defeated by a decisive majority, and the State being carried by the Republicans by 13,000 majority. Senator Elkins was elected to his First term in the United States Senate by the Legislature of 1895, and to his second term by the Legislature of 1901. While in Congress, Senator Elkins married a daughter of ex-Senator Henry G. Davis, of West Virginia, a woman of great personal charm, refinement and social ability. At Elkins, in Randolph County, is "Halliehurst", the beautiful country seat of Mr. Elkins. It is a mansion of four stories, with many towers, and stands upon a mountain site of unusual beauty, and from a distance resembles an old storied castle of other lands, the difference being that this home lacks no modern appointments for comfort. Senator Elkins resides casually in New York, where he has interests and enjoys the companionship of many friends in that great center. He belongs to the Union League, Republican, Ohio, United Service, Metropolitan and Manhattan Athletics clubs and the Southern Society. He contributes also to the New York Metropolitan Museum of Art, the American Museum of Natural History, and the American Geographical Society. Personally Senator Elkins is of commanding appearance, a noble type of an American citizen. His courtly manner in society gives place to geniality with his friends, and he has long been beloved by his constituents and respected by his opponents, who feel proud of so distinguished a fellow citizen. ------------------------------------------------------------------- There is a large monument in Maplewood Cemetery, Elkins, Randolph County, WV Stephen Benton Elkins born in Perry County, Ohio September 26, 1841 died at Washington, D. C. January 4, 1911 - - - - - - - - - - - Hallie Davis Elkins wife of Stephen Benton Elkins born Dec. 19, 1853 died Mar. 1, 1933 ------------------------------------------------------------------- If you've reached this file through a SEARCH, you can access other biographies for Randolph County, WV by going to the following URL: http://www.us-data.org/wv/randolph/bios.html -------------------------------------------------------------------