Samuel W. Backus

Samuel W. Backus
Born	November 6, 1844 Pine Plains, New York
Died	March 10, 1930(1930-03-10) (aged 85) San Francisco, California

Samuel Woolsey Backus (6 November 1844 in Pine Plains, New York – 10 April 1930 in San Francisco, California) served in the California legislature and during the American Civil War he served in the US Army. From January 9, 1880 – July 1, 1882 he served as Adjutant General of the California National Guard.

Backus was born in 1844 in Poughkeepsie, New York, In 1878, he was elected to the State Legislature from the same district with the late Hon. John F. Swift. He was appointed Adjutant-General by Governor George C. Perkins in 1880, and was a most efficient officer, reorganizing the State militia thoroughly. He was San Francisco's Postmaster, under President Chester A. Arthur's administration ('82-86), and made such an enviable record as an administrator of public affairs that President Benjamin Harrison re-appointed him in 1890.

In 1889 he purchased the San Francisco Wasp, an illustrated weekly magazine of news and satire. He also served as U.S. Immigration Commissioner in San Francisco, appointed by President William Howard Taft in 1911 and reappointed by Governor Hiram Johnson in 1913, serving until 1915.

External links

• Media related to Samuel W. Backus at Wikimedia Commons