Francis Moore Dimond (June 6, 1796 – April 12, 1859) was an American politician and the 23rd

Governor of Rhode Island The governor of Rhode Island is the head of government of the U.S. state of Rhode Island and serves as commander-in-chief of the state's Army National Guard and Air National Guard. The current governor is Dan McKee, a member of the Democrati ...

Biography

Dimond was born in

Bristol, Rhode Island Bristol is a town in Bristol County, Rhode Island, United States, as well as the county seat. The population of Bristol was 22,493 at the 2020 census. It is a deep water seaport named after Bristol, England. Major industries include boat buil ...

on June 6, 1796. During his youth, he traveled to the Caribbean and served for several years (1832-1835) as the United States consul at

Port-au-Prince Port-au-Prince ( ; ; , ) is the Capital city, capital and List of cities in Haiti, most populous city of Haiti. The city's population was estimated at 1,200,000 in 2022 with the metropolitan area estimated at a population of 2,618,894. The me ...

. From 1842 to 1849, Dimond was United States Consul to the Mexican port city of Veracruz. The knowledge he acquired there proved invaluable during the war with Mexico. During the war with Mexico, he was called to Washington to provide information that would help in the attack on Veracruz. After the battle, the United States Army occupied the area. At the time, Dimond served as an official interpreter for General

Winfield Scott Winfield Scott (June 13, 1786May 29, 1866) was an American military commander and political candidate. He served as Commanding General of the United States Army from 1841 to 1861, and was a veteran of the War of 1812, American Indian Wars, Mexica ...

. He also became a collector of the Port of Veracruz. When he returned to Rhode Island, he promoted the Southern Pacific Railway and presided over its construction. He was elected lieutenant governor of Rhode Island in 1853. He became the governor of Rhode Island when Philip Allen resigned to become a Senator. He held the governor's office from July 20, 1853 to May 2, 1854. He was unsuccessful in his re-election bid. He died on April 12, 1859. Dimond was buried in the

Juniper Hill Cemetery Juniper Hill Cemetery is a historic cemetery at 24 Sherry Avenue in Bristol, Rhode Island founded by George R.Usher, James D'Wolf Perry, Byron Diman, Ambrose E. Burnside, James H. West, Charles H. R. Doringle, and Lemanuel W. Briggs. The origi ...

Francis M. Dimond House

In 1838, pre-eminent architect Russell Warren designed a home for Dimond on Hope Street in Bristol. It was one of a set of three

Greek Revival Greek Revival architecture is a architectural style, style that began in the middle of the 18th century but which particularly flourished in the late 18th and early 19th centuries, predominantly in northern Europe, the United States, and Canada, ...

houses designed by Warren within 50 feet of each other. Dimond's house was the most expensive of the three, and Dimond went bankrupt and sold it the year it was finished. The home still stands in Bristol.

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Sources

* Sobel, Robert and John Raimo. ''Biographical Directory of the Governors of the United States, 1789-1978''. Greenwood Press, 1988. {{DEFAULTSORT:Dimond, Francis 1796 births 1859 deaths Democratic Party governors of Rhode Island People from Bristol, Rhode Island Burials at Juniper Hill Cemetery Lieutenant governors of Rhode Island 19th-century Rhode Island politicians