Hilary Abner Herbert (March 12, 1834 – March 6, 1919) was Secretary of the Navy in the second administration of President Grover Cleveland. He also served as a member of the United States House of Representatives from Alabama.
Secretary Herbert meeting with Commander Robert Lees Phythian
After the war, Herbert returned to his law practice in Greenville, Alabama. He was elected to Congress in 1877 from Montgomery, Alabama as a Democrat. He served eight terms in this office. During his tenure as Congressman, Herbert was chairman of the Committee on Naval Affairs and was largely responsible for the increased appropriations which led to the revival of the United States Navy. However, he was among those who favored a more limited program than the one proposed by Secretary of the Navy Benjamin F. Tracy in 1890, which called for 40 battleships; only four battleships were authorized as a result.[1] Tracy had been influenced by the works of naval strategist Captain Alfred Thayer Mahan, which called for a large fleet capable of offensive action.[2] Herbert also became well known for leading a charge in Congress to reduce the funding of the United States Geological Survey, resulting in a public feud with paleontologistOthniel Charles Marsh.
Herbert espoused racist views during his tenure in Congress, namely in his opposition to the Reconstruction Acts. Herbert vocally opposed the acts and any granting of suffrage to African Americans, speaking in congress and claiming African Americans were unfit to have such rights.[3] He claimed "the granting of universal suffrage to the Negro was the mistake of the nineteenth century".[3]
In 1893, President Grover Cleveland appointed Herbert as Secretary of the Navy. By this time Herbert was able to muster support for an enlarged navy, despite the Depression of 1893, and brought the fleet to some level of preparedness for the Spanish–American War. Having converted to Mahan's school of naval thought, five battleships (the Kearsarge and Illinois classes) and sixteen torpedo boats were authorized during Herbert's tenure.[4][5]
From 1897, when he left his Cabinet seat, to his death on March 6, 1919, six days before his 85th birthday, Herbert practiced law in Washington, D.C.
^ abVITALIS, ROBERT (2010). "The Noble American Science of Imperial Relations and Its Laws of Race Development". Comparative Studies in Society and History. 52 (4): 909–938. doi:10.1017/S0010417510000502. ISSN 0010-4175. JSTOR 40864901. S2CID 145467230.
Hammett, Hugh B. Hilary Abner Herbert: A Southerner Returns to the Union. Philadelphia: American Philosophical Society, 1976
Herbert, Hilary Abner. The Abolition Crusade and its Consequences; Four Periods of American History. New York: Scribner's Sons, 1912.
Herbert, H. A. (1914). History of the Arlington Confederate Monument, by Hilary A. Herbert. Washington, D.C.: B.S. Adams, printer. Complete document is available for free here: [1]
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Media related to Hilary A. Herbert at Wikimedia Commons
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This article includes a list of general references but it lacks sufficient corresponding inline citations Please help to improve this article by introducing more precise citations March 2013 Learn how and when to remove this template message Hilary Abner Herbert March 12 1834 March 6 1919 was Secretary of the Navy in the second administration of President Grover Cleveland He also served as a member of the United States House of Representatives from Alabama Hilary Herbert33rd United States Secretary of the NavyIn office March 7 1893 March 4 1897PresidentGrover ClevelandPreceded byBenjamin F TracySucceeded byJohn LongMember of the U S House of Representatives from Alabama s 2nd districtIn office March 4 1877 March 3 1893Preceded byJeremiah Norman WilliamsSucceeded byJesse F StallingsPersonal detailsBornHilary Abner Herbert 1834 03 12 March 12 1834Laurens South Carolina U S DiedMarch 6 1919 1919 03 06 aged 84 Tampa Florida U S Political partyDemocraticChildrenLeila HerbertEducationUniversity of Alabama TuscaloosaUniversity of Virginia CharlottesvilleSignatureMilitary serviceAllegiance Confederate StatesBranch service Confederate States ArmyRankColonelCommands8th Regiment Alabama InfantryBattles warsAmerican Civil War Contents 1 Biography 2 Namesake 3 References 4 External linksBiography editHerbert was born in Laurensville South Carolina in 1834 and moved with his family to Greenville Alabama in 1846 He was educated at the University of Alabama and the University of Virginia where he was a member of the Delta Kappa Epsilon fraternity Eta chapter He practiced law in Greenville until the Civil War Herbert entered the Confederate Army as a second lieutenant He served as captain of the Greenville Guards and was later promoted to the rank of colonel of the Eighth Regiment Alabama Infantry Herbert was wounded at the Battle of the Wilderness May 6 1864 nbsp Secretary Herbert meeting with Commander Robert Lees Phythian After the war Herbert returned to his law practice in Greenville Alabama He was elected to Congress in 1877 from Montgomery Alabama as a Democrat He served eight terms in this office During his tenure as Congressman Herbert was chairman of the Committee on Naval Affairs and was largely responsible for the increased appropriations which led to the revival of the United States Navy However he was among those who favored a more limited program than the one proposed by Secretary of the Navy Benjamin F Tracy in 1890 which called for 40 battleships only four battleships were authorized as a result 1 Tracy had been influenced by the works of naval strategist Captain Alfred Thayer Mahan which called for a large fleet capable of offensive action 2 Herbert also became well known for leading a charge in Congress to reduce the funding of the United States Geological Survey resulting in a public feud with paleontologist Othniel Charles Marsh Herbert espoused racist views during his tenure in Congress namely in his opposition to the Reconstruction Acts Herbert vocally opposed the acts and any granting of suffrage to African Americans speaking in congress and claiming African Americans were unfit to have such rights 3 He claimed the granting of universal suffrage to the Negro was the mistake of the nineteenth century 3 In 1893 President Grover Cleveland appointed Herbert as Secretary of the Navy By this time Herbert was able to muster support for an enlarged navy despite the Depression of 1893 and brought the fleet to some level of preparedness for the Spanish American War Having converted to Mahan s school of naval thought five battleships the Kearsarge and Illinois classes and sixteen torpedo boats were authorized during Herbert s tenure 4 5 From 1897 when he left his Cabinet seat to his death on March 6 1919 six days before his 85th birthday Herbert practiced law in Washington D C Namesake editUSS Herbert DD 160 was named in honor of Secretary Herbert References edit Friedman pp 23 25 30 Friedman pp 23 25 a b VITALIS ROBERT 2010 The Noble American Science of Imperial Relations and Its Laws of Race Development Comparative Studies in Society and History 52 4 909 938 doi 10 1017 S0010417510000502 ISSN 0010 4175 JSTOR 40864901 S2CID 145467230 Friedman pp 30 38 Bauer and Roberts pp 162 165 Bauer K Jack Roberts Stephen S 1991 Register of Ships of the U S Navy 1775 1990 Major Combatants Westport Connecticut Greenwood Press ISBN 0 313 26202 0 Friedman Norman 1985 U S Battleships An Illustrated Design History Annapolis Maryland Naval Institute Press ISBN 978 0 87021 715 9 Hammett Hugh B Hilary Abner Herbert A Southerner Returns to the Union Philadelphia American Philosophical Society 1976 Herbert Hilary Abner The Abolition Crusade and its Consequences Four Periods of American History New York Scribner s Sons 1912 Herbert H A 1914 History of the Arlington Confederate Monument by Hilary A Herbert Washington D C B S Adams printer Complete document is available for free here 1 External links edit nbsp Media related to Hilary A Herbert at Wikimedia Commons Works by Hilary A Herbert at Project Gutenberg Works by or about Hilary A Herbert at Internet Archive United States Congress Hilary A Herbert id H000524 Biographical Directory of the United States Congress Retrieved on 2008 02 13 nbsp This article incorporates public domain material from websites or documents of the Naval History and Heritage Command Hilary A Herbert Find a Grave Retrieved February 13 2008 U S House of Representatives Preceded byJeremiah Norman Williams Member of the U S House of Representatives from Alabama s 2nd congressional district1877 1893 Succeeded byJesse F Stallings Government offices Preceded byBenjamin F Tracy United States Secretary of the Navy1893 1897 Succeeded byJohn D Long Retrieved from https en wikipedia org w index php title Hilary A Herbert amp oldid 1215404711, wikipedia, wiki, book, books, library,
