Frank Murphy (politician, 1890)

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Frank Murphy

William Francis Murphy (born April 13, 1890 in Harbor Beach , Huron County , Michigan , † July 19, 1949 in Detroit ) was an American politician and, among other things, Governor General of the Philippines , US Attorney General and Supreme Court Justice of the United States .

Studies, World War I and judge

The son of a lawyer studied law at the University of Michigan , where he received a Bachelor of Arts in 1912 and a Bachelor of Laws in 1914 . In addition, he completed studies at Lincoln's Inn in London and at Trinity College in Dublin . During World War I , Murphy served in the United States Army , where he was promoted to captain .

After leaving the army, he founded a law firm in Detroit in 1919. Soon after, he became the chief assistant to the District Attorney for the Eastern District of Michigan. From 1923 to 1930 he was a judge in Detroit City Court. The building complex was later named in his honor in the "Frank Murphy Hall of Justice" and is now part of the Third District Court of Detroit.

Mayor of Detroit and Governor General of the Philippines

In 1930, Frank Murphy successfully ran as a Democratic Party candidate for Detroit mayor . He held this office until 1933.

As a strong supporter of the newly elected President Franklin D. Roosevelt and the policies of the New Deal , he was by that on 15 July 1933 as a successor to Theodore Roosevelt Jr. Governor General of the Philippines appointed. He held this office until the founding of the Commonwealth of the Philippines on November 15, 1935 and the assumption of office by Philippine President Manuel Quezon . He himself remained in the Philippines as High Commissioner until 1936 .

Michigan governor

In 1936, Murphy was elected the new governor of Michigan against Republican incumbent Frank Fitzgerald . Murphy began his two-year term on January 1, 1937. During his reign a new unemployment law was passed and the care of the mentally handicapped was improved. As governor, he also had to deal with a strike by some industrial workers. In doing so, he acted on behalf of the workers in a workers' strike on the premises of the General Motors factory in Flint and refused, as the company demanded, to use the National Guard. After he was defeated in 1938 in the gubernatorial election against Fitzgerald, he had to resign on January 1, 1939 from office.

Justice Minister and Supreme Court Justice

After his governorship ended, he was named United States Attorney General by President Roosevelt to succeed Homer S. Cummings . He held this office until February 1940.

On February 5, 1940, President Roosevelt nominated him as Associate Justice of the United States Supreme Court. He held this post until his death in July 1949 due to a heart attack .

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personal data
SURNAME Murphy, Frank
ALTERNATIVE NAMES Murphy, William Francis
BRIEF DESCRIPTION American lawyer and politician
DATE OF BIRTH April 13, 1890
PLACE OF BIRTH Harbor Beach , Michigan
DATE OF DEATH July 19, 1949
Place of death Detroit , Michigan