John Rankin Rogers
John R. Rogers | |
|---|---|
 | |
| 3rdGovernor of Washington | |
| In office January 13, 1897 – December 26, 1901 | |
| Lieutenant | Thurston Daniels Henry McBride |
| Preceded by | John H. McGraw |
| Succeeded by | Henry McBride |
| Member of theWashington House of Representatives from the33rddistrict | |
| In office January 14, 1895 – January 11, 1897 | |
| Preceded by | John O. Edwards |
| Succeeded by | Joseph C. Kincaid |
| Personal details | |
| Born | John Rankin Rogers September 4, 1838 Brunswick, Maine,U.S. |
| Died | December 26, 1901(aged 63) Olympia, Washington,U.S. |
| Political party | Democratic(1900–1901) |
| Other political affiliations | Populist(until 1900) |
| Spouse | Sarah L. Greene (1840–1909) |
| Profession | druggist, educator, farmer, politician |
| Signature |  |
John Rankin Rogers(September 4, 1838 – December 26, 1901) was an American politician who served as thethird governor of Washingtonfrom 1897 to 1901. Elected as a member of thePeople's Partybefore switching his affiliation to theDemocratic Party,Rogers was elected to two consecutive terms in 1896 and 1900, but died before completing his fifth year in office.
Biography
[edit]Early years
[edit]John R. Rogers was born September 4, 1838, inBrunswick, Maine,the son of Margaret Anne (Green) and John Rogers.[1]
Rogers went toBostonas a youth and apprenticed as adruggist,then moved south toMississippiin 1856 to manage a drug store for four years inJackson.He moved north toIllinoisin 1860, where he farmed and worked as a school teacher and druggist. He married Sarah Greene in 1861 and together they had five children.[2]
In 1876 the family relocated toKansasto farm and Rogers was later an editor of theKansas Commonerfor several years inWichita,and was an organizer within theFarmers' Alliance.Rogers moved to Washington in 1890 and settled inPuyallup,where he operated a drug store.
Political career
[edit]Rogers was elected to theWashington House of Representativesin 1895 as a Populist,[3]and governor the following year. As governor he supported the "Barefoot Schoolboy Act" which he had first sponsored while in the state legislature. The Act provided a mechanism of state funding to equalize support for free public education between counties which had a large tax base and those without. Rogers was a conditional supporter of theSingle TaxMovement associated withHenry George.[4]He switched his affiliation to the Democratic Party in 1900 (he was the first Democrat to serve as governor; Ernest Lister would be the first politician from the state to be elected outright as a Democrat in 1913).
John R. Rogers authored many books, pamphlets and articles[2]that followed a Populist and Arcadian Agrarian spirit. Growing up inNew EnglandwhenJeffersonianideals were talked about frequently was a strong influence on his political future.
Death and legacy
[edit]Rogers served as governor from January 11, 1897, until his death fromlobar pneumoniaon December 26, 1901, at age 63.[2] Rogers is buried in the Woodbine Cemetery inPuyallup.
Two high schools in the state are named for Rogers, on either side of theCascade Mountains.John R. Rogers High SchoolinSpokaneinEastern Washingtonopened in 1932 andGovernor John R. Rogers High SchoolinPuyallupopened in 1968.
Rogers Field,thefootballand track stadium atWashington State UniversityinPullman,was named for him in 1902. A fire, a suspectedarson,significantly damaged the wooden stadium in April 1970.[5]The stadium was reconstructed in 1972 and its name changed toMartin Stadium,afterClarence D. Martin,the eleventh governor of Washington (ironically, a graduate of theUniversity of Washington). The present-day Rogers Field at WSU refers to the practice and intramural fields directly west of the stadium.
Footnotes
[edit]- ^"The National Cyclopedia of American Biography... V.1-".1904.
- ^abcJohn Rankin Rogers Papers, 1814-1926, "Archived2006-08-29 at theWayback MachineWashington State University, Pullman, WA.
- ^OurCampaigns.com-John Rankin Rogers
- ^Rogers, John Rankin. Homes for the Homeless. An Argument in Favor of a Non-taxable Homestead. Seattle: Allen Printing, 1895.
- ^Spokesman-Review- Fast blaze ruins Pullman stadium - 1970-04-06 - p.1
Further reading
[edit]- David B. Griffiths, "Far-Western Populist Thought: A Comparative Study of John R. Rogers and Davis H. Waite,"Pacific Northwest Quarterly,vol. 60, no. 4 (Oct. 1969), pp. 183–192.In JSTOR.
- R. Douglas Hurt, "John R. Rogers: The Union Labor Party, Georgism, and Agrarian Reform."Journal of the West,vol. 16 (January 1977), pp. 10–15.
- Edmond S. Meany,Governors of Washington: Territorial and State.Seattle: University of Washington, 1915.
External links
[edit]
- Examination of the Barefoot Schoolboy Actat Washington Secretary of State website
| International | |
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| National | |
| Other | |
- 1838 births
- 1901 deaths
- People from Brunswick, Maine
- Politicians from Puyallup, Washington
- American Presbyterians
- Democratic Party governors of Washington (state)
- Democratic Party members of the Washington House of Representatives
- People's Party state governors of the United States
- Washington (state) Populists
- Writers from Brunswick, Maine
- Writers from Washington (state)
- Deaths from pneumonia in Washington (state)
- 19th-century American politicians