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Amherst B. Cheney

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Amherst B. Cheney
Member of the Michigan House of Representatives
from the Kent County 3rd district
In office
1877–1880
Preceded byEdward L. Briggs
Succeeded byHeman Palmerlee
Personal details
Born(1841-10-27)October 27, 1841
Ripley, Ohio, U.S.
DiedJanuary 9, 1927(1927-01-09) (aged 85)
Sparta, Michigan, U.S.
Political partyProhibition
Other political
affiliations		Republican (before 1884)
Spouse
Emmogene Hinman
​
(m. 1869)​
Military service
Branch/serviceU.S. Army (Union Army)
Years of service1862–1865
Unit21st Michigan Infantry Regiment
Battles/warsAmerican Civil War

Amherst B. Cheney (October 27, 1841 – January 9, 1927) was an American politician.

Early life and military career

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Amherst B. Cheney was born on October 27, 1841, in Ripley, Ohio to parents Abner J. and Sarah Cheney.[1] His father was born in Vermont before serving as a minister in Ohio, and his mother was from New York. He moved with his father to a farm in Homer, Michigan in 1845.[2] Cheney received a common school education.[3] He moved to Sparta, Michigan in 1858.[2]

On September 4, 1862, Cheney voluntarily enlisted in the 21st Michigan Infantry Regiment as quartermaster sergeant.[1] He was promoted to second lieutenant in 1864.[4] On March 19, 1865, he was severely wounded in Bentonville, North Carolina while commanding Company B. He returned to duty after his recovery. He was mustered out on June 8, 1865.[1]

Career

[edit]

After the Civil War, Cheney was engaged in a number of businesses, including insurance and real estate.[3] By 1869, Cheney was working as a beekeeper.[1] By 1876, Cheney had served in the local political offices of justice of the peace and town treasurer.[3] In 1876, Cheney was elected to the Michigan House of Representatives seat representing the Kent County 3rd district, on the Republican ticket. He was re-elected in 1878.[4]

As a Republican, Cheney was a strong advocate of the prohibition of alcohol. In 1884, Cheney became a member of the Prohibition Party.[5] The same year, Cheney was nominated by the Prohbitionists for Michigan State Treasurer.[6] In 1886, Cheney ran for the Michigan Senate seat representing the 20th district.[5][7] He was nominated for the board of regents of the University of Michigan in 1887.[8] In 1888, was nominated by the Prohibitionists for governor.[4]

In 1894, Cheney, as a private banker, was sued by multiple people for embezzlement.[9][10] In March 1894, Cheney confessed in probate court to double selling a mortgage to a mentally disabled widow whom he was guardian over.[11]

Cheney again ran for the state senate, the 17th district, in 1910. He ran for Michigan's 5th district in the United States House of Representatives in 1912 and 1916.[12][13]

Personal life

[edit]

Cheney married Emmogene Hinman on December 2, 1869, in Sparta.[1][4] In 1899, Cheney was suspended from the Freemasons for non-payment of dues.[14]

Death

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After three years of illness, Cheney died on January 9, 1927, in his Sparta home.[15] He was buried in Greenwood Cemetery in Sparta on January 12.[4][16]

References

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  1. ^ a b c d e "Civil War Letters". Sparta Township Historical Commission. Retrieved October 18, 2023.
  2. ^ a b C. C. Chapman & Company (1881). History of Kent County, Michigan. p. 1332.
  3. ^ a b c Michigan manual. 1877-78. 1877. p. 659.
  4. ^ a b c d e "Legislator Details - Amherst B. Cheney". Library of Michigan. Retrieved October 18, 2023.
  5. ^ a b "The Peninsular Canvass". Detroit Free Press. July 24, 1886. p. 4. Retrieved October 18, 2023 – via Newspapers.com.
  6. ^ "Political". Detroit Free Press. September 28, 1884. p. 12. Retrieved October 18, 2023 – via Newspapers.com.
  7. ^ Michigan manual. 1887-88. 1887. p. 604.
  8. ^ "The Prohibitionists". Detroit Free Press. February 25, 1887. p. 4. Retrieved October 18, 2023 – via Newspapers.com.
  9. ^ "A Banker Sued". Detroit Free Press. January 25, 1894. p. 3. Retrieved October 18, 2023 – via Newspapers.com.
  10. ^ "Charged with Embezzlement". Livingston County Daily Press and Argus. March 8, 1894. p. 5. Retrieved October 18, 2023 – via Newspapers.com.
  11. ^ "Confesses to Fraud". The Homer Index. March 21, 1894. p. 1. Retrieved October 18, 2023 – via Newspapers.com.
  12. ^ "Cheney". Political Graveyard. Retrieved October 18, 2023.
  13. ^ Michigan manual. 1913-14. 1913. p. 452.
  14. ^ Grand Lodge of Michigan (1899). Transactions of the Grand Lodge of Free and Accepted Masons, of the State of Michigan. p. 157.
  15. ^ "Former Legislator Dead". Lansing State Journal. January 10, 1927. p. 7. Retrieved October 18, 2023 – via Newspapers.com.
  16. ^ "Around The State". The Herald-Palladium. January 11, 1927. p. 12. Retrieved October 18, 2023 – via Newspapers.com.
Party political offices
Preceded by Prohibition nominee for Governor of Michigan
1888 		Succeeded by
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