Hiester Clymer

Hiester Clymer (3rd November 1827 - 12th June 1884) was a Democratic politician best remembered for his involvement in the investigation into William W. Belknap's alleged corruption.

Racism
Clymer was a virulently pro-slavery politician, as most Democrats were at the time. He was a strong opponent of reconstruction and the emancipation of African-Americans following the American Civil War, running for governor of Pennsylvania in 1866 on a White Supremacist platform. During the controversial campaign, Clymer produced some of the most openly racist campaign material of the decade, such as the infamous "two platforms" poster, which featured a racist caricature of an African-American man and proclaimed that "every radical in Congress voted for Negro suffrage", as well as stating that Clymer's platform was "for the white man", whereas his rival John W. Geary, who ultimately won the election, was "for the Negro". He was also a supporter of the Ku Klux Klan, only investigating Belknap, who was eventually acquitted due to a technicality, because he was using his position to investigate the Klan and promote reconstruction.

Retirement and Death
After he left politics, Clymer served as vice president of the Union Trust Company in Philadelphia and as president of the Clymer Iron Company. He committed suicide on 12 June 1884, by suicide as a result of what the Tonganoxie Mirror called "financial embarrassment". He is buried at the Charles Evans Cemetery.