Early career "Charley" Dick was educated in Akron, and worked at several stores and banks. In 1886, he was the successful
Republican nominee for
Summit County auditor, and he was re-elected in 1888. and served as the Secretary of the
Republican National Committee from 1896 to 1900.
Military career In November 1885 Dick joined the
Ohio Army National Guard as a
private in Company B, 8th Ohio Infantry Regiment, and he was commissioned as a
first lieutenant a few days later. His regiment volunteered for service in the
Spanish–American War, and Dick served in
Cuba as a
major and
lieutenant colonel. He continued his military service after the war, and attained the rank of
major general as head of the Ohio National Guard. From 1902 to 1909 he was president of the
National Guard Association of the United States.
Congressional career He was elected to the
United States House of Representatives by a
special election in 1898 to fill a vacancy created by the death of
Stephen A. Northway, serving the . Dick was Chairman of the Militia Committee, and sponsored the
Militia Act of 1903 (the Dick Act). This act codified the circumstances under which the National Guard in each state could be federalized, provided federal resources for equipping and training the National Guard, and required National Guard units to organize and meet the same readiness requirements as the regular Army. Dick served until he resigned in 1904, having been elected to the
Senate to fill the vacancy created by the death of
Marcus A. Hanna. In the Senate he served as chairman of the Mining Committee and the Committee on Indian Depredations. He also was the head of a Congressional Committee which investigated hazing at the
United States Military Academy. He served until 1911, when he lost a bid for a second term. While in Congress, he became one of the largest stockholders in the
Goodyear Tire and Rubber Company, and served as a
vice president and member of the
board of directors.
Later career Dick practiced law after leaving the Senate, and pursued a successful business career, including ownership of the Franklin Square Hotel in
Washington, D.C., and the Hotel Chatham in
New York City. He ran unsuccessfully for the U.S. House in 1918, losing to
Martin L. Davey. In 1922 he was an unsuccessful candidate for the Republican U.S. Senate nomination, losing to
Simeon D. Fess. ==Retirement, death and burial==