William Stephens
William Dennison Stephens (* 26. December 1859 in Eaton , Ohio ; † 25. April 1944 in Los Angeles , California ) was an American politician of the Republican Party . He was from 1917 to 1923 the 24th Governor of California and sat from 1911 to 1916 for this state as a member of the US House of Representatives .
Early years and political advancement
William Stephens was the third of nine children of Martin and Alvira Stephens. After graduating from Eaton High School in 1876, he worked as a teacher for three years. He had to support his large family with his income. He then got hired by the railroad and was involved in building railroad lines in Ohio, Iowa , Indiana, and Louisiana . In 1887 he had to give up the job with the railroad and accompany his family to Los Angeles, California. This had become necessary because his mother was sick and hoped the climate on the west coast would improve. However, this hope was not fulfilled and the mother died within a year.
In California, Stephens first traveled as a traveling salesman, then he became a partner in a large grocery store. From now on, his career took off. He took part in the political life of his city and was elected to some city council committees. He also held a leading position in the local chamber of commerce. In 1906 he was briefly appointed major in the National Guard at the time of the San Francisco earthquake . In 1909 he finally became vice president of the American National Bank . In addition, he became, also in 1909, acting mayor of Los Angeles for two weeks to bridge the time between the resignation of the old mayor and the introduction of his successor.
In 1910 he was elected to the US House of Representatives as a member of the Republican Party . There he spent three legislative terms until 1916, when he temporarily converted to the new Progressive Party . After the dissolution of this party, he returned to the Republicans. On February 28, 1916, the previous Lieutenant Governor John Morton Eshleman died in California . Governor Hiram Johnson named William Stephens as his successor. Because of this, Stephens had to give up his seat in Congress and return to California.
Governor of California
His tenure as lieutenant governor would not last long, Governor Johnson was elected to the United States Senate in the fall of 1916 , and when he took office in March 1917, he resigned the governorship. According to the state constitution, Lieutenant Governor Stephens has now moved up to become California's 24th Governor. Like Hiram Johnson, Stephens was part of the progressive wing of the party, which advocated progressive politics (such as women's suffrage and an eight-hour workday). Stephens said, however, that his goal as governor was primarily to optimize the reforms initiated by Johnson rather than to initiate new ones.
Almost immediately after taking office, he became embroiled in political confrontations over the treatment of two suspected bombers who were held responsible for the Preparedness Day bombing on July 22, 1916 in San Francisco, in which ten people were killed and 40 had been injured. The two defendants, Thomas Mooney and Warren Billings, were union leaders. However, their involvement in the bombing could not be clearly proven. In a show trial, which was carried out at times in a “lynch mob atmosphere”, the two were sentenced to death anyway. The governor believed the judgments were just, but came under global criticism for the unproven question of guilt. Even President Woodrow Wilson asked him to reconsider the matter. Later, a commission appointed by Wilson found little evidence of Mooney's guilt. In 1918 the sentence was changed from the death penalty to life imprisonment. The same thing happened with Billings' sentence. Even after proven innocence, it was almost 23 years before Mooney was released from prison. The real perpetrators of the July 1916 attack could never be identified. The dispute over this question in 1917 became increasingly radical and finally led to an attack on the governor's villa on December 17, 1917. This remained unharmed, but the bomb severely damaged parts of the kitchen. At the same time, the workers' leaders tried to put the governor under pressure and did not shy away from blackmail. Stephens responded with stricter laws and did not give in to the pressure.
For the gubernatorial elections of 1918, Stephens was nominated again by the Republicans and then re-elected for a full four years this time. He defeated the former Democrat Theodore A. Bell with 56.3 percent of the vote. For his opponent, 36.5 percent of California voters spoke out. Then in January 1919 he took the oath for a full term. As a result, he stood up for the concerns of the soldiers who had returned from the First World War and helped them reintegrate into private life. He was also a supporter of the nationwide prohibition law, which was discussed at the time and introduced in 1919 . He viewed the wave of immigration from Asia, especially from Japan , with great suspicion. He also tried to convince his fellow governors in other states and the federal authorities of his anti-Japanese immigration policy. Stephens saw the Japanese as a potential threat to domestic security not just for California but for the entire United States. Parts of his concerns were then incorporated into a new U.S. immigration law in 1924. For the election in 1922, he sought to be nominated again by his party. However, the mood had turned to his disadvantage and he was no longer nominated. The statements were prepared Friend Richardson , who represented the conservative wing of the party and decided the subsequent gubernatorial election for themselves. Stephen's term of office expired on January 8, 1923.
Old age and death
At the end of his tenure, he was finally able to achieve his dream of opening a law firm, having managed to get admitted to the bar in California during his governor's tenure. He remained interested in the political events, but no longer ran for public office and died on April 25, 1944 at the age of 84 in Los Angeles. Stephens was married to Flora Rawson from 1891 until her death in 1931.
Web links
- William Stephens in the Biographical Directory of the United States Congress (English)
- William Stephens in the database of Find a Grave (English)
- William Stephens at the National Governors Association (English)
- Profile the Governor's Library (English)
personal data | |
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SURNAME | Stephens, William |
ALTERNATIVE NAMES | Stephens, William Dennison (full name) |
BRIEF DESCRIPTION | American politician |
DATE OF BIRTH | December 26, 1859 |
PLACE OF BIRTH | Eaton , Ohio |
DATE OF DEATH | April 25, 1944 |
Place of death | Los Angeles , California |