Henry M. Hyams

American politician

Henry Michael 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	Laurel Matilda Smith
Occupation	Lawyer, politician

Henry Michael Hyams (March 4, 1806 – June 25, 1875) was an American lawyer, planter and Democratic politician. He served as the 7th Lieutenant Governor of Louisiana from 1862 to 1864 under Governor Thomas Overton Moore during the American Civil War, when Louisiana joined the Confederate States of America. He was an advocate of slavery in the United States.^[1]

Early life

Henry M. Hyams was born on March 4, 1806, in Charleston, South Carolina.^[1] His cousin was Judah P. Benjamin (1811–1884).^[2]^[3]^[4]^[5]

Career

Hyams worked for the Canal Bank in Donaldsonville, Louisiana.^[6] He was admitted to the Louisiana bar in 1830, and he joined the law firm Dunbar and Elgee in Alexandria, Louisiana, becoming one of the first Jews living in Alexandria.^[5] He also operated a plantation.^[5]

Hyams moved to New Orleans, Louisiana, in 1853,^[6] where he practised the law.^[1]^[5] He then served as a clerk of the District Court of Natchitoches Parish, Louisiana. He was elected to the Louisiana State Senate as a Democrat in 1855.^[1] He then served as the Lieutenant Governor of Louisiana from 1862 to 1864.^[2]^[3]^[4]^[7]^[8]^[9]

Hyams supported slavery.^[1] Indeed, as early as the 1830s, he joined a vigilante group to defend the institution of slavery.^[1]

Personal life and death

Hyams was an observant Jew.^[7] He married Laurel Matilda Smith and had thirteen children. His son, Henry M. Hyams, Jr. (1846-1887), became a lawyer and practiced law in New Orleans.^[10]

Hyams died on June 25, 1875, in New Orleans, Louisiana. His funeral was held by Rabbi James Koppel Gutheim, and he was buried in Lafayette Cemetery in New Orleans.^[11] His obituary in The Times-Picayune described him as "a standard-bearer of the ancient regime."^[6]

References

^ ^a ^b ^c ^d ^e ^f Louisiana State University Libraries: Hyams (Henry M. and Family) Papers
^ ^a ^b Robert N. Rosen, The Jewish Confederates, Columbia, South Carolina: University of South Carolina Press, 2000, p. xi
^ ^a ^b Eli N. Evans, Judah P. Benjamin: The Jewish Confederate, New York City: Simon and Schuster, 1988, p. 29 [1]
^ ^a ^b 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 [2]
^ ^a ^b ^c ^d Encyclopedia of Southern Jewish Communities - Alexandria, Louisiana, Institute of Southern Jewish Life
^ ^a ^b ^c "Death of Gov. Henry M. Hyams". The Times-Picayune. New Orleans, Louisiana. June 26, 1875. p. 4. Retrieved August 13, 2017 – via Newspapers.com.
^ ^a ^b Robert N. Rosen, The Jewish Confederates, Columbia, South Carolina: University of South Carolina Press, 2000, p. 143
^ Jonathan D. Sarna, Adam Mendelsohn, Jews and the Civil War: A Reader, New York City: NYU Press, 2010, p. 37 [3]
^ Samuel S. Hill, Religion in the Southern States: A Historical Study, Macon, Georgia: Mercer University Press, 1983, p. 143 [4]
^ Hyams (Henry M. and Family) Papers, LSU Libraries Special Collections
^ "Obsequies of the Late Lieut. Gov Henry M. Hyams". The Times-Picayune. New Orleans, Louisiana. June 28, 1875. p. 1. Retrieved August 13, 2017 – via Newspapers.com.