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Rufus Ezekiel Lester (December 12, 1837 – June 16, 1906) was a
He was interred at Bonaventure Cemetery in 
U.S. Representative
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 they c ...
from Georgia
Georgia most commonly refers to:
* Georgia (country), a country in the Caucasus region of Eurasia
* Georgia (U.S. state), a state in the Southeast United States
Georgia may also refer to:
Places
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* Related to t ...
.
Born near Waynesboro, Georgia
Waynesboro is a city in Burke County, Georgia, United States. The population was 5,766 at the 2010 census. The city is the county seat of Burke County. It is part of the Augusta, Georgia metropolitan area.
Waynesboro is known as "The Bird Dog C ...
, Lester graduated from Mercer University
Mercer University is a private research university with its main campus in Macon, Georgia. Founded in 1833 as Mercer Institute and gaining university status in 1837, it is the oldest private university in the state and enrolls more than 9,00 ...
, Macon, Georgia, in 1857. He studied law. He was admitted to the bar
An admission to practice law is acquired when a lawyer receives a license to practice law. In jurisdictions with two types of lawyer, as with barristers and solicitors, barristers must gain admission to the bar whereas for solicitors there are dist ...
in Savannah, Georgia
Savannah ( ) is the oldest city in the U.S. state of Georgia and is the county seat of Chatham County. Established in 1733 on the Savannah River, the city of Savannah became the British colonial capital of the Province of Georgia and later t ...
, and commenced practice in 1859. He entered the military service of the Confederate States Army
The Confederate States Army, also called the Confederate Army or the Southern Army, was the military land force of the Confederate States of America (commonly referred to as the Confederacy) during the American Civil War (1861–1865), fighting ...
in 1861 and served throughout 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 resumed the practice of law in Savannah. He served as member of the Georgia State Senate
The Georgia State Senate is the upper house of the Georgia General Assembly, in the U.S. state of Georgia.
Legal provisions
The Georgia State Senate is the upper house of the Georgia General Assembly, with the lower house being the Georgia ...
in 1870–1879 and served as president of that body during the last three years. He served as mayor of Savannah from 1883 to 1889. He was also a slave owner.
Lester was elected as a Democrat to the Fifty-first and to the eight succeeding Congresses and served from March 4, 1889, until his death in Washington, D.C.
)
, image_skyline =
, image_caption = Clockwise from top left: the Washington Monument and Lincoln Memorial on the National Mall, United States Capitol, Logan Circle, Jefferson Memorial, White House, Adams Morgan, ...
, on June 16, 1906. He served as chairman of the Committee on Expenditures in the Department of State ( Fifty-second and Fifty-third Congresses).
Death
He died after an accident in which he fell through a skylight on the roof ofThe Cairo
The Cairo apartment building, located at 1615 Q Street NW in Washington, D.C., is a landmark in the Dupont Circle neighborhood and the District of Columbia's tallest residential building. Designed by architect Thomas Franklin Schneider and compl ...
, the Washington, D.C. apartment building where he resided. Lester went to the roof to look for his two young grandchildren and apparently missed his footing, fell about 30 feet through the skylight, and landed on the building's eleventh floor. He broke both legs and sustained internal injuries which proved fatal.
He was interred at Bonaventure Cemetery in Savannah, Georgia
Savannah ( ) is the oldest city in the U.S. state of Georgia and is the county seat of Chatham County. Established in 1733 on the Savannah River, the city of Savannah became the British colonial capital of the Province of Georgia and later t ...
.
See also
*List of United States Congress members who died in office (1900–49)
There are several lists of United States Congress members who died in office. These include:
* List of United States Congress members who died in office (1790–1899)
* List of United States Congress members who died in office (1900–1949)
* List ...
References
External links
* {{DEFAULTSORT:Lester, Rufus Ezekiel 1837 births 1906 deaths Mayors of Savannah, Georgia Confederate States Army personnel People from Burke County, Georgia Democratic Party members of the United States House of Representatives from Georgia (U.S. state) Democratic Party Georgia (U.S. state) state senators American slave owners 19th-century American politicians Accidental deaths from falls