1. Erastus Fairbanks was an American manufacturer, a Whig politician, a founder of the Republican Party, and the 21st and 26th governor of Vermont.
13 Facts About Erastus Fairbanks
1. 2.
Erastus Fairbanks studied law but abandoned it for mercantile pursuits, and operated a store in Wheelock, Vermont.
3.
Erastus Fairbanks married Lois Crossman on May 30,1815.
4.
Thaddeus Erastus Fairbanks later invented the first platform scale, which made it possible to calculate the weight of farm products and other goods shipped by wagon and railroad car; the device proved so successful that the renamed Erastus Fairbanks Scales company became the largest employer in the state.
5.
The Erastus Fairbanks family was involved in numerous charitable and civic endeavors throughout St Johnsbury and the surrounding towns, including the 1842 founding of St Johnsbury Academy.
6.
Erastus Fairbanks was a member of the Vermont House of Representatives from 1836 to 1840.
7.
Erastus Fairbanks was a Whig Presidential Elector for Vermont in 1844 and 1848.
8.
Erastus Fairbanks was President of the Passumpsic Railroad, which completed a line from White River to St Johnsbury in 1850.
9.
Erastus Fairbanks was elected the 21st Governor of Vermont in 1852 and served until 1853.
10.
Erastus Fairbanks was one of the founders of the Republican Party, and a delegate from Vermont to the first Republican National Convention in 1856.
11.
Erastus Fairbanks was 26th Governor of Vermont from 1860 to 1861.
12.
Erastus Fairbanks was the father of Horace Fairbanks and Franklin Fairbanks.
13.
Erastus Fairbanks died in St Johnsbury, Caledonia County, Vermont, on November 20,1864.