Herman Wilber Snow was a U.S. Representative

United States House of Representatives

The United States House of Representatives is one of the two Houses of the United States Congress, the bicameral legislature which also includes the Senate.The composition and powers of the House are established in Article One of the Constitution...

 from Illinois

Illinois

Illinois is the fifth-most populous state of the United States of America, and is often noted for being a microcosm of the entire country. With Chicago in the northeast, small industrial cities and great agricultural productivity in central and northern Illinois, and natural resources like coal,...

, United States

United States

The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...

.

Biography

Born in Michigan City, Indiana

Michigan City, Indiana

Michigan City's origins date to 1830, when the land for the city was first purchased by Isaac C. Elston. Elston Middle School, formerly Elston High School, located at 317 Detroit St., is named after the founder....

, Snow moved with his parents to Madisonville, Kentucky

Madisonville, Kentucky

Madisonville is a city in Hopkins County, Kentucky, United States of the Western Coal Field region, located along US 41 and The Pennyrile Parkway. The population was 19,307 at the 2000 census. It is the county seat of Hopkins County. The city was named in honor of U.S...

, where he attended the public schools. He moved to Sheldon, Illinois

Sheldon, Illinois

Sheldon is a village in Sheldon Township, Iroquois County, Illinois, United States. The population was 1,232 at the 2000 census, and 1,130 in 2009.-Geography:Sheldon is located at ....

 and taught school several years before he commenced the study of law. He was admitted to the bar

Admission to the bar in the United States

In the United States, admission to the bar is the granting of permission by a particular court system to a lawyer to practice law in that system. Each U.S. state and similar jurisdiction has its own court system and sets its own rules for bar admission , which can lead to different admission...

 and practiced.

During the Civil War

American Civil War

The American Civil War was a civil war fought in the United States of America. In response to the election of Abraham Lincoln as President of the United States, 11 southern slave states declared their secession from the United States and formed the Confederate States of America ; the other 25...

, Snow enlisted as a private in the One Hundred and Thirty-ninth Regiment, Illinois Volunteer Infantry, where he rose to the rank of captain. He re-enlisted in the One Hundred and Fifty-first Regiment, Illinois Volunteer Infantry, and was promoted to the rank of lieutenant colonel. He was provost marshal general of Georgia on Major General James B. Steedman

James B. Steedman

James Blair Steedman was an American soldier, printer, and politician. He also served during the American Civil War as a general in the Union Army, most noted for his performances at the Battle of Chickamauga in 1863 and the Battle of Nashville in 1864.-Early life and career:Steedman was born in...

's staff. At the expiration of his service, he taught in the Chicago High School for three years. He returned to Sheldon and engaged in banking, and also served as member of the Illinois House of Representatives

Illinois House of Representatives

The Illinois House of Representatives is the lower house of the Illinois General Assembly, the state legislature of the U.S. state of Illinois. The body was created by the first Illinois Constitution adopted in 1818. The state House of Representatives is made of 118 representatives elected from...

 from 1872 to 1874.

Snow was elected as a Democrat

Democratic Party (United States)

The Democratic Party is one of two major contemporary political parties in the United States, along with the Republican Party. The party's socially liberal and progressive platform is largely considered center-left in the U.S. political spectrum. The party has the lengthiest record of continuous...

 to the Fifty-second

52nd United States Congress

The Fifty-second United States Congress was a meeting of the legislative branch of the United States federal government, consisting of the United States Senate and the United States House of Representatives. It met in Washington, D.C...

 Congress (March 4, 1891-March 3, 1893). He was an unsuccessful candidate for reelection in 1892 to the Fifty-third

53rd United States Congress

The Fifty-third United States Congress was a meeting of the legislative branch of the United States federal government, consisting of the United States Senate and the United States House of Representatives. It met in Washington, D.C. from March 4, 1893 to March 4, 1895, during the fifth and sixth...

 Congress. He later served as Sergeant at Arms of the House of Representatives during the Fifty-third Congress. He moved to Kankakee, Illinois

Kankakee, Illinois

Kankakee is a city in Kankakee County, Illinois, USA. As of the 2000 census, the city population was 25,561, and 26,840 as of a 2009 estimate. It is the county seat of Kankakee County...

, and resumed banking. He died in Kankakee, and is interred in Mound Grove Cemetery.