Paul Martin Pearson

Paul Martin Pearson

Paul Martin Pearson (born October 22, 1871 in Litchfield , Illinois , †  March 26, 1938 in San Francisco , California ) was an American university professor and politician . Between 1931 and 1935 he was the first civilian governor of the US Virgin Islands .

Career

Paul Pearson attended Baker University in Kansas and then studied at Northwestern University in Illinois. There he also worked as a teacher for some time. He later moved to Swarthmore , Pennsylvania , where he lectured public speaking at Swarthmore College . He also wrote some papers on this subject. He was also involved in the Chautauqua movement, which was concerned with adult education. In this context, he founded the Swarthmore Chautauqua Association . During World War I , Pearson was responsible for the YMCA's educational programs for the United States Army .

In 1931 he was named the first civilian governor of the Virgin Islands by President Herbert Hoover . Until then, only naval officers had performed this function there. Pearson took up his new office on March 18, 1931 and held it until August 21, 1935. Soon there were difficulties in his new area of ​​work. He fell out over financial disagreements with Herbert Brown, head of the Bureau of Efficiency . Pearson has also been charged with nepotism for allegedly creating government offices for friends. In 1933, he imposed a five percent import tax on goods from mainland America. This made him even less popular. There were voices after his dismissal and even a referendum on the subject was prepared. In February 1934, Pearson had to file for private bankruptcy. His debt came from his involvement with the Chautauqua movement in Pennsylvania. In the months that followed, Pearson remained in negative headlines. He was embroiled in some scandals and a commission was set up to investigate what was going on, but nothing came of it. Even so, President Franklin D. Roosevelt removed him from his post on August 21, 1935.

After serving as governor, Paul Pearson moved to San Francisco, where he died on March 26, 1938.

Web links

• Short biography (Engl.)