American politician
Henry Tillinghast Sisson
(August 20, 1831 ? October 19, 1910) was a
colonel
in the
Union Army
during the
American Civil War
, a
lieutenant governor
of
Rhode Island
from 1875 to 1877 serving under Governor
Henry Lippitt
, and inventor and manufacturer of a binder for papers.
Early life
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He was a lifelong resident of Little Compton, Rhode Island, and inherited a stone mansion at
Sakonnet Point
. The mansion was originally built by his father for use as a hotel and recently has been known as the Stone House Inn.
In 1859 Sisson secured
patent no. 18904
and in 1859 (reissued 1866)
patent no. 23506
for the design of portfolios that used springs and strings to temporarily secure papers in a binder.
Civil War service
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Sisson was commissioned as a lieutenant and paymaster for the 1st Rhode Island Detached Militia (aka.
1st Rhode Island Volunteer Infantry Regiment
) in May 1861 and served until the regiment was mustered out in August 1861. He participated in the
Battle of Bull Run
on July 21, 1861 under General
Ambrose Burnside
.
In April 1862 he was commissioned as major of the
3rd Rhode Island Heavy Artillery
and commanded three companies (B, F and K) of that regiment at the
Battle of Secessionville
, South Carolina.
On November 5, 1862 he was promoted to colonel and given command of the 5th Rhode Island Infantry which became the
5th Rhode Island Heavy Artillery
on May 27, 1863. Colonel Sisson was mustered out of service, along with his regiment, on June 26, 1865.
Post-war life
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In 1864, he married Nettie Walworth in New Bern, North Carolina; she died in 1868.
[1]
He then married Emily Josephine Brownell in 1870; they had four children.
[1]
He was elected as a
Republican
to the office of Lieutenant Governor of Rhode Island in 1874 and served from 1875 until 1877.
Death and burial
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He died at his mansion in Little Compton on October 19, 1910. He was buried in a plot in Union Cemetery, across the street from the historic
Commons Cemetery
in
Little Compton, Rhode Island
.
[1]
About 1919, a life size statue of Colonel Sisson was unveiled in the cemetery by then Massachusetts governor
Calvin Coolidge
.
[1]
The bronze statue was designed by Rhode Island sculptor Henri Schonhardt.
[2]
References
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External links
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