Robert Livingston Beeckman

Robert Livingston Beeckman

Robert Livingston Beeckman (born April 15, 1866 in New York City , † January 21, 1935 in Santa Barbara , California ) was an American politician and tennis player. In 1886 he was the US Open finalist and 1915-1921 Governor of the State of Rhode Iceland .

Early years and business advancement

Robert Beeckman came to Providence , Rhode Island with his parents at the age of five . At the age of 16 he left school in order to start a business. At the age of 21 he was already working on the New York Stock Exchange . In New York he began for the family-owned company Lapsley Beeckman & Co to work. Beeckman was also a director of the Industrial Trust Company in Newport and the International Silver Company .

He was also a successful tennis player in the 1880s. For example, he reached the final of the US National Championships (now the US Open ) in 1886 .

Political career

Beeckman was a member of the Republican Party . Between 1902 and 1912 he was a member of the Rhode Island House of Representatives , and from 1912 to 1914 he was a member of the State Senate . In 1914, Beeckman was elected the new governor of his state. After he was confirmed by the voters in this office in 1916 and 1918, he was able to serve as governor between January 5, 1915 and January 4, 1921. Part of his tenure was overshadowed by the events of World War I , in which the United States was involved between April 1917 and November 1918. First of all, production in Rhode Island also had to be converted to armaments requirements. In addition, soldiers had to be recruited for the armed forces. Fuel and food were rationed. Governor Beeckman even visited his soldiers on the battlefields in France .

After the war, production was cut back to meet civilian needs. The task now was to reintegrate the returning soldiers into society and to take care of the disabled and the bereaved of the dead. In addition to these war-related events, a pardon committee was established at that time. The governor also advocated reform of some government institutions, such as hospitals and prisons. In 1922, Beeckman ran unsuccessfully for a seat in the US Senate .

Another résumé

After 1922, Beeckman withdrew from politics. He died in January 1935. Robert Beeckman was married twice.

literature

• Robert Sobel and John Raimo (Eds.): Biographical Directory of the Governors of the United States, 1789–1978. Volume 4, Meckler Books, Westport, 1978. 4 volumes.

Web links

• Robert Beeckman in the National Governors Association (English)
• Robert Livingston Beeckman in the database of Find a Grave (English)
• Robert Livingston Beeckman on tennisarchives.com (English)

Individual evidence

1. ^ Mary Mewborn: Washingtonians' Summer Retreats in Newport. ( Memento of the original from July 21, 2013 in the Internet Archive ) Info: The archive link was inserted automatically and has not yet been checked. Please check the original and archive link according to the instructions and then remove this notice. In: Washington Life. Volume 12, No. 1, September 2002 (English).