Len Small

Len Small

Lennington "Len" Small (born June 16, 1862 in Kankakee County , Illinois ; † May 17, 1936 ibid) was an American politician and from 1921 to 1929 the 26th governor of the US state of Illinois.

Early years and political advancement

Len Small attended local schools in his homeland. He later studied at what is now Valparaiso University in Indiana . Between 1901 and 1905 he was a member of the Illinois Senate . From 1905 and 1907 and again from 1917 to 1919 he was State Treasurer of Illinois. Then he was head of federal finance in Chicago from 1908 to 1912 . In 1920 he was nominated by the Republican Party as a candidate for gubernatorial elections and was subsequently also elected to this office.

Illinois Governor

Small's eight-year term (including re-election in 1924) began on January 10, 1921. During this time, the road network of Illinois was generously expanded. Many paved roads and highways were built. At the end of his tenure, Illinois' road network spanned 7,000 miles, nowhere else in the United States was the road network so extensive at the time. But other infrastructure measures were also initiated, such as the expansion of the waterways. At that time, an independent police department was also set up in the government. There was also labor and racial unrest in the country in his day. In 1922, Lottie O'Neal became the first woman to be elected to the Illinois House of Representatives, where she remained for the next 38 years.

Governor Small's tenure also had its downsides. He was fined $ 650,000 by a court for corruption while serving as treasurer . In another case, he was acquitted by the jury, but four of the jurors were later given civil service positions, which led to speculation and allegations of bribery that could not be proven. Since President Warren G. Harding and his administration were embroiled in scandals at about the same time , politics in the United States in general lost credibility. It got worse in Illinois. The governor pardoned Edward O'Donnell, one of the leading gang bosses in Chicago. It was there in those years that the gangster clashes between Al Capone and his opponents, made famous by Hollywood films , took place, in the course of which Capone was able to rise to the absolute ruler of the city. The rise of the gang bosses was only made possible by the prohibition introduced in 1919 . By smuggling alcohol, the gangsters succeeded in building entire empires, which they then expanded to include gambling and prostitution. Drug trafficking would follow later. The governor watched the goings-on in Chicago more or less idly. He applied for a third term in 1928, but failed internally at Louis Lincoln Emmerson . His term of office thus ended in January 1929.

After his tenure, Small applied unsuccessfully for a return to the office of governor in both 1932 and 1936. He was married to Ida Morre, with whom he had three children.

Web links

• Len Small in the National Governors Association (English)
• Illinois Blue Book History and Election Results
• Len Small in nndb (English)

• Len Small in the database of Find a Grave (English)