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Cyrus W. Davis

American politician (1856–1917); 31st Secretary of State of the State of Maine

Correspondence, annotated notebooks and portrait silhouettes prepared for research
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Record originEnglish Wikipedia
Text licenseCC BY-SA 4.0
Source revisionMay 10, 2026
Entity authorityQ24067949
Source-derived summary

Cyrus William Davis (September 25, 1856 – November 1, 1917) was an American politician from Maine. Davis was a Democrat from Waterville, Maine. He served as that city's mayor from 1903 to 1904 and as Secretary of State of Maine from 1911 to 1913.

Biography

Cyrus W. Davis was born in Buxton, Maine on September 25, 1856.

He married Flora E. Philbrook in 1879, and they had two children.

He died from pneumonia at his home in Portland on November 1, 1917. He is interred at Pine Grove Cemetery in Waterville.

The following newspaper article is from the scrapbook of John J. Turner (1858–1937), who knew Davis from Mr. Turner's time at Casco Castle in South Freeport, Maine, from 1902 to 1911.

Editorial summary

The public source identifies “Cyrus W. Davis” as american politician (1856–1917); 31st Secretary of State of the State of Maine. This brief keeps that definition visible, then builds a research path around Cyrus, Davis and American.

Editorial reviewStrongest as a route into the people, institutions and dated events that shaped the subject’s public record. The current lead gives the account dated anchors—1856, 1917, 1903, 1904—that can be checked directly. The selected authority fields contribute no independent date. Its value is orientation rather than verdict, with Cyrus, Davis and American providing the first useful test.
Editorial analysis

Why this record matters

A short description can identify a subject without explaining its stakes. For “Cyrus W. Davis”, the useful work is to connect “american politician (1856–1917); 31st Secretary of State of the State of Maine” to the records capable of establishing context and consequence.

Evidence profile

The entry’s evidential value lies in the named roles, institutions and publications that can be tested against primary documentation. The source revision retrieved here is dated May 10, 2026. The linked authority identifier is Q24067949. The first chronological checks are 1856, 1917, 1903 and 1904.

Critical limits

A concise life account rarely captures disputed attribution, private networks or the changing language used to describe a career. The lead is largely declarative, so disagreement and counter-evidence require a deliberate search beyond the opening account. Authority statements aid reconciliation but still require their own references, qualifiers and ranks to be checked.

How to read it

Read biographical claims against dates, named institutions and the cited references. Distinguish a subject’s later reputation from evidence produced during their lifetime.

Best used for
  • Establishing names and roles
  • Building a first chronology
  • Locating cited institutions
Verify next

Personal papers, civil or court records, institutional files and the scholarship cited by the source.

Three-step research path

  1. Establish the record: confirm the title “Cyrus W. Davis”, its source revision and the description used here.
  2. Expand the search: follow Cyrus W. Davis primary sources, Cyrus W. Davis archive and Cyrus research across catalogues and specialist indexes.
  3. Test the account: compare the strongest cited source with the responsible institution’s current record and note any disagreement.

Questions for further research

  1. Which source most directly establishes the central claim about “Cyrus W. Davis”?
  2. Which primary records establish identity, chronology and institutional ties?
  3. Which claims depend on a single source or contested interpretation?
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Source & attribution

This entry incorporates text from Cyrus W. Davis” on English Wikipedia. Contributors are listed in the page history. Text is available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 License. Selected authority identifiers and statements are retrieved from Wikidata under CC0; their references and qualifiers remain part of the verification path.