Elias S. Stover

Who was Elias S. Stover?

Elias Sleeper Stover was an American businessman, politician, and university president.

Stover was the son of a sea captain, and initially followed his father's trade and went to sea. Stover moved to Kansas in 1858. He was an artillery officer in the 2nd Regiment Kansas Volunteer Cavalry during the Civil War and saw much action including the Battle of Cane Hill, the Battle of Prairie Grove, and the Battle of Dardanelle. He was promoted to captain in 1863. He served in the Kansas legislature for three sessions, in 1867 in the House and in 1871 and 1872 in the Senate. A Republican, he was elected the seventh Lieutenant Governor in 1873. Stover moved to New Mexico in 1876 and continued his political career there, serving as County Commissioner of Bernalillo County 1881-3 and a member of a constitutional convention in 1889. He served in the Territorial legislature in 1891. From 1891-1897 he served as the first president of the University of New Mexico.

In Kansas, Stover was one of the founders of the First National Bank of Council Grove. Stover was one of the principals of Stover, Crary, and Co., a large wholesale grocer in Albuquerque, and one of the founders of the First National Bank of Albuquerque. He made large investments in land before the railroad came to the city.