Samuel D. Hastings
Samuel Dexter Hastings Sr. | |
|---|---|
| Born | Error: Invalid birth date for calculating age Leicester, Massachusetts, U.S. |
| Died | March 26, 1903 (aged 86) Evanston, Illinois, U.S. |
| Occupation(s) | Entrepreneur, politician |
| Years active | 1846–1892 |
| Known for | 4th Wisconsin State Treasurer, Wisconsin State Assembly member |
Samuel Dexter Hastings Sr. (July 24, 1816 – March 26, 1903) was a prominent American entrepreneur, political figure, and early settler in Wisconsin. He held the position of the 4th state treasurer and served two terms in the Wisconsin State Assembly.
Background
Hastings was born in Leicester, Massachusetts to parents Simon and Betsey Hastings, tracing his ancestry back to the 17th-century settler Thomas Hastings. Initially involved in the anti-slavery movement in Philadelphia, he moved westward to the Wisconsin Territory in 1846, establishing residence in Geneva.
Public office
Elected in 1849 as a Free Soiler, Hastings succeeded Democrat Erasmus Richardson. At the start of his term, he proposed the "Hastings resolutions," which called on Wisconsin's congressional delegation to actively combat slavery by opposing the admission of new slave states, prohibiting slavery in federal territories, and rescinding laws that supported slave labor. These initiatives contributed to Free Soilers distancing themselves from alliances with Democrats or Whigs. His legislative service concluded in 1850 when Democrat Alexander S. Palmer took over.
Subsequently, Hastings relocated to La Crosse and Trempealeau within Wisconsin. Returning to public office in 1857 as a Republican, he again joined the Assembly. Between 1858 and 1866, he fulfilled duties as Wisconsin State Treasurer and served as a trustee for the State Hospital for the Insane along with other state-run institutions based in Madison.
In later years, Hastings represented the Prohibition Party as their gubernatorial candidate in Wisconsin's 1884 election and ran for an Assembly seat from Madison under the Prohibitionist banner in 1892.
Civic activism
As one of the founding members and treasurer of the Wisconsin Academy of Sciences, Arts and Letters, Hastings was also a vocal critic of proposals suggesting that introducing wine consumption would mitigate issues related to alcoholism.
He passed away on March 26, 1903, at his daughter's residence in Evanston, Illinois. A collection of his documents is maintained by the Wisconsin Historical Society.