During the Civil War, Evans enlisted on May 6, 1864, as a corporal in Company A, 41st Regiment, Wisconsin Volunteer Infantry and served until he was discharged as a quartermaster sergeant on September 24, 1864. For a year, he was an agent with the quartermaster department in
Chattanooga, Tennessee. He then spent some time in Texas and New York. He married Adelaide Durand in Westfield, New York, in 1869 and they had three children. In 1870, Evans returned to Chattanooga and engaged in the manufacture of freight cars. Elected mayor in 1881, he served two terms. He organized the public-school system of Chattanooga and served as first school commissioner. From 1884 to 1885 he worked as cashier of Chattanooga's First National Bank. Evans became president of the Chattanooga Car and Foundry Company and remained principal owner until 1917. Elected as a
Republican to the
Fifty-first Congress, Evans served from March 4, 1889, to March 3, 1891. He was not a successful candidate for reelection in 1890 to the
Fifty-second Congress and was First Assistant Postmaster General from 1891 to 1893. Evans was elected Governor of Tennessee in 1894 on the face of the returns, but a recount rejected certain votes and declared his Democratic opponent,
Peter Turney, elected. He was appointed Commissioner of Pensions April 1, 1897, and served until May 13, 1902, when he resigned to enter the diplomatic service. Appointed United States consul general to
London, England, on May 9, 1902, Evans resigned from that position in 1905. He was chosen commissioner of health and education of Chattanooga in 1911. ==Death==