Mordecai Myers (November 9, 1794 – February 21, 1865) was a 19th-century American politician and landowner in

Savannah, Georgia Savannah ( ) is the oldest city in the U.S. state of Georgia (U.S. state), Georgia and the county seat of Chatham County, Georgia, Chatham County. Established in 1733 on the Savannah River, the city of Savannah became the Kingdom of Great Brita ...

, United States.

Life and career

Named for his paternal grandfather, Myers was born in 1794 in

South Carolina South Carolina ( ) is a U.S. state, state in the Southeastern United States, Southeastern region of the United States. It borders North Carolina to the north and northeast, the Atlantic Ocean to the southeast, and Georgia (U.S. state), Georg ...

to physician Dr. Levi Myers and Frances Minis, who (along with thirteen other members of his family) drowned when the family home in Georgetown was swept off its blocks into the ocean during a hurricane on September 27, 1822. It is believed that 28-year-old Mordecai was the only survivor, and that he buried the victims. It is understood that Myers, like his father, graduated from

Princeton University Princeton University is a private university, private Ivy League research university in Princeton, New Jersey, United States. Founded in 1746 in Elizabeth, New Jersey, Elizabeth as the College of New Jersey, Princeton is the List of Colonial ...

in 1812. After graduating, Myers was taken by South Carolina governor Lemuel J. Alston onto his staff as an Aide-de-Camp and private secretary with a colonel ranking. Between 1812 and 1814, Myers lived with Alston and his family. After being admitted to the South Carolina bar, Myers married Sarah Henrietta Cohen, daughter of Solomon Cohen Sr. and Bella Moses. They had twelve children, not all of whom survived to adulthood. Son

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became a lieutenant-commander in the

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. He was elected a member of the

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of Savannah in 1825. The society's role was in support of orphaned male children. Over the next few years, he was on the board of directors of the State Bank, was secretary of the Association of Friends of Ireland in Savannah, and in 1830 he was making announcements for the city council. In the 1830 census of Chatham County, Myers was listed as being a

general officer A general officer is an Officer (armed forces), officer of high rank in the army, armies, and in some nations' air force, air and space forces, marines or naval infantry. In some usages, the term "general officer" refers to a rank above colone ...

, and also as having five males and two females in his household. In 1833, Myers had built today's 111 West Perry Street in Savannah's Orleans Square. Myers was elected to the

Georgia House of Representatives The Georgia House of Representatives is the lower house of the Georgia General Assembly (the state legislature) of the U.S. state of Georgia (U.S. state), Georgia. There are currently 180 elected members. Republican Party (United States), Repu ...

in 1837, and the following year he was elected unanimously as chairman to the board of health. In 1839, he was a founding member of the

Georgia Historical Society The Georgia Historical Society (GHS) is a statewide historical society in Georgia, United States. Headquartered in Savannah, Georgia, GHS is one of the oldest historical organizations in the United States. Since 1839, the society has collected, ex ...

, along with his brother-in-law Solomon Cohen Jr. On 1845, Myers sold land in Savannah's Franklin Ward to Abram Minis. Minis built today's 20–22 Montgomery Street, in Franklin Square, the following year. In the 1850

Cobb County Cobb County is a county in the U.S. state of Georgia, and is a core county of the Atlanta metropolitan area in the north-central portion of the state. As of the 2020 Census, the population was 766,149. It is the state's third most populous cou ...

census, he is listed as being a farmer, owning .

Death

Myers died in 1865, aged 70. He is interred in Savannah's

Laurel Grove Cemetery Laurel Grove Cemetery is a cemetery located in midtown Savannah, Georgia. It includes the original cemetery for white people (now known as Laurel Grove North) and a companion burial ground (called Laurel Grove South) that was reserved for slaves ...

, alongside his wife, who survived him by 21 years. He had moved the remains of his parents from their burial plot in Georgetown to Laurel Grove in 1856.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Myers, Mordecai 1794 births 1865 deaths American Jews South Carolina politicians Politicians from Savannah, Georgia Princeton University alumni Burials at Laurel Grove Cemetery