Aaron H. Grout
Aaron Hinman Grout (January 18, 1879 – December 29, 1966) was an American judge and political figure who served as Secretary of State of Vermont.
Aaron Hinman Grout | |
|---|---|
From 1919's Memoir of General William Wallace Grout and Autobiography of Josiah Grout | |
| Member of the Vermont Senate from Chittenden County | |
| In office January 5, 1949 – January 3, 1951 Serving with William L. Hammond, Charles P. Smith Jr., Holger C. Petersen | |
| Preceded by | William L. Hammond, Charles P. Smith Jr., Ernest L. Whitney, John Deschenes |
| Succeeded by | Holger C. Petersen, Robert S. Babcock, Edward W. Mudgett, Fortis Abbott |
| Judge of the Burlington, Vermont Municipal Court | |
| In office February 1, 1933 – September 30, 1941 | |
| Preceded by | Hamilton S. Peck |
| Succeeded by | Myron I. Samuelson |
| 27th Vermont Secretary of State | |
| In office April 21, 1923 – March 4, 1927 | |
| Governor | Redfield Proctor Jr. Franklin S. Billings John E. Weeks |
| Preceded by | Harry A. Black |
| Succeeded by | Rawson C. Myrick |
| Member of the Vermont House of Representatives from Newport City | |
| In office January 5, 1921 – April 20, 1923 | |
| Preceded by | Dean N. Dwinell |
| Succeeded by | William C. Lindsay |
| State's Attorney of Orleans County, Vermont | |
| In office 1912–1916 | |
| Preceded by | Willard M. Wright |
| Succeeded by | Colby Stoddard |
| Personal details | |
| Born | January 18, 1879 Rock Island, Illinois, US |
| Died | December 29, 1966 (aged 87) Burlington, Vermont, US |
| Resting place | Lakeview Cemetery, Burlington, Vermont |
| Political party | Republican |
| Spouse | Edith Goddard Hart |
| Children | 2 |
| Education | University of Vermont |
| Profession | Attorney |
| Military service | |
| Allegiance | United States Vermont |
| Branch/service | Vermont Army National Guard |
| Years of service | 1893–1901 1910-1915 |
| Rank | Major |
| Unit | Staff of Governor George H. Prouty 1st Vermont Infantry Regiment |
| Battles/wars | Spanish–American War |
Early life edit
Grout was born in Rock Island, Illinois, on January 18, 1879.[1] He was the son of Governor Josiah Grout and Harriet Hinman Grout. He was also the nephew of Congressman William W. Grout.[2]
Grout was raised in Derby and Newport, Vermont, and graduated from Derby Academy in 1896.[3]
Military service edit
In 1893, he joined the National Guard. Enlisting in Company I, 1st Vermont Infantry Regiment as a private, he attained the rank of corporal before receiving his commission as a captain and serving as an aide to brigade commander Brigadier General Julius J. Estey. During the Spanish–American War, he aided Estey in organizing and mustering the National Guard soldiers who made up the unit federalized as the 1st Vermont Volunteer Infantry Regiment. He left the National Guard in 1901.[4]
Start of career edit
Grout graduated from the University of Vermont in 1901, studied law with Newport attorney John W. Redmond, and attained admission to the bar in 1904.[5] He practiced in Newport, first as an associate of the firm Young and Young, and later in partnership with his father.[6] A Republican, Grout served as a messenger in the Governor's office during his father’s term in office, 1896 to 1898. During the governorship of Fletcher D. Proctor (1906–1908), he was the governor's executive clerk. He served as Secretary of Civil and Military Affairs (chief assistant) to Governor George H. Prouty (1908 to 1910).[7]
Grout was chairman of the Orleans County Republican Convention in 1908, a delegate to the Republican state convention in 1908 and 1910, and president of the Newport Republican Club in 1908 and 1910.[8] From 1912 to 1916, Grout served as Orleans County State’s Attorney, a position previously held by his uncles Theophilus and William Grout.[9]
Continued military service edit
During his service on Governor Prouty's staff, Grout also served as Prouty's military secretary with the rank of major, and he continued his military service after 1910 as the Judge Advocate of the Vermont National Guard.[10]
During World War I, he was a lieutenant colonel in the Vermont Volunteer Militia, the home guard organization formed to handle the National Guard's domestic missions while its soldiers were deployed overseas.[11]
Later career edit
Grout served in the Vermont House of Representatives from 1921 to 1923.[12] In 1923, the Secretary of State, Harry A. Black, died in office. Grout was appointed to fill the vacancy. He was elected to a full two-year term in 1924, and was re-elected in 1926. He served as Secretary of State from the time of his appointment in April 1923 until resigning in May 1927.[13]
Grout resigned as Secretary of State to relocate to Burlington and become Treasurer and Manager of the Vermont Acceptance Corporation, a company that made loans to finance the purchase of homes, automobiles and other items.[14]
From 1933 to 1941, Grout was Judge of Burlington's Municipal Court.[15] In 1948, he was elected to a term in the Vermont Senate.[16]
Civic memberships edit
Grout was a member of the Congregational church.[17] He was a member of the Grange and the Memphremagog Yacht Club, president of the Burlington Rotary Club and a member of the Kappa Sigma fraternity.[18]
Grout was an active member of the Masons. He attained the 33rd Degree of the Scottish Rite, and served as Vermont's Masonic Grand Master.[19]
Death and burial edit
Grout died in Burlington on December 29, 1966.[20] He is buried at Lakeview Cemetery in Burlington.[21]
Family edit
In 1907, Grout married Edith Goddard Hart of Chelsea, Massachusetts.[22] Their children included daughters Eleanor (1911–1937) and Nancy (1913–1987).[23]
Other edit
Grout's home at 370 Main Street in Burlington was built in 1881. It is still standing, and has gone through several owners and remodelings. Since 2000, it has been operated as the Lang House Bed & Breakfast.[24]
References edit
- ^ Vermont Secretary of State, Legislative Directory, 1888, page 429
- ^ James Terry White, The National Cyclopedia of American Biography, 1898, page 331
- ^ Vermont Secretary of State, Legislative Directory, 1929, page 442
- ^ Prentiss Cutler Dodge, Encyclopedia of Vermont Biography, 1912, page 207
- The Vermonter magazine, Vermont in the Spanish–American War, June 1898, page 249 - ^ Vermont Secretary of State, Legislative Directory, 1915, page 569
- Encyclopedia of Vermont Biography - ^ Vermont Secretary of State, Legislative Directory, 1915, page 569
- Encyclopedia of Vermont Biography - ^ Vermont Secretary of State, Legislative Directory, 1896, page 267
- Vermont Secretary of State, Acts and Laws, Passed by the Legislature of the State of Vermont, 1908, page 586
- Vermont General Assembly, Journal of the Vermont General Assembly, 1908, page 17 - ^ Encyclopedia of Vermont Biography
- ^ J.C. Schwarz, Who's Who in Law, Volume 1, 1937, page 380
- Ebenezer Mack Treman, The History of the Treman, Tremaine, Truman Family in America, Volume 2, 1901, page 1613 - ^ Walton's Vermont Register, Vermont Military Department, 1910, page 43
- Vermont Secretary of State, Legislative Directory, 1915, pages 454, 569 - ^ John T. Cushing, Harold Pearl Sheldon, Vermont in the World War, 1928, pages 499-500
- ^ Vermont Secretary of State, Legislative Directory, 1929, page 442
- ^ National Association of Secretaries of State, Handbook, 1977, page 101
- Vermont Secretary of State, , 2011, page 2 - ^ Who's Who in Law
- ^ Essex County Republican, Vermont Notes January 8, 2014, at the Wayback Machine, February 10, 1933
- Vermont General Assembly, Journal of the Vermont General Assembly, 1967, page 92 - ^ "Successful Chittenden County Senators". Burlington Daily News. Burlington, VT. November 3, 1948. p. 3 – via Newspapers.com.
- ^ Vermont Legislative Directory, 1915
- ^ Encyclopedia of Vermont Biography
- University of Vermont, Consuelo Northrup Bailey Papers, Burlington Zonta Club Charter Night Dinner, December 17, 1930, retrieved January 7, 2014 - ^ Scottish Rite Council of Deliberation, Proceedings of Michigan Council of Deliberation, 1967, page 19
- Order of the Eastern Star, Grand Chapter of Vermont, Proceedings of the Sixtieth Annual Session, 1932, pages 11, 98 - ^ Vermont Death Records, 1909–2008, entry for Aaron H. Grout, retrieved November 7, 2014
- U.S. Social Security Death Index, 1935-Current, entry for Aaron H. Grout, retrieved January 7, 2014 - ^ . December 30, 1966. p. 13. Archived from the original on 9 December 2019. Retrieved 9 December 2019 – via Newspapers.com.
{{cite news}}: CS1 maint: bot: original URL status unknown (link) - ^ Massachusetts Marriage Records, 1840–1915, entry for Aaron H Grout and Edith Goddard Hart, retrieved January 7, 2014
- Vermont, Vital Records, 1720–1908, marriage record for Aaron Hinman Grout and Edith Goddard Hart, retrieved January 7, 2014 - ^ 1920 United States Federal Census, entry for Aaron H. Grout, retrieved January 7, 2014
- Vermont Death Records, 1909–2008, entry for Eleanor Hart Grout, retrieved January 7, 2014
- Vermont Death Records, 1909–2008, entry for Nancy Stewart Grout Churchill, retrieved January 7, 2014 - ^ University of Vermont, Historic Burlington: 360 Main Street, retrieved January 7, 2014