Escambia County FlArchives Biographies.....Hyer, Henry 1871 - ************************************************ Copyright. All rights reserved. http://www.usgwarchives.net/copyright.htm http://www.usgwarchives.net/fl/flfiles.htm ************************************************ File contributed for use in USGenWeb Archives by: Joy Fisher sdgenweb@yahoo.com February 4, 2008, 1:58 pm Author: B. F. Johnson Henry Hyer Henry Hyer, banker, broker, real estate dealer, officer and director in several industrial and public utility corporations, is a conspicuous example of the limitless possibilities of advancement and the acquirement of prestige and financial independence open to the young men of America who possess pluck and perseverence, ambition and application, industry and integrity. Born at Pensacola, Fla., December 29, 1871, his early childhood covered that period of the South's most acute poverty, which was an aftermath of the Civil War—the period of the "carpet bag" reconstruction of its civil government and political system. Impoverished, as all of the other States of the Southern Confederacy were, and handicapped by the peculiarly iniquitous administration of its government during the era of reconstruction, Florida's educational system, both public and private, was extremely limited, hence, the educational advantages of its youth during that period were of necessity meager, and in this particular Henry Hyer was no exception to the rule. He entered the public schools of Pensacola, which were limited only to the grammar grades, in 1883, graduating in 1887. He secured a clerkship in the banking house of F. C. Brent and Company, afterward merged into the present First National Bank of Pensacola. He remained in the employ in which he commenced his business career for twelve years, and by gradual promotion was elevated to the responsible position of chief exchange clerk in the bank, which he held when he resigned it in 1899 to become associated in the loan brokerage and real estate business, at the beginning as a confidential clerk, with John McDavid, a wealthy retired sawmill operator, now deceased. He was placed in practically unhampered control of the large resources of his employer, who reposed implicit confidence in both his judgment and integrity. So successful was he in the manipulation of the means entrusted to him, that he was given an interest in the business which was continued for the following four years, as it had been organized, in the name of John McDavid. It was then incorporated as the McDavid-Hyer Company, in 1903, and so continued until the death of Mr. McDavid in 1905. Mr. McDavid's holdings in the McDavid-Hyer Company were acquired in December, 1904, by Mr. Hyer and his elder brothers, W. K. Hyer, Jr., now president of the First National Bank of Pensacola, and J. Whiting Hyer, an expert on real estate values and a fire underwriter of broad experience. Life and fire insurance were added to its business in 1904, and Henry Hyer was placed in charge of its life insurance department in addition to the retention of full charge of the company's stock and bond brokerage and loan departments, with the result that in these departments the McDavid-Hyer Company ranks with the leading concerns of its character in the State of Florida. In addition to his connection with and holdings in the McDavid Hyer Company, Mr. Hyer is extensively interested as an investor or director and officer in the following important industrial, public utility and development companies: The Florida and Alabama Land Company, extensive lumber and timber producers at Pensacola, Florida and Falco, Ala.; the Joel Frater Company, lumber manufacturers at Pensacola; the Delana Improvement Company and the Albert-Hazel Land Company, both Pensacola real estate development companies; and the Andalusia Light and Water Company, which operates the Andalusia, Alabama, electric lighting and municipal water system. Reared in the Episcopal Church, Mr. Hyer has been a lifelong communicant of that faith. He was married in June, 1903, to Miss Rose Emily Leonard, of Pensacola, but the union has proven childless. In social life, his position is the highest possible of attainment in Pensacola. He is a member of the Osceola and Country clubs, Pensacola's leading social organizations, and frequently entertains his friends at his home, one of the handsomest residences in the most exclusive residence section of Pensacola. Inordinately fond of out-of-door amusements, he is an enthusiastic devotee of the sport to be had with rod and reel, and gun and dogs, in the vicinity of his home city where fishing is so fine and game of every species is so plentiful in season. Additional Comments: Extracted from: FLORIDA EDITION MAKERS OF AMERICA AN HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL WORK BY AN ABLE CORPS OF WRITERS VOL. III. Published under the patronage of The Florida Historical Society, Jacksonville, Florida ADVISORY BOARD: HON. W. D. BLOXHAM COL. FRANK HARRIS HON. R. W. DAVIS SEN. H. H. McCREARY HON. F. P. FLEMING W. F. STOVALL C. A. CHOATE, SECRETARY 1909 A. B. CALDWELL ATLANTA, GA. COPYRIGHT 1909 B. F. JOHNSON Photo: http://www.usgwarchives.net/fl/escambia/photos/bios/hyer44gbs.jpg File at: http://files.usgwarchives.net/fl/escambia/bios/hyer44gbs.txt This file has been created by a form at http://www.genrecords.org/flfiles/ File size: 5.4 Kb