James Rolph
James Rolph | |
|---|---|
 Rolph in 1928 | |
| 27thGovernor of California | |
| In office January 6, 1931 – June 2, 1934 | |
| Lieutenant | Frank Merriam |
| Preceded by | C. C. Young |
| Succeeded by | Frank Merriam |
| Chair of theNational Governors Association | |
| In office July 26, 1933 – June 2, 1934 | |
| Preceded by | John Garland Pollard |
| Succeeded by | Paul V. McNutt |
| 30thMayor of San Francisco | |
| In office January 8, 1912 – January 6, 1931 | |
| Preceded by | P. H. McCarthy |
| Succeeded by | Angelo Rossi |
| Personal details | |
| Born | August 23, 1869 San Francisco,California, U.S. |
| Died | June 2, 1934(aged 64) Santa Clara County, California,U.S. |
| Resting place | Greenlawn Memorial Park,Colma, California, U.S. |
| Political party | Republican |
| Spouse | Annie Marshall Reid |
| Children | 3 |
James"Sunny Jim"Rolph Jr.(August 23, 1869 – June 2, 1934) was an American politician. A member of theRepublican Party,he was elected to a single term as the27th governor of Californiafrom January 6, 1931, until his death on June 2, 1934, at the height of theGreat Depression.Previously, Rolph had been the 30thmayor of San Franciscofrom January 8, 1912, until hisresignationto become governor.[1]Rolph remains the longest-serving mayor in San Francisco history.
Life and career[edit]
Rolph was born in San Francisco, the son of Margaret (Nicol) and James Rolph.[2][3][4]He had four brothers, includingThomas Rolph,and two sisters.[5]After attending school in theMission District,he went to work as an office boy in a commission house. He married Annie Marshall Reid (1872–1956) and had at least one son: James Rolph, III (1904-1980).
Rolph entered the shipping business in 1900, by forming a partnership with George Hind. Over the next decade, he served as president of two banks, one of which he helped establish. Although he was asked to run for mayor in 1909, he chose to wait until1911to run for mayor—a position that he would hold for nineteen years. As mayor, he was known as "Sunny Jim", and his theme song was "There Are Smiles That Make You Happy". In 1915 he appeared as himself in an early documentary film titledMabel and Fatty Viewing the World's Fair at San Francisco,which starredFatty ArbuckleandMabel Normandand was directed by Arbuckle. In 1924, Rolph appeared as himself in aSlim Summervillecomedy short film,Hello, Frisco.
Rolph knew of the power in San Francisco of theRoman Catholic Church.Italians, Irish, French and Germans made up the majority of the population of the City. He established a deep friendship with ArchbishopEdward Joseph Hanna.
In addition to his mayoral duties and overseeing his shipping interests, he directed the Ship Owners and Merchants Tugboat Company and the San Francisco Chamber of Commerce. He also was vice-president of thePanama–Pacific International Expositionand president of theMerchants' Exchange.He resigned in 1931 to assume the office of governor of California.
Rolph received considerable criticism for publicly praising the citizens ofSan Josefollowing the November 1933lynchingof the confessed kidnapper-murderers ofBrooke Hart,a local department store heir, while promising topardonanyone involved, thereby earning the nickname, "Governor Lynch."[6]: 98 Four days before the lynching he had announced he would not call on theNational Guardto prevent the lynching, which was already being discussed locally.[6]: 149
After violence erupted during theSan Joaquin cotton strikein October 1933, Governor Rolph appointed a fact-finding committee to investigate the deaths of several strikers. When the committee met inVisaliaon October 19, 1933,Caroline Decker,a labor activist who had taken part in other California agricultural actions, took testimony from the strikers who testified about the growers' assaults on striking workers.
Death[edit]
After suffering several heart attacks, Rolph died inSanta Clara Countyon June 2, 1934, aged 64, three years into his term. He was the second California governor to die in office, the first beingWashington Bartlettin 1887. Rolph is buried atGreenlawn Memorial ParkinColma, California.[7]He was succeeded as governor by Lieutenant GovernorFrank Merriam.
Legacy[edit]
On September 7, 1934, the California Toll Bridge Authority passed a resolution "that...the San Francisco-Oakland Bay Bridge be dedicated as a lasting memorial to the memory of James Rolph Jr."[8][9]
A 1993 survey of historians, political scientists and urban experts conducted by Melvin G. Holli of theUniversity of Illinois at Chicagoranked Rolph as the twenty-third-best American big-city mayor to have served between the years 1820 and 1993.[10]
See also[edit]
References[edit]
- ^Alexandra, Rae (January 7, 2021) [January 7, 2021]."Watch: That Time the Mayor Burned a Cage of Opium Outside SF City Hall | KQED".www.kqed.org.Archived fromthe originalon February 7, 2023.RetrievedJuly 9,2024.
- ^"Hon. James Rolph, Jr. - San Francisco, CA".www.onlinebiographies.info.RetrievedMarch 22,2021.
- ^Men and Women of Hawaii, 1954: A Biographical Encyclopedia of Persons of Notable Achievement, an Historical Account of the Peoples who Have Distinguished Themselves Through Personal Success and Through Public Service.Honolulu Business Consultants. 1954.
- ^Taylor, David Wooster (1934).The Life of James Rolph, Jr.Committee for publication of the life of James Rolph, Jr.
- ^"FamilySearch".www.familysearch.org.RetrievedSeptember 26,2019.
- ^abKevin Starr(1996).Endangered Dreams: The Great Depression in California.New York: Oxford University Press.ISBN0195100808.
- ^Smookler, Michael (2007).Colma.Arcadia Publishing. p. 68.ISBN978-0-7385-4727-5.
- ^"Rolph Bridge! Span Named for Governor," San Francisco Examiner, September 8, 1934, p. 6., Newspapers.com. The headline is a misnomer. The article quotes the full resolution, which never mentions naming in any way.
- ^Business, Transportation and Housing Agency; Department of Transportation (January 2009)."2008 Named Freeways, Highways, Structures and Other Appurtenances in California"(PDF).State of California. Archived fromthe original(PDF)on October 14, 2012.RetrievedOctober 24,2012.
{{cite web}}:CS1 maint: numeric names: authors list (link)Notes on p. 126 that the Bay Bridge is "unofficially dedicated to James R. Rolph." - ^Holli, Melvin G. (1999).The American Mayor.University Park: PSU Press.ISBN0-271-01876-3.
Further reading[edit]
- Chan, Loren B. "California During the Early 1930s: The Administration of Governor James Rolph, Jr., 1931-1934."Southern California Quarterly63.3 (1981): 262-282.online
- Htnes, William M. "Our American mayors XVI. James Rolph, Jr., of San Francisco."National Municipal Review18.3 (1929): 163-167.https://doi.org/10.1002/ncr.4110180304
- Leikin, Steve. "Governor James Rolph And The Great Depression In California."California History84.4 (2007): 79-81.
- Segal, Morley. "James Rolph, Jr., and the Early Days of the San Francisco Municipal Railway."California Historical Society Quarterly43.1 (1964): 3-18.online
- Starr, Kevin.Endangered Dreams: The Great Depression in California(1996).
- Worthen, James.Governor James Rolph and the Great Depression in California(McFarland, 2010).
External links[edit]
- Biography from the State of California
- James Rolph, Jr.atThe Political Graveyard
- Biography from the Virtual Museum of the City of San Francisco
- James RolphatIMDb
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