Eben Pomeroy Colton

Eben Pomeroy Colton (February 11, 1829 – September 10, 1895) was an American businessman and farmer who served as Lieutenant Governor of the State of Vermont from 1878 to 1880.

E. Pomeroy Colton

Personal background

Born Ebenezer Pomeroy Colton and usually called E. Pomeroy Colton or E. P. Colton, he was born in West Fairlee, Vermont on February 11, 1829 (However, although 1829 is shown on his gravestone, 1828 is listed as his birth year in some of the books cited here, such as Men of Vermont). He moved to Irasburg with his family at age 14, and after completing his education was active in construction, carpentry, farming and lumbering.[1][2][3][4][5]

Political background

Originally a Whig in politics, Colton became a Republican when that party was founded in the 1850s. He served in the Vermont House of Representatives from 1859 to 1860 and in the Vermont Senate from 1870 to 1874. In 1876, he was again elected to the Vermont House.[6][7]

In 1878, Colton was elected Lieutenant Governor and served one term, 1878 to 1880.[8][9][10]

Active in the Masons and other civic and fraternal organizations, Colton was the first Master of the Vermont Grange, serving from 1872 to 1877.[11][12][13]

Colton died in Irasburg on September 10, 1895.[14][15] He is buried in Irasburg Cemetery.[16]

References

1. One Thousand Men, published by Vermont Historical Society, 1915, page 203
2. A Genealogical Record of the Descendants of Quartermaster George Colton, by George Woolworth Colton, 1912, page 368
3. Sons of the American Revolution Membership Applications, 1889-1970, Record for Eben Pomeroy Colton, accessed December 30, 2011
4. Civil War Draft Registrations Records, 1863-1865, Record for Ebenezer P. Colton, accessed December 30, 2011
5. American Jersey Herd Book, Volume 7, arranged by O. D. Hadwen, Worcester, Mass., 1881, page 87
6. Men of Vermont: An Illustrated Biographical History of Vermonters and Sons of Vermont, compiled by Jacob G. Ullery, 1894, page 78
7. Joint Rules, Rules and Orders of the Senate and House of Representatives, published by Vermont General Assembly, 1878, page 105
8. Newspaper article, The September Elections, New York Times, August 31, 1878
9. Vermont: The Green Mountain State, by Walter Hill Crockett, Volume 4, 1921, page 94
10. The Geography, History, Constitution and Civil Government of Vermont, by Edward Conant and Mason Sereno Stone, 1915, page 321
11. History of the Grange in Vermont, Guy Bertram Horton, 1926, page 65
12. Magazine article, The Grange in Vermont, published in The Vermonter magazine, March, 1907, page 68
13. Journal of the Proceedings of the Seventh Session of the National Grange, published by S. W. Green, New York, 1874, page 9
14. Transcript, Irasburg Cemetery Archived 2012-04-07 at the Wayback Machine, Irasburg, Vermont, Vermont Northeast Kingdom Genealogy, 2006
15. Newspaper article, For Those Gone Before, North Adams Transcript, November 18, 1895
16. Gravestone photos by contributors talegi and Bill McKern, Eben Pomeroy Colton page, Find A Grave web site, accessed January 1, 2012