Winfield Durbin

Winfield T. Durbin

Winfield Taylor Durbin (born May 4, 1847 in Lawrenceburg , Indiana , † December 18, 1928 in Anderson , Indiana) was an American politician and between 1901 and 1905 the 25th governor of Indiana.

Early years

Durbin attended elementary school in New Philadelphia, Indiana. He then attended a business school in St. Louis. Despite his youth, Durbin enlisted in the Union Army during the American Civil War . Among other things, he was involved in the siege of Fortress Vicksburg in Mississippi . After the Civil War, he worked as a teacher and tanner in Washington County . He also played a leading role in the "Grand Army of the Republic", GAR for short. This was a veterans' association of former Union soldiers of the civil war . At the same time Durbin ran a paper mill and he was on the board of directors of Citizens Bank in Anderson. During the Spanish-American War of 1898, Durbin served as a colonel in the US Army .

politics

Durbin was a member of the Executive Committee of the Indiana Republican Party between 1890 and 1897. For a few years he was even chairman of the state party. In 1892 and 1896 he was a Republican elector in the presidential election. In 1900 he was elected as his party's candidate for the new governor of Indiana. Durbin's four-year tenure began on January 14, 1901. During this time, he promoted the expansion of the road network in Indiana. In addition, at this early point in time he called for laws to regulate automobile traffic, which at the time was still relatively insignificant, but was to become increasingly important. Governor Durbin was also a staunch opponent of the then widespread lynch system. In 1903 he even used the National Guard against a lynch mob.

Another résumé

Durban's tenure ended on January 9, 1905. Then he returned to his private economic interests in Anderson. There he became a millionaire. In 1912 he unsuccessfully applied for a return to the office of governor. Then he finally withdrew from politics. He died in Anderson in 1928. Winfield Durbin was married to Berta McCullogh, with whom he had two children.

literature

• Robert Sobel and John Raimo (Eds.): Biographical Directory of the Governors of the United States, 1789–1978. Volume 1, Meckler Books, Westport 1978. 4 volumes.

Web links

• Winfield Durbin in the National Governor Association (English)
• Indiana Historical Bureau (English)
• Winfield Durbin in the database of Find a Grave (English)