Person Colby Cheney (February 25, 1828 – June 19, 1901) was a paper manufacturer,

abolitionist Abolitionism, or the abolitionist movement, is the movement to end slavery. In Western Europe and the Americas, abolitionism was a historic movement that sought to end the Atlantic slave trade and liberate the enslaved people. The British ...

and Republican politician from

Manchester, New Hampshire Manchester is a city in Hillsborough County, New Hampshire, United States. It is the most populous city in New Hampshire New Hampshire is a state in the New England region of the northeastern United States. It is bordered by Massachusett ...

. He was the 35th

governor of New Hampshire The governor of New Hampshire is the head of government of New Hampshire. The governor is elected during the biennial state general election in November of even-numbered years. New Hampshire is one of only two states, along with bordering Verm ...

and later represented the state in 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 ...

Biography

Cheney was born in

Holderness Holderness is an area of the East Riding of Yorkshire, on the north-east coast of England. An area of rich agricultural land, Holderness was marshland until it was drained in the Middle Ages. Topographically, Holderness has more in common wi ...

(now Ashland) to abolitionists, Abigail and Moses Cheney. Oren Burbank Cheney, the founder of

Bates College Bates College () is a Private college, private liberal arts college in Lewiston, Maine. Anchored by the Historic Quad, the Campus of Bates College, campus of Bates totals with a small urban campus which includes 33 Victorian Houses as some of th ...

, was Person Cheney's older brother. Cheney attended academies in

Peterborough Peterborough () is a cathedral city in Cambridgeshire, east of England. It is the largest part of the City of Peterborough unitary authority district (which covers a larger area than Peterborough itself). It was part of Northamptonshire until ...

and Hancock and the Parsonsfield Seminary in Parsonsfield, Maine. He engaged in the manufacture of paper in Peterborough until 1866, and in 1854 was a member of the

New Hampshire House of Representatives The New Hampshire House of Representatives is the lower house in the New Hampshire General Court, the bicameral legislature of the state of New Hampshire. The House of Representatives consists of 400 members coming from 204 legislative district ...

. During the

Civil War A civil war or intrastate war is a war between organized groups within the same 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 polic ...

he was first lieutenant and regimental quartermaster in the Thirteenth Regiment of the New Hampshire Volunteer Infantry (1862–1863). He was state railroad commissioner 1864–1867. He moved to Manchester in 1867 and engaged in business as a dealer in paper stock and continued the manufacture of paper at Goffstown. Person Colby Cheney (IA manchesterbriefr00cla) (page 207 crop)

Person Colby Cheney (IA manchesterbriefr00cla) (page 207 crop)

Political career

He also engaged in agricultural pursuits until being elected mayor of Manchester in 1871. He was Governor of New Hampshire from 1875 to 1877. Cheney was appointed as a Republican to the United States Senate to fill the vacancy caused by the death of Austin F. Pike, and served from November 24, 1886, to June 14, 1887, when a successor was elected and qualified. He was not a candidate for election to fill the vacancy, and resumed his former manufacturing pursuits. Cheney served as

Envoy Extraordinary and Minister Plenipotentiary An envoy extraordinary and minister plenipotentiary, usually known as a minister, was a diplomatic head of mission who was ranked below ambassador. A diplomatic mission headed by an envoy was known as a legation rather than an embassy. Under the ...

to Switzerland in 1892–1893. He died in

Dover Dover () is a town and major ferry port in Kent, South East England. It faces France across the Strait of Dover, the narrowest part of the English Channel at from Cap Gris Nez in France. It lies south-east of Canterbury and east of Maidstone ...

Strafford County, New Hampshire Strafford County is a county in the U.S. state of New Hampshire. As of the 2020 census, the population was 130,889. Its county seat is Dover. Strafford County was one of the five original counties identified for New Hampshire in 1769. It was ...

in 1901 and is buried in the Pine Grove Cemetery at Manchester.

External links

*
Cheney at New Hampshire's Division of Historic Resources
{{DEFAULTSORT:Cheney, Person Colby 1828 births 1901 deaths Mayors of Manchester, New Hampshire People from Goffstown, New Hampshire Republican Party governors of New Hampshire Republican Party members of the New Hampshire House of Representatives Businesspeople in the pulp and paper industry American abolitionists Union Army officers American Unitarians Ambassadors of the United States to Switzerland Republican Party United States senators from New Hampshire 19th-century American diplomats People of New Hampshire in the American Civil War Activists from New Hampshire People from Ashland, New Hampshire 19th-century American politicians