Erastus Wells

Who was Erastus Wells?

Erastus Wells was a 19th-century politician and businessman from Missouri. He was the father of St. Louis Mayor Rolla Wells.

Born in Sackets Harbor, New York, Wells attended public schools as a child. He moved to St. Louis, Missouri in 1842 where he established the first omnibus line in St. Louis and inaugurated the first street railroad company. He was a member of the St. Louis board of aldermen from 1853 to 1867, was president of the Missouri Railroad Company from 1859 to 1883 and was elected a Democrat to the United States House of Representatives in 1868, serving from 1869 to 1877, being unsuccessful for reelection in 1876. Wells was elected back to the House of Representatives in 1878, serving again from 1879 to 1881, not being a candidate for renomination in 1880, and was president of the Laclede Gas Light Company from 1880 to 1883. He died in St. Louis, Missouri on October 2, 1893 and was interred in Bellefontaine Cemetery in St. Louis.