Samuel Hawkes

Samuel Hawkes was an American politician who represented Saugus in the Massachusetts House of Representatives as a young man. He spoke at Farmers' Institutes and represented the state at the National Farmer's Congress in Missouri. Hawkes belonged to family and local history organizations and served the Saugus community in several capacities.

Early life Hawkes was born on December 4, 1816, to his mother, Theodate Pratt Hawkes, and father Ahijah Hawkes. His father was the chairman of Saugus' first Board of Selectmen. The property in "Hawkes' Corner" was inhabited by his family since Adam Hawkes, Saugus' first settler settled there in 1638.

Hawkes owned thirteen acres of tillage and ten acres of cranberry bog.

Career Hawkes, a Democrat, represented Saugus in the Massachusetts House of Representatives in 1854.

Hawkes spoke at many Farmers' Institutes in the United States and served "many years" as the Saugus trustee in the Essex Agricultural Society. In 1891 he was appointed by Governor William Russell to represent Massachusetts at the National Farmers' Congress in Sedalia, Missouri.

In Saugus he served as a Town Moderator. He was chairman on the town's Board of Selectmen and the Overseers of the Poor. In Salem, Hawkes was an expert on woodland titles at the Registry of Deeds; This was a "favorite" position he held late in life. Hawkes was a member of the Sinking Fund Commission since it was organized in 1888; Although he was quite ill, in March 1903 he was reelected.

Personal life Hawkes was a bachelor and attended meetings of the Society of Friends. He was president of the Hawkes Family Association and member of the Lynn Historical Society.

Hawkes died on March 24, 1903.