Horace Dyer
Encyclopedia
Horace Levi Dyer was an American football
player and attorney. He played at the halfback
position for the 1894 Michigan Wolverines football team
and was an attorney assigned to prosecute complex fraud cases from the 1900s to the 1920s.
, in 1873, the son of David Patterson Dyer
, a federal judge and member of Congress. He received his preparatory education at the Stoddard School, Clark's Academy, and the Smith Academy, all in St. Louis, Missouri
.
in 1890 and played as a halfback for the 1894 Michigan Wolverines football team
. He helped lead the team to a 9-1-1 record, the best record in the history of the Michigan football team to that date. He was five feet, seven inches tall, and weighed 167 pounds as a football player.
Dyer died in July 1928 during the prosecution of Clarence Saunders in the Piggly Wiggle case. Following Dyer's death, an order from Washington, D.C.
, dismissed the case.
, Dyer indicating that he was a lawyer with an office in the Central National Bank Building in St. Louis. At the time of the 1920 United States Census, he was living in St. Louis with his wife and two sons, and was employed as an attorney.
American football
American football is a sport played between two teams of eleven with the objective of scoring points by advancing the ball into the opposing team's end zone. Known in the United States simply as football, it may also be referred to informally as gridiron football. The ball can be advanced by...
player and attorney. He played at the halfback
Halfback (American football)
A halfback, sometimes referred to as a tailback, is an offensive position in American football, which lines up in the backfield and generally is responsible for carrying the ball on run plays. Historically, from the 1870s through the 1950s, the halfback position was both an offensive and defensive...
position for the 1894 Michigan Wolverines football team
1894 Michigan Wolverines football team
The 1894 Michigan Wolverines football team represented the University of Michigan in the 1894 college football season. The team, with William McCauley as head coach, compiled an 9–1–1 record and outscored its opponents by a combined score of 244 to 84. The Wolverines played a home-and-away series...
and was an attorney assigned to prosecute complex fraud cases from the 1900s to the 1920s.
Early years
Dyer was born in Louisiana, MissouriLouisiana, Missouri
Louisiana is a city in Pike County, Missouri, United States. The population was 3,863 at the 2000 census, making it the largest city in Pike Couunty. Louisiana is located in northeast Missouri, on the Mississippi River south of Hannibal....
, in 1873, the son of David Patterson Dyer
David Patterson Dyer
David Patterson Dyer was a United States federal judge and U.S. Representative from Missouri. He was also the uncle of U.S. Representative Leonidas C. Dyer....
, a federal judge and member of Congress. He received his preparatory education at the Stoddard School, Clark's Academy, and the Smith Academy, all in St. Louis, Missouri
St. Louis, Missouri
St. Louis is an independent city on the eastern border of Missouri, United States. With a population of 319,294, it was the 58th-largest U.S. city at the 2010 U.S. Census. The Greater St...
.
University of Michigan
Dyer enrolled at the University of MichiganUniversity of Michigan
The University of Michigan is a public research university located in Ann Arbor, Michigan in the United States. It is the state's oldest university and the flagship campus of the University of Michigan...
in 1890 and played as a halfback for the 1894 Michigan Wolverines football team
1894 Michigan Wolverines football team
The 1894 Michigan Wolverines football team represented the University of Michigan in the 1894 college football season. The team, with William McCauley as head coach, compiled an 9–1–1 record and outscored its opponents by a combined score of 244 to 84. The Wolverines played a home-and-away series...
. He helped lead the team to a 9-1-1 record, the best record in the history of the Michigan football team to that date. He was five feet, seven inches tall, and weighed 167 pounds as a football player.
Legal career
After receiving his LL.B. degree from Michigan in 1895, Dyer returned to St. Louis where he practiced law. He was an assistant city attorney from 1899 to 1902 and an Assistant U.S. Attorney starting in 1902. Dyer developed a reputation for prosecuting significant fraud cases and was often dispatched by the U.S. Department of Justice as a special prosecutor in such cases. Dyer's significant cases include the following:- In 1905, Dyer was assigned to prosecute Joseph R. BurtonJoseph R. BurtonJoseph Ralph Burton was a lawyer and United States Senator from the state of Kansas.- Early life :Burton was born and reared on his father's farm near Mitchell, Indiana. His father, Allen C. Burton, was descended from English ancestors, who came to America to escape the reign of Cromwell in the...
, a U.S. Senator from Kansas. Burton was charged with accepting a bribe from the Rialto Grain & Securities Company (a "get-rich-quick" concern), to use his influence with the post office department to prevent the issuance of a fraud order against the company. Dyer secured a conviction of Burton in the second trial of the matter (the first conviction was reversed by the U.S. Supreme Court). - In 1926, Dyer was appointed as the special prosecutor in connection with an investigation and subsequent prosecution of Clarence Saunders, the founder of the Piggly WigglyPiggly WigglyPiggly Wiggly is a supermarket chain operating in the Midwestern and Southern regions of the United States, run by Piggly Wiggly, LLC, an affiliate of C&S Wholesale Grocers. The current company headquarters is in Keene, New Hampshire....
supermarkets, in connection with fraudulent sales of the company's stock. - In 1927, the U.S. Department of Justice sent Dyer to Tampa, FloridaTampa, FloridaTampa is a city in the U.S. state of Florida. It serves as the county seat for Hillsborough County. Tampa is located on the west coast of Florida. The population of Tampa in 2010 was 335,709....
, to prosecute companies and individuals engaged in fraudulent real estate transactions during the Florida land boom of the 1920sFlorida land boom of the 1920sThe Florida land boom of the 1920s was Florida's first real estate bubble, which burst in 1925, leaving behind entire new cities and the remains of failed development projects such as Aladdin City in south Miami-Dade County and Isola di Lolando in north Biscayne Bay...
.
Dyer died in July 1928 during the prosecution of Clarence Saunders in the Piggly Wiggle case. Following Dyer's death, an order from Washington, D.C.
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....
, dismissed the case.
Family
Burton married Bettie Edgar in 1899, and she died in 1901. He married Betty Wilcox in 1905, and they had two sons, David (born 1908) and John (born 1913). In a draft registration card completed at the time of World War IWorld War I
World War I , which was predominantly called the World War or the Great War from its occurrence until 1939, and the First World War or World War I thereafter, was a major war centred in Europe that began on 28 July 1914 and lasted until 11 November 1918...
, Dyer indicating that he was a lawyer with an office in the Central National Bank Building in St. Louis. At the time of the 1920 United States Census, he was living in St. Louis with his wife and two sons, and was employed as an attorney.