Governor Henry Wilder Keyes

HENRY W. KEYES, the sixty-fifth governor of New Hampshire, was born in Newbury, Vermont on May 23, 1862. His education was attained at Harvard University, where he graduated in 1887. Keyes became a successful cattle breeder, and was credited with the initiating the Holstein-Friesian breed in the United States. He also was instrumental in founding the Woodsville National Bank in 1897. Keyes first entered politics as a member of the New Hampshire House of Representatives, a position he held from 1891 to 1895 and 1915 to 1917. He also served in the New Hampshire State Senate from 1903 to 1905; was the treasurer of the State License Commission from 1903 to 1915; and served as chairman of the State Excise Commission from 1915 to 1917. Keyes next secured the Republican gubernatorial nomination, and was elected governor by a popular vote in 1916. During his tenure, several World War I measures were implemented; a state library commission was established; a stock fraud protection law was enacted; and the Boston and Maine Railroad restructure plan was initiated. While still in office, Keyes won election to the U.S. Senate, a position he held from 1919 to 1937. Governor Henry W. Keyes passed away on June 19, 1938, and was buried in the Oxbow Cemetery in Newbury, Vermont.