Theodore Medad Pomeroy 1824-1905
By Sheila Tucker, Cayuga County Historian
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Theodore M. Pomeroy, a native of Cayuga County, was an
abolitionist, attorney, District Attorney, Congressman, State
Senator and Assemblyman, Auburn Mayor, and later banker
and businessman. Pomeroy was one of nine children, the second son of Rev. Medad and Lily Maxwell Pomeroy. He was
born in Cayuga on December 3't , 1824 where his father
served as the pastor of the Presbyterian Church. His father
moved his family to Elbridge so that his son Theodore could
attend an academy that had been established in that village.
Theodore stoked the furnaces and did maintenance at the
academy to pay his tuition. At fifteen, he entered Hamilton
College and graduated when he was iT 1lZ years old.
Pomeroy then taught school for two years in Springport and Cayuga Village. His uncle,
who owned a hotel in Auburn, offered him free room and board. Pomeroy moved to Auburn to read law at William H. Seward's office. He passed his bar exam three years later
on May 23, 1846. Pomeroy didn't have the money to set up a private practice so he
taught part{ime at the Auburn Academy and was elected the first City Clerk in 1849 and
1850. Pomeroy did not abandon law. In 1849 he shared office space with attorney parliament Bronson and that same year opened a law office in connection with William Allen
under the firm name of Allen & Pomeroy which continued until 1855. He then partnered
with David Wright under the firm name of Wright & Pomeroy which existed until 1868.
During this period he was twice elected District Attorney of Cayuga County. While serving
his second term, he married Miss Elisabeth Leitch Watson on September 4, 185S. In
1857 he was elected to the State Assembly where he served one term.
1858 Republican Convention
In '1858, Pomeroy was suddenly thrust into the national political scene. The 33 year from
Auburn attended the fledgling Republican Convention held in Syracuse that year. The
king maker of the young party, Thurlow Weed, wanted the party to join with the Know
Nothings to increase their base of support. The Know Nothings were anti-immigration and
anti-Catholic. The convention had been meeting on the subject for 2l straight hours when
Pomeroy stood up without a prepared statement and urged the convention members to
reject the union and to stay with the abolitionist principles upon which the party had been
founded. His speech supporting liberty and human rights concluded by him saying, "This
was not the time to dilute the platform but to insist upon pure Republicanism." The convention members rejected the merger. Andrew D. White, one of the delegates, said of the
spontaneous speech, "lt was the only speech I ever heard that had the power to absolutely convert a deliberative body from a pre-conceived purpose,'
Gongressman Pomeroy
In 1861, Pomeroy began serving as Congressman for four terms. He helped champion
the freeing of slaves, allied himself with Abraham Lincoln, and chaired the House
Committee on Banking and Curency that issued new currency and established the credit
of the United States to secure loans to.fight the war. He supported the less severe
Reconstruction program of Andrew Johnson and the 13th, 14th, and 1Sth amendments
related to the abolishment of slavery. On March 4, 1869, Pomeroy was chosen Speaker
of the House for one day. He decided not to run again and he returned to Auburn and
entered the business world.
Pomeroy Returns to Auburn
Pomeroy was 44 when he left Congress and
returned home to Auburn. In 1869. he was
admitted as a partner by his brother-in-law,
GeneralWilliam H. Seward, Jr., into the
banking house of William H. Seward & Co.
He also was director of the Oswego Starch
Company, Auburn Water Works Company,
Auburn Tool Company. He was
and
one of the founders of the American Express
Company, serving first as counsel and later
as 1st Mce-President. He passionately
advocated for the creation of the Home on
the
Pomeroy home at 166-168 Genesee
Grant Avenue, which was originally built as a haven for the widows and children of the
fallen Civil War soldiers.
Pomeroy Continues His Public $ervice
In 1875 and 1876, Pomeroy served as Mayor of Auburn. In 187S, he served as delegateat-large from New York at the Republican National Convention in Cincinnati and was
chosen temporary chairman of the convention. ln 1877, he successfully ran for State
Senator representing Cayuga and Wayne Counties. ln that position, he was chairman of
the Committee on Cities.
Pomeroy died March 23, 1905 at the age of 80. Harriet Tubman, then 91 years old,
walked from her home to the Pomeroy house to attend his funeral. She had served the
family years before as a babysitter. She carried a hand-picked bouquet of lilies and fern
with a card upon which was written, "From one long remembered.' The Pomeroy family
chose to have Harriet's bouquet placed on his casket for burial. Haniet said that she
wanted to do something to honor her friend.
Dr. Jerome H. Holland
By Sheila S. Tucker, Cayuga County Historian
Who is the only native of Cayuga County to receive the Presidential Medal of Freedom award? He also was the U.S. Ambassador to Sweden, president of two colleges, National Chairman
of the American Red Cross and oh yes, an All-American football
player at Cornell. To the world he was Dr. Jerome H. Holland but
to his hometown of Auburn he was "Brud."
Dr. Jerome H. Holland
Holland, the only son of Robert and Violas Bagby Holland, was
born in Auburn on January 9, '1916. He attended Seward School
and then graduated Auburn Academic High Schoolwhere he
started his career in football. His father was a gardener for several of the South Street homes. Mr. and Mrs. Dutton Noble, one
of the families where the father worked, offered to pay for Brud's
college education.
The Academic Years
Brud was one of three African-Americans admitted to Cornell in 1935 and the first to play
football there. He started as an end for the Big Red and in both 1937 and 1938 was on
the Associated Press All-American football teams. ln his book, "Black Opportunity," Holland wrote:" In the Spring of 1939, I was a member of the senior class at Cornell University. My grades were considered good and I had been elected to the junior and senior
honor societies...During the months before graduation scores of industrial recruiters visited the Cornell campus. With one single exception, every member of the senior class
who had compiled a record similar to mine was interuiewed and offered one or more jobs.
I was the exception. Nobody interviewed me. Nobody offered me a job. I am a Negro."
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Comell All-American
Holland, financing his education by
teaching and coaching, earned a
Master's degree from Cornell in Sociology in 1941 and a PhD from the
University of Pennsylvania in 1950.
He was to serve as President of
Delaware State College for seven
years and then Hampton Institute
for ten years. As a college leader,
Holland played an active role in
breaking down racial barriers in the
area of the employment of educated
African-Americans.
Holland AccomPlishments
In 1965, Holland was enshrined in the College Football Hall of Fame. President Richard
Nixon appointed him Ambassador to Sweden where he served 1970-72. On his return to
the United States in 1g72, Holland served on the board of the New York Stock Exchange'
A prominent business consultant, Holland was the first African-American to service on the
board of directors of fourteen companies, including American Telephone and Telegraph,
Chrysler, General Foods and Manufacturers Hanover'
In 1g7g, he was named National Chairman of the American Red Cross and remained active in this organization until his death on January 14, 1985.
During his lifetime, Brud Holland lived out his commitment to human relations, promoting
govthe causes of medical and social welfare, education, and international amity. He was
ernor of New york Hospital, regional vice-chairman of the National Conference of Christians and Jews, vice-chairman of the national advisory board of the Salvation Army,
board member of the National Urban League and the United Negro College Fund- He
was to receive twenty-four honorary degrees. Through the years, he supported Cornell
and established the Jerome H. "Brud" Holland Fund to provide scholarships to minority
students at Cornell. Cornell named a Living Center at the school in his honor'
ln an interview t had with him in 1977, he said that he enjoyed growing up in Auburn
where there were ethnic enclaves of immigrants. .. "Since I left Auburn, what stands out
most in my mind is the fact that this country allows the individual, regardless of station in
life to have upward mobility. Americans change and adjust. You don't see that anywhere
else in the wodd," he concluded.
Brud was brought back to his childhood church, Thompson AME Zion Church, for his funeral service and was buried at Fort Hill Cemetery'
Five months later, president Ronald Reagan posthumously awarded the Medal of Freedom-the nation's highest civilian award to Holland for his contributions in the area of
education.
personal note: I heard Holland speak on several occasions in Auburn before I had a two-hour interview
,'presence", self-confidence and I thought he was brilliant. we chatted over experiwith him in 1g77. He had
serenity
ences we had at Comell and the discrimination that he experienced. He spoke about it with such
memories.
lifetime
that lwas totally overwhelmed and that chat has become one of my most cherished
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