Walter R. Stubbs

Walter R. Stubbs

Walter Roscoe Stubbs (born November 7, 1858 in Wayne County , Indiana , † March 25, 1929 in Topeka , Kansas ) was an American politician and from 1909 to 1913 the 18th governor of the state of Kansas.

Early years

As a child, Walter Stubbs moved with his parents from Indiana via Iowa to Kansas. There they arrived in 1869 and Stubbs attended local schools in Douglas County . He enrolled at the University of Kansas but was unable to finish his studies due to financial problems. Subsequently, he worked as an unskilled worker in various professions. He was also a helper for a forwarding company that transported goods with the help of teams of mules. Stubbs took a liking to it, bought mules himself and thus entered the freight business. After he was able to secure some contracts with the railroad, things also went up economically and he became rich. Later he was also able to get into banking.

Political rise

Stubbs was a member of the Republican Party and was elected to the Kansas House of Representatives in 1902 . He held this mandate for five years, at times he was also President of Parliament (Speaker). Between 1904 and 1908 he was party chairman for the Republicans in Kansas. In 1908 he was nominated by his party as a candidate for the upcoming gubernatorial election. This nomination took place for the first time under the new pre-election law, according to which voters in primary elections could choose their party's candidate. This system is still used today in most states and in presidential elections.

Kansas Governor

After the successful election, Stubbs was able to take up his new office on January 11, 1909. After being re-elected in 1910, he was able to officiate for a total of four years. During his time, road construction was promoted, legal control of insurance companies improved, rail tariffs controlled, and a law regulating election campaign spending was passed. The dimensions and weights have been standardized. Child labor was banned for children under the age of 14. Alcoholic beverages were banned on trains passing through Kansas while they were in state territory. Due to the flood disasters, especially in 1903 and 1904, flood protection was improved. At that time, an institution for the mentally disturbed was also built. There have been some problems with monitoring the ban on alcohol in the southeast of the state.

Another résumé

Stubbs did not apply for a third term in 1912. Instead he ran, albeit unsuccessfully, for a seat in the US Senate . In 1918 a renewed candidacy for the Senate failed. In 1922 and 1924, Stubbs applied unsuccessfully for a return to the office of governor. In the meantime, he had risen to be a wealthy man raising cattle on a large scale in Colorado , New Mexico, and Texas . Walter Stubbs died in 1929 and was buried in Lawrence. He was married to Stella Hostettler, with whom he had four children.

Web links

• Walter Stubbs in the National Governors Association (English)
• Biography at the Kansas Historical Society (English)
• Walter R. Stubbs in the database of Find a Grave (English)