Representative Silas Hare

Silas Hare (November 13, 1827 – November 26, 1908) was an American lawyer, jurist, and Democratic politician who served two terms as a U.S. Representative from Texas from 1887 to 1891. His congressional service took place during a significant period in American history, and as a member of the House of Representatives he participated in the legislative process and represented the interests of his Texas constituents.

Hare was born in Ross County, Ohio, on November 13, 1827, to Jacob and Elizabeth Freshour Hare. After the death of his father in 1835, he spent the first fourteen years of his life living with his grandfather, Daniel Hare. In 1841 he rejoined his mother and other family members in Hamilton County, Indiana, near Noblesville. There he attended common and private schools and began preparing for a legal career. He studied law in Noblesville and was admitted to the Indiana bar in 1850, commencing the practice of law in that community.

Hare’s early adulthood combined legal work, military service, and extensive travel. During the Mexican–American War he served in the 1st Indiana Volunteers in 1846 and 1847 and was wounded by a lance at the Battle of Buena Vista. In 1849 he married Octavia Elizabeth Rector of Circleville, Ohio; the couple would have seven children: Luther Rector, a West Point cadet; Silas Jr., who followed his father in public service; Winnie; Henry; George; Eula; and one child who died in infancy. Seeking to improve his health, Hare began traveling in 1852, visiting Mexico, Central America, the Hawaiian Islands (then known as the Sandwich Islands), and Oregon. In 1853 he moved to Belton, Texas, where he continued the practice of law and established himself professionally in his adopted state.

With the outbreak of the Civil War, Hare cast his lot with the Confederacy. In 1862 he was appointed chief justice of the Confederate-controlled New Mexico Territory, but he resigned that same year to accept a commission as a captain in the Confederate States Army. He served as a quartermaster and later attained the rank of major in 1863 with the First Regiment of the Arizona Brigade, stationed in Texas. After the war, in 1865, Hare settled in Sherman, Texas, where he resumed the practice of law. He became an important figure in the local judiciary, serving as district judge of the criminal court from 1873 to 1876. A committed Democrat, he remained active in party affairs and was chosen as a delegate to the Democratic National Convention in 1884.

Hare’s prominence in Texas legal and political circles led to his election to the United States House of Representatives. A member of the Democratic Party, he was elected as a Democrat to the Fiftieth and Fifty-first Congresses and served from March 4, 1887, to March 3, 1891. During his two terms in office he contributed to the legislative process at a time of rapid economic and social change in the post-Reconstruction era, representing Texas interests in debates over national policy. His service in Congress reflected the priorities of his party and region, and he participated fully in the democratic process as a member of the House of Representatives. He was an unsuccessful candidate for renomination in 1890, bringing his congressional career to a close after four years.

Following his departure from Congress, Hare resumed the practice of law in Washington, D.C., beginning in 1890. His personal life underwent significant changes during this period. His first wife, Octavia Elizabeth Rector Hare, died on June 5, 1890. In 1903, at the age of seventy-six, he married for a second time, taking as his wife sixty-six-year-old Mary Louise Kennedy in a secret ceremony in Baltimore, Maryland. The unexpected elopement attracted public attention, and contemporary accounts, including the New York Times, remarked on the surprise of his friends and speculated about the couple’s honeymoon, noting that “they have not returned, and the ex-Congressman’s friends have no idea where they are.”

Silas Hare spent his later years in Washington, D.C., continuing his legal work and maintaining the connections he had formed during his time in national politics. He died in Washington on November 26, 1908. His second wife, Mary Louise Kennedy Hare, survived him by nearly four years and died on November 3, 1912.