Thaddeus Hyatt facts for kids
Thaddeus Hyatt (born July 21, 1816 – died July 25, 1901) was an American who strongly opposed slavery. He was also a clever inventor. Hyatt worked hard to help Kansas become a state where slavery was not allowed. He also asked the government to help people in Kansas when a big drought hit. Hyatt was friends with John Brown, another person who fought against slavery, and he gave Brown money. After John Brown's raid, the United States Senate investigated Hyatt. He refused to answer their questions and was even put in jail for a short time. As an inventor, Hyatt made a lot of money from his inventions, like special iron-and-glass covers that let sunlight into basements under sidewalks. He also designed new types of strong concrete floors.
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Fighting Slavery
Helping Kansas Become Free
Thaddeus Hyatt was born in Rahway, New Jersey. He became very active in the movement to end slavery after a law called the Kansas–Nebraska Act was passed in 1854. This law said that people living in Kansas would vote to decide if slavery would be legal there. This started a race between groups who supported slavery and those who opposed it. Both sides rushed to Kansas to influence the vote.
These groups often fought violently. This period became known as Bleeding Kansas. In 1854, several groups were formed to help anti-slavery settlers in Kansas. Thaddeus Hyatt became president of one of these, the New York Kansas League.
In July 1856, Hyatt helped create the National Kansas Committee. He became its president. This committee included other well-known people who fought against slavery, like Andrew Horatio Reeder and Gerrit Smith. The National Kansas Committee reportedly raised about $100,000. This money helped about two thousand new settlers move to Kansas. About $10,000 of this money was used to buy weapons. The committee also sent one hundred tons of seeds to settlers, and Hyatt paid for these himself. By mid-1857, the committee had used up its supplies and money.
Hyattville Settlement
Hyatt also led a group of 84 men to settle a town called Hyattville, Kansas. He hoped this would keep unemployed soldiers from causing trouble in Lawrence, Kansas. Hyattville was located on the South fork of Pottawattamie Creek.
Some people accused Thaddeus Hyatt and William Frederick Milton Arny, another leader, of trying to make money from the Hyattville project. They were said to have changed how funds were given out to direct money to Hyattville. However, Hyatt said these claims were false and made by someone trying to hurt the National Committee. Hyattville seemed to do well for a while, but today the town no longer exists.
The National Kansas Committee did not achieve all its goals. It wanted to create similar groups in every town and county across the country. This would help fill Kansas with voters who opposed slavery. However, the National Committee struggled to connect with all the local groups already working. This was partly because different groups did not communicate well.
Supporting John Brown
Hyatt came under suspicion after John Brown's failed raid on Harpers Ferry. Hyatt believed in Brown's strong methods to end slavery. He gave Brown money, and Brown often visited Hyatt's home in New York. The National Committee had met Brown earlier and indirectly gave him two hundred rifles. Brown took these rifles to Harpers Ferry.
A Senate committee was formed to investigate the Harpers Ferry raid. They found Hyatt's name mentioned several times in Brown's personal papers. So, on January 24, 1860, they ordered Hyatt to testify. Hyatt took a month to decide if he would appear.
Finally, Senator James Murray Mason, who led the committee, lost patience. Hyatt was arrested and brought before the Senate on March 6. The Senate wanted to know why he had ignored their order. Three days later, Hyatt presented a long document. His lawyers argued that the Senate was acting like a court, which they believed was against the Constitution of the United States. They said the Senate could not force witnesses to give information about new laws.
The New York Times reported that the document was so long that reading it aloud tired out two Senate clerks. Most Senators did not stay to listen. The Senate was not convinced by Hyatt's argument. They voted to put Thaddeus Hyatt in jail in Washington D.C. He stayed there until he agreed to testify. Hyatt chose not to ask the Supreme Court to release him. After three months, the Senate committee gave up trying to question key witnesses. Hyatt was released on June 15.
Helping Kansas During Drought
Even after the fighting in Kansas calmed down, Hyatt continued to support the state. In 1860, Kansas suffered from a terrible drought. Hyatt traveled to Kansas to see the damage. He then directed aid from his new Kansas Relief Committee to help starving settlers.
Hyatt was upset that national newspapers and the government were not paying attention. He wrote a 70-page document to President James Buchanan. He asked for more federal aid and for the government to stop taking away farmers' land. Many farmers had become very poor because of the drought and could not pay for their land. President Buchanan did little to help, besides a small money donation. He even stopped a law that would have delayed the land foreclosures.
Thaddeus Hyatt died in 1901 at the age of 85. He passed away at his summer home in Sandown, on the Isle of Wight in England.
Thaddeus Hyatt Collection
The Thaddeus Hyatt Collection is a group of records and letters that Hyatt gave to the Kansas State Historical Society. Most of the materials are about events between 1854 and 1861, especially during the time of Bleeding Kansas. Important stories from Bleeding Kansas in this collection include those from S. P. Hand, Alexander McArthur, James Hall, Jerome Hazen, John Ritchie, J. A. Harvey, and N. W. Spicer.
