Robert Waterman (15 December 1826-12 April 1891) was the Republican Governor of California from 12 September 1887 to 8 January 1891, succeeding Washington Bartlett and preceding Henry Markham.
Biography[]
Robert Waterman was born in Fairfield, New York in 1826, and he was raised in Newbury, Illinois and became a store clerk and postmaster in Geneva. In 1850, he sold his assets and headed to California, and he befriended Brigham Young in Salt Lake City along the way. In 1851, he briefly returned to Illinoisto work as a grain dealer in Wilmington, serving as an Illinois delegate to the 1856 Republican National Convention. In 1873, he returned to California and became a machinery salesman in Redwood City, and he moved to San Bernardino in 1874 and operated the Stonewall Jackson Mine, making him $500 a day. In 1880, he discovered a mine north of Barstow, forming a mining partnership. Waterman was elected Lieutenant Governor in 1886, and he took over the duties of Governor after Washington Bartlett's death in office; he served until 1891, and his poor health caused him not to seek re-election. He moved to San Diego, where he died in 1891.