Eben Wever Martin (April 12, 1855 – May 22, 1932) was an American attorney and politician in

South Dakota South Dakota (; Sioux language, Sioux: , ) is a U.S. state in the West North Central states, North Central region of the United States. It is also part of the Great Plains. South Dakota is named after the Lakota people, Lakota and Dakota peo ...

. A Republican, he was most notable for his service as a member of the

United States House of Representatives The United States House of Representatives, often referred to as the House of Representatives, the U.S. House, or simply the House, is the lower chamber of the United States Congress, with the Senate being the upper chamber. Together the ...

Early life and education

Martin was born in

Maquoketa, Iowa Maquoketa () is a city in Jackson County, Iowa, United States. Located on the Maquoketa River, it is the county seat of Jackson County. U.S. Route 61 adjoins the city, which therefore hosts traffic between Dubuque and the Quad Cities. Iowa High ...

. He attended the public schools of his hometown, and in 1879 he graduated from

Cornell College Cornell College is a private college in Mount Vernon, Iowa. Originally the Iowa Conference Seminary, the school was founded in 1853 by George Bryant Bowman. Four years later, in 1857, the name was changed to Cornell College, in honor of iron tyc ...

Mount Vernon, Iowa Mount Vernon is a city in Linn County, Iowa, United States, adjacent to the city of Lisbon. The population was 4,527 at the time of the 2020 census. Mount Vernon is part of the Cedar Rapids Metropolitan Statistical Area. History Mount Vernon ...

. He studied at the

University of Michigan Law School The University of Michigan Law School (Michigan Law) is the law school of the University of Michigan, a public research university in Ann Arbor, Michigan. Founded in 1859, the school offers Master of Laws (LLM), Master of Comparative Law (MC ...

in 1879 and 1880, was admitted to the bar in 1880 and commenced practice in

Deadwood Deadwood may refer to: Places Canada * Deadwood, Alberta * Deadwood, British Columbia * Deadwood River, a tributary of the Dease River in northern British Columbia United States * Deadwood, California (disambiguation), several communiti ...

Dakota Territory The Territory of Dakota was an organized incorporated territory of the United States that existed from March 2, 1861, until November 2, 1889, when the final extent of the reduced territory was split and admitted to the Union as the states of ...

Career

Martin served in the South Dakota Territory House of Representatives in 1884 and 1885, and was president of Deadwood's board of education from 1886 to 1900. In 1900, Martin was elected as a Republican to Seat B, one of South Dakota's two at-large seats in the

. He was reelected in 1902 and 1904, and served from March 4, 1901 to March 3, 1907. He ran unsuccessfully for the

United States Senate The United States Senate is the upper chamber of the United States Congress, with the House of Representatives being the lower chamber. Together they compose the national bicameral legislature of the United States. The composition and ...

in 1906. After the death of William H. Parker, Martin won a special election to fill the Seat B vacancy in the U.S. House, and was re-elected to three more terms, serving from November 3, 1908 to March 3, 1915. As a result of the 1910 United States census, South Dakota was apportioned three House members and created three districts. In Martin's 1912 reelection he ran successfully for

South Dakota's 3rd congressional district South Dakota's 3rd congressional district is an obsolete United States congressional district. It was created after the United States Census, 1910, 1910 census and abolished after the United States Census, 1930, 1930 census. The district covered ...

seat. He was not a candidate for re-election in 1914. After leaving Congress, Martin practiced law in

Hot Springs, South Dakota Hot Springs ( Lakota: ''mni kȟáta''; "hot water") is a city in and county seat of Fall River County, South Dakota, United States. As of the 2020 census, the city population was 3,395. In addition, neighboring Oglala Lakota County contracts the ...

Personal life

He died in Hot Springs on May 22, 1932 and was buried in the city's Evergreen Cemetery. Martin is the namesake of the city of Martin, South Dakota.

References

External links

* 1855 births 1932 deaths People from Maquoketa, Iowa Republican Party members of the United States House of Representatives from South Dakota Members of the Dakota Territorial Legislature School board members in South Dakota South Dakota lawyers People from Deadwood, South Dakota People from Fall River County, South Dakota 19th-century American politicians University of Michigan Law School alumni Members of the United States House of Representatives from South Dakota {{SouthDakota-politician-stub