Francis B. Pond engraving photograph

This engraved images is a portrait of General Francis Bates Pond (1825-1883), a Republican state legislator and Ohio attorney general. Pond was born in Jefferson County, New York, and came to Ohio in 1841 to attend Oberlin College. He graduated with honors in 1846 and spent the next three years in Kent, Ohio, working as a teacher and a bookkeeper. In 1850 he moved to Harmar, Ohio, and taught classics at Harmar Academy. He studied law and was admitted to the bar 1852 at Malta, Ohio. Three years later was elected prosecuting attorney of Morgan County. In 1861 he enlisted in the Ohio Volunteer Infantry. In 1864 he was promoted to lieutenant colonel with the newly formed 62nd Ohio Volunteer Infantry. In August 1864 he was wounded at the Battle of Deep River and lost vision in one eye. He resigned his commission in November 1864 due to ill health. He was made brigadier general by brevet in 1864. After returning to Ohio, Pond resumed his law practice and political career. In 1867 he was elected to the Ohio House of Representatives, where he served one term. In 1869 he was elected Ohio’s attorney general and served two terms. He was a member of the state constitutional convention of 1873. In 1879 Pond was elected to the Ohio Senate and served two terms. While a state senator he introduced the so-called "Pond Bill," which created a tax on intoxicating liquors in order to restrict buying and selling of the products. Pond died November 2, 1883, at his home in Malta, Ohio. His death was linked to the wound he received during the Civil War