Hiram Sibley
Encyclopedia
Hiram Sibley was an industrialist, entrepreneur
, and philanthropist
.
Sibley was born in North Adams, Massachusetts
, and later resided in Rochester
, New York
. He became interested in the work of Samuel Morse involving the telegraph.
In 1840, he joined with Morse and Ezra Cornell
to create a Washington
to Baltimore telegraph service. Sibley later served as first president of Western Union Telegraph Company. In 1861, Jeptha Wade
, founder of Western Union, joined forces with Benjamin Franklin Ficklin
and Hiram Sibley to form the Pacific Telegraph Company
. With it, the final link between the east and west coast of the United States of America was made by telegraph. In conjunction with one Perry Collins
, he later hoped to build a telegraph line from Alaska
to Russia
through the Bering Strait
, the so-called Russian American Telegraph
, but this dream collapsed with the establishment of a cross-Atlantic line to Europe
.
Sibley funded the Sibley College of Mechanical Engineering and Mechanic Arts, as well as the building which housed it, Sibley Hall, at Cornell University
in Ithaca, New York
. Today, the program is known as the Sibley School of Mechanical and Aerospace Engineering, and is located in parts of Upson, Grumman, and Rhodes Halls. Sibley Hall is now a part of the College of Art, Architecture, and Planning
. Hiram Watson Sibley founded the Sibley Music Library in 1904 for the Eastman School of Music of the University of Rochester
. Sibley Music Library is the largest university-affiliated music library in the United States, with three-quarters of a million items in collections.
Sibley died in 1888 and was interred at Mount Hope Cemetery
in Rochester.
His grandson Harper Sibley was also a successful businessman. Hiram Sibley is also an ancestor of attorney Montgomery Blair Sibley (also a descendant of Montgomery Blair), who gained notoriety in 2007 for defending Deborah Jeane Palfrey
. His home near Rochester, the Hiram Sibley Homestead
, was listed on the National Register of Historic Places
in 1985, and his Rochester home is included in the East Avenue Historic District
.
Entrepreneur
An entrepreneur is an owner or manager of a business enterprise who makes money through risk and initiative.The term was originally a loanword from French and was first defined by the Irish-French economist Richard Cantillon. Entrepreneur in English is a term applied to a person who is willing to...
, and philanthropist
Philanthropist
A philanthropist is someone who engages in philanthropy; that is, someone who donates his or her time, money, and/or reputation to charitable causes...
.
Sibley was born in North Adams, Massachusetts
North Adams, Massachusetts
North Adams is a city in Berkshire County, Massachusetts, United States. It is part of the Pittsfield, Massachusetts Metropolitan Statistical Area. The population was 13,708 as of the 2010 census, making it the least populous city in the state...
, and later resided in Rochester
Rochester, New York
Rochester is a city in Monroe County, New York, south of Lake Ontario in the United States. Known as The World's Image Centre, it was also once known as The Flour City, and more recently as The Flower City...
, New York
New York
New York is a state in the Northeastern region of the United States. It is the nation's third most populous state. New York is bordered by New Jersey and Pennsylvania to the south, and by Connecticut, Massachusetts and Vermont to the east...
. He became interested in the work of Samuel Morse involving the telegraph.
Ezra Cornell
Ezra Cornell was an American businessman and education administrator. He was a founder of Western Union and a co-founder of Cornell University...
to create a Washington
Washington, D.C.
Washington, D.C., formally the District of Columbia and commonly referred to as Washington, "the District", or simply D.C., is the capital of the United States. On July 16, 1790, the United States Congress approved the creation of a permanent national capital as permitted by the U.S. Constitution....
to Baltimore telegraph service. Sibley later served as first president of Western Union Telegraph Company. In 1861, Jeptha Wade
Jeptha Wade
Jeptha Homer Wade was an American industrialist, philanthropist, and one of the founding members of Western Union Telegraph....
, founder of Western Union, joined forces with Benjamin Franklin Ficklin
Benjamin Franklin Ficklin
Benjamin Franklin Ficklin was a graduate of the Virginia Military Institute, Class of 1849. He is famous for his help in starting the Pony Express and for establishing other stage coach and mail routes in the United States during the nineteenth century...
and Hiram Sibley to form the Pacific Telegraph Company
Pacific Telegraph Company
In 1860, the Pacific Telegraph Act of 1860 called for the facilitation of communication between the east and west coasts of the United States of America. Hiram Sibley of the Western Union Telegraph Company won the contract...
. With it, the final link between the east and west coast of the United States of America was made by telegraph. In conjunction with one Perry Collins
Perry Collins
Perry McDonough Collins was the visionary behind the Russian American Telegraph of 1865-1867. The failed venture aimed to connect America to Europe by telegraph via the Bering Strait.-The early years:...
, he later hoped to build a telegraph line from Alaska
Alaska
Alaska is the largest state in the United States by area. It is situated in the northwest extremity of the North American continent, with Canada to the east, the Arctic Ocean to the north, and the Pacific Ocean to the west and south, with Russia further west across the Bering Strait...
to Russia
Russia
Russia or , officially known as both Russia and the Russian Federation , is a country in northern Eurasia. It is a federal semi-presidential republic, comprising 83 federal subjects...
through the Bering Strait
Bering Strait
The Bering Strait , known to natives as Imakpik, is a sea strait between Cape Dezhnev, Chukotka Autonomous Okrug, Russia, the easternmost point of the Asian continent and Cape Prince of Wales, Alaska, USA, the westernmost point of the North American continent, with latitude of about 65°40'N,...
, the so-called Russian American Telegraph
Russian American Telegraph
The Russian–American Telegraph, also known as the Western Union Telegraph Expedition and the Collins Overland Telegraph, was a $3,000,000 undertaking by the Western Union Telegraph Company in 1865-1867, to lay an electric telegraph line from San Francisco, California to Moscow, Russia.The route was...
, but this dream collapsed with the establishment of a cross-Atlantic line to Europe
Europe
Europe is, by convention, one of the world's seven continents. Comprising the westernmost peninsula of Eurasia, Europe is generally 'divided' from Asia to its east by the watershed divides of the Ural and Caucasus Mountains, the Ural River, the Caspian and Black Seas, and the waterways connecting...
.
Sibley funded the Sibley College of Mechanical Engineering and Mechanic Arts, as well as the building which housed it, Sibley Hall, at Cornell University
Cornell University
Cornell University is an Ivy League university located in Ithaca, New York, United States. It is a private land-grant university, receiving annual funding from the State of New York for certain educational missions...
in Ithaca, New York
Ithaca, New York
The city of Ithaca, is a city in upstate New York and the county seat of Tompkins County, as well as the largest community in the Ithaca-Tompkins County metropolitan area...
. Today, the program is known as the Sibley School of Mechanical and Aerospace Engineering, and is located in parts of Upson, Grumman, and Rhodes Halls. Sibley Hall is now a part of the College of Art, Architecture, and Planning
Cornell University College of Architecture, Art, and Planning
The College of Architecture, Art, and Planning at Cornell University was established in 1871 as the School of Architecture with the hiring of Charles Babcock as the first Professor creating the first four-year course of study in architecture in the United States...
. Hiram Watson Sibley founded the Sibley Music Library in 1904 for the Eastman School of Music of the University of Rochester
University of Rochester
The University of Rochester is a private, nonsectarian, research university in Rochester, New York, United States. The university grants undergraduate and graduate degrees, including doctoral and professional degrees. The university has six schools and various interdisciplinary programs.The...
. Sibley Music Library is the largest university-affiliated music library in the United States, with three-quarters of a million items in collections.
Sibley died in 1888 and was interred at Mount Hope Cemetery
Mount Hope Cemetery, Rochester
Mount Hope Cemetery in Rochester, New York, founded in 1838, is the United States' first municipal rural cemetery. Situated on 196 acres of land adjacent to the University of Rochester on Mount Hope Avenue, the cemetery is the permanent resting place of over 350,000 people...
in Rochester.
His grandson Harper Sibley was also a successful businessman. Hiram Sibley is also an ancestor of attorney Montgomery Blair Sibley (also a descendant of Montgomery Blair), who gained notoriety in 2007 for defending Deborah Jeane Palfrey
Deborah Jeane Palfrey
Deborah Jeane Palfrey operated Pamela Martin and Associates, an escort agency in Washington, D.C. Although she argued that the company's services were legal, she was convicted on April 15, 2008 of racketeering, using the mail for illegal purposes, and money laundering...
. His home near Rochester, the Hiram Sibley Homestead
Hiram Sibley Homestead
Hiram Sibley Homestead is a historic home located at Sibleyville in Monroe County, New York. The wood frame Federal-style house was built about 1827 and consists of five sections. The original house includes the -story rectangular main section and the attached 2-story north and west wings. It was...
, was listed on the National Register of Historic Places
National Register of Historic Places
The National Register of Historic Places is the United States government's official list of districts, sites, buildings, structures, and objects deemed worthy of preservation...
in 1985, and his Rochester home is included in the East Avenue Historic District
East Avenue Historic District
East Avenue Historic District is a national historic district located at Rochester in Monroe County, New York. The district consists of a series of large 19th and early 20th century homes, houses of worship, meeting houses, and museums. It contains approximately 700 structures. Notable structures...
.