Elisha P. Ferry

Elisha Peyre Ferry ( born August 9, 1825 Monroe, Michigan, † October 14, 1895 in Seattle, Washington ) was an American politician ( Republican) and from 1889 to 1893 the first governor of the state of Washington. Previously, he had held office 1872-1880 as 10th Governor of Washington Territory.

Early years

After primary school, Ferry studied law. After graduating, and its made ​​in the state of Illinois admitted to the bar he began to work as a lawyer in Waukegan. Later he also became mayor of this city. In 1861 he was member of a commission to revise the Constitution of Illinois. Between 1861 and 1863 he was a soldier in the American Civil War.

Rise in Washington Territory

In 1869 Ferry of U.S. President Ulysses S. Grant to head the land surveying authority ( Surveyor General ) was appointed in Washington Territory. 1872 he was appointed as the new territorial governor, a post he held until 1880. In 1872, a border dispute with England was settled. The German Emperor Wilhelm I. had decided as intermediaries that the San Juan Islands should belong to the United States. Then had to withdraw and the island fell to the U.S. and became affiliated with the Washington Territory the British. In its further term as territorial governor and afterwards Ferry fought for the status of a federal State within its territory. This goal was achieved only in 1889. After the end of his tenure, he worked as a lawyer and vice president of a bank in Seattle.

Governor of Washington

In the year 1889, from the Washington Territory the 42nd U.S. state. This Ferry had reached this long-held goal. He was elected the first governor of the new state and took office on 1 November 1889. However, his tenure was overshadowed by his poor health. Therefore, he also declined a re-election.

Ferry's term ended on January 9, 1893. Due to health reasons, he retired from politics. He died in October 1895 in Seattle of heart failure. Elisha Ferry was married to Sarah B. Kellogg, with whom he had twelve children.