Life
- Born
- Aug. 12, 1832
- Died
- Dec. 20, 1910
Career
- President — Rome Railroad
Biography
Eben Hillyer (Aug. 12, 1832–Dec. 20, 1910) was a Georgia physician, educator, and railroad executive whose most significant connection to transportation was his long tenure as president of the Rome Railroad.
Born in Athens, Georgia, on August 12, 1832, Hillyer came from a prominent Georgia family with deep political and military roots. He graduated from Jefferson Medical College in Philadelphia in 1854 and practiced medicine in Georgia before serving as a Confederate Army surgeon during the Civil War.
Following the war, Hillyer resumed his medical career, teaching at Atlanta Medical College and later returning to Rome, Georgia, where he combined medical practice with agricultural and business pursuits. In 1875, he became president of the Rome Railroad, a position he held for thirteen years. Under his leadership, the railroad was integrated into a broader network of connecting lines, and Hillyer became involved in the management and oversight of affiliated railroad systems. His presidency coincided with a period when regional railroads were vital to the economic development of northwest Georgia, linking local communities and industries to larger transportation corridors.
He died in Rome on December 20, 1910, after a career that bridged medicine, business, and transportation.