Dudley Chase Haskell (March 23, 1842 – December 16, 1883) was an American merchant, Civil War veteran, and Republican Party politician from the

Lawrence, Kansas Lawrence is a city in and the county seat of Douglas County, Kansas, United States, and the sixth-largest city in the state. It is in the northeastern sector of the state, astride Interstate 70 in Kansas, Interstate 70, between the Kansas River ...

, area. He first served several terms in the Kansas House of Representatives, where he was elected as Speaker in 1876. That year he was elected to Congress, and served several terms until his death in office in 1883. As a congressman, Haskell served as chairman of the

Committee on Indian Affairs The Senate Committee on Indian Affairs is a committee of the United States Senate charged with oversight in matters related to the American Indian, Native Hawaiian, and Alaska Native peoples. A Committee on Indian Affairs existed from 1820 to 1 ...

from 1881 to 1883. In that capacity, he helped gain congressional authorization for construction of three off-reservation Indian boarding schools, and the location of one in Lawrence, Kansas. It opened in 1884, and was named for him in 1887. It has since developed as

Haskell Indian Nations University Haskell Indian Nations University (Haskell or HINU) is a public tribal land-grant university in Lawrence, Kansas, United States. Founded in 1884 as a residential boarding school for Native American children, the school has developed into a univ ...

, with its most famous alumnus being

Jim Thorpe James Francis Thorpe (; May 22 or 28, 1887March 28, 1953) was an American athlete who won Olympic gold medals and played professional American football, football, baseball, and basketball. A citizen of the Sac and Fox Nation, Thorpe was ...

Biography

Haskell was born in

Springfield, Vermont Springfield is a New England town, town in Windsor County, Vermont, Windsor County, Vermont, United States. As of the 2020 United States Census, 2020 census, the population was 9,062. History The land currently recognized as Springfield is the ...

, in 1842, a son of Franklin and Almira (Chase) Haskell. His siblings included John G. Haskell. Haskell moved with his parents in 1855 to

. He returned to Vermont to attend schools in Springfield in 1857 and 1858. After beginning work as a shoe merchant, he moved west in 1859 to follow the Pike's Peak Gold Rush. He lived in

Pikes Peak, Colorado Pikes Peak is the highest summit of the southern Front Range of the Rocky Mountains in North America. The ultra-prominent fourteener is located in Pike National Forest, west of downtown Colorado Springs, Colorado. The town of Manitou Spri ...

, until 1861, when he returned to Missouri to enter Union ranks after war broke out. During the

Civil War A civil war is a war between organized groups within the same Sovereign state, state (or country). The aim of one side may be to take control of the country or a region, to achieve independence for a region, or to change government policies.J ...

, Haskell served as an assistant to the

quartermaster Quartermaster is a military term, the meaning of which depends on the country and service. In land army, armies, a quartermaster is an officer who supervises military logistics, logistics and requisitions, manages stores or barracks, and distri ...

of the Union Army in

Missouri Missouri (''see #Etymology and pronunciation, pronunciation'') is a U.S. state, state in the Midwestern United States, Midwestern region of the United States. Ranking List of U.S. states and territories by area, 21st in land area, it border ...

Arkansas Arkansas ( ) is a landlocked state in the West South Central region of the Southern United States. It borders Missouri to the north, Tennessee and Mississippi to the east, Louisiana to the south, Texas to the southwest, and Oklahoma ...

Kansas Kansas ( ) is a landlocked U.S. state, state in the Midwestern United States, Midwestern region of the United States. It borders Nebraska to the north; Missouri to the east; Oklahoma to the south; and Colorado to the west. Kansas is named a ...

, and the

Indian Territory Indian Territory and the Indian Territories are terms that generally described an evolving land area set aside by the Federal government of the United States, United States government for the relocation of Native Americans in the United States, ...

in 1861 and 1862.

Post-Civil War years

He left the army and entered Williston’s Seminary in

Easthampton, Massachusetts Easthampton is a city in Hampshire County, Massachusetts, United States. The city is in the Pioneer Valley, near the five colleges in the college towns of Northampton and Amherst. The population was 16,211 at the 2020 census. History E ...

, in 1863 for further education. He graduated from

Yale College Yale College is the undergraduate college of Yale University. Founded in 1701, it is the original school of the university. Although other Yale schools were founded as early as 1810, all of Yale was officially known as Yale College until 1887, ...

in 1865, when he was 23. Afterward, he returned to

, where he engaged in the shoe business from 1865 to 1867. He entered politics with the Republican Party and was a member of the

Kansas House of Representatives The Kansas House of Representatives is the lower house of the legislature of the U.S. state of Kansas. Composed of 125 state representatives from districts with roughly equal populations of at least 19,000, its members are responsible for craftin ...

in 1872, 1875 and 1876, serving as Speaker of the House in 1876. In 1876 Haskell was elected a Republican from

Kansas's 2nd congressional district Kansas' 2nd congressional district is a congressional district in the U.S. state of Kansas that covers most of the eastern part of the state, except for the core of the Kansas City Metropolitan Area. The district encompasses less than a quarter ...

to the

United States House of Representatives The United States House of Representatives is a chamber of the Bicameralism, bicameral United States Congress; it is the lower house, with the U.S. Senate being the upper house. Together, the House and Senate have the authority under Artic ...

, serving from 1877 until his death in

Washington, D.C. Washington, D.C., formally the District of Columbia and commonly known as Washington or D.C., is the capital city and federal district of the United States. The city is on the Potomac River, across from Virginia, and shares land borders with ...

, on December 16, 1883. There, he served as chairman of the

from 1881 to 1883. He believed in education for Native American children and supported legislation to authorize construction of three off-reservation Indian boarding schools, to be located in Nebraska, Kansas, and Indian Territory. He gained location of the Kansas school in his hometown of Lawrence. It opened with 22 elementary school students but soon grew. It was named

Haskell Institute Haskell Indian Nations University (Haskell or HINU) is a Public university, public tribal university, tribal land-grant university in Lawrence, Kansas, United States. Founded in 1884 as a residential boarding school for Native American children ...

in his honor four years after his death. His body was returned to Lawrence, where he was interred in Oak Hill Cemetery. Haskell had married and had a family. Among his descendants was grandson Otis Halbert Holmes, who also became a politician. Holmes grew up in Eastern Washington, and served eight terms from there as a US Representative (R-WA).

Legacy and honors

* The off-reservation Indian boarding school that he secured in Lawrence was named the Haskell Institute in 1887 in his honor. Since the mid-20th century, it has developed as the

. * He is the namesake of Haskell County in southwestern Kansas

References

External links

* Retrieved on 2008-02-14 * {{DEFAULTSORT:Haskell, Dudley C. 1842 births 1883 deaths Speakers of the Kansas House of Representatives Republican Party members of the Kansas House of Representatives Union army officers American gold prospectors Yale College alumni Politicians from Lawrence, Kansas People of Kansas in the American Civil War People from Springfield, Vermont Politicians from Windsor County, Vermont Republican Party members of the United States House of Representatives from Kansas 19th-century members of the United States House of Representatives 19th-century members of the Kansas Legislature

Biography

Post-Civil War years

Legacy and honors

See also

References

External links