Horace Maynard (August 30, 1814-May 3, 1882) was an American politician who served as attorney general of Tennessee, U.S. Representative in Congress and as U.S. Postmaster General in the Rutherford B. Hayes administration. Born in Westborough, Massachusetts, he was educated in local common schools and graduated from Amherst College in 1838. He was then a professor at the University of East Tennessee from 1839 through 1844. After studying law and passing the bar he became a lawyer in Tennessee and shortly thereafter a politician.
He was affiliated with many parties during his first service as a Congressman (March 4, 1857 through March 3, 1863). He was elected as a Whig to the 33rd Congress, as an American Party candidate to the 35th Congress, as an Opposition Party candidate to the 36th Congress and as Unionist Party candidate to the 37th Congress.
During the last two years of the American Civil War, he served as attorney general of Tennessee. He was elected to the 39th Congress as an Unconditional Unionist in 1866 following the readmission of Tennessee into the Union. He then served in the 40th, 41st, 42nd and 43rd Congresses as a Republican. During the 43rd Congress he acted as chairman of the U.S. House Committee on Banking and Currency.
He was also a presidential elector on the Whig ticket in 1852 and on the Republican ticket in 1864.
In 1874 he ran for Governor of Tennessee as a Republican but lost. He was appointed Minister to Turkey and served from 1875 to 1880 in that post. He was appointed Postmaster General in the Cabinet of President Hayes and served from June 2, 1880 to March 5, 1881. He died in Knoxville, Tennessee in 1882 and is buried in Old Gray Cemetery.
This article incorporates facts obtained from the public domain Biographical Directory of the United States Congress.
Preceded by: David M. Key United States Postmaster General 1880-1882 Succeeded by: Thomas L. James
