James Rolph

James Rolph Jr. (born August 23, 1869 in San Francisco , California - † June 2, 1934 in Santa Clara , California) was an American politician . He served as the 27th Governor of California and Mayor of San Francisco .

Youth and advancement

James Rolph grew up in San Francisco and also attended the usual schools there. In 1900 he worked in the mail order business with a partner named George Hind. He made a quick climb and became president of two banks. In 1911 he was elected mayor of San Francisco, which he remained until 1930. This is the longest term of office in the history of the mayor of this city to date. He was a very charismatic mayor. As early as 1915 he presented himself in a documentary film. He went down in town history as Sunny Jim . In addition to his duties as mayor, he was also director of the Chamber of Commerce and vice-president of the Panama-Pacific International Exposition , the 1915 World's Fair in San Francisco. Its steady rise continued in 1930. The Republican Party nominated him for governor after incumbent CC Young fell from grace.

Governor of California

On January 6, 1931, Rolph took office as the 27th Governor of California. His entire term of office was overshadowed by the Great Depression , which also did not spare California. The governor made negative headlines when he publicly defended lynching. In San José , a mob had lynched confessed murderers. The governor promised the perpetrators an immediate pardon if convicted. That earned him the nickname Governor Lynch . A major problem loomed in May 1934 when dock workers in San Francisco went on strike, triggering a domestic political crisis that was to cause problems for his successor. Rolph did not live to see the end of his term of office. He died on June 2, 1934 after suffering several heart attacks before. This made him the second California governor to die in office after Washington Bartlett . He was succeeded by Lieutenant Governor Frank Merriam .

His brother Thomas (1885-1956) was a Congressman from California.

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personal data
SURNAME	Rolph, James
ALTERNATIVE NAMES	Rolph, James junior (full name)
BRIEF DESCRIPTION	American politician
DATE OF BIRTH	August 23, 1869
PLACE OF BIRTH	San Francisco , California
DATE OF DEATH	June 2, 1934
Place of death	Santa Clara , California