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Willis Sweet

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Willis Sweet
Member of theU.S. House of Representatives
fromIdaho'sat-largedistrict
In office
October 1, 1890 – March 3, 1895
Preceded byFred Dubois
(asterritorialdelegate)
Succeeded byEdgar Wilson
Associate Justice of the Idaho Territorial Supreme Court
In office
November 19, 1889 – October 1890
Appointed byBenjamin Harrison
Preceded byJohn Lee Logan
Succeeded byposition abolished
United States Attorneyfor theTerritory of Idaho
In office
April 24, 1889 – November 19, 1889
Appointed byBenjamin Harrison
Preceded byJames H. Hawley
Succeeded byFremont Wood
Personal details
Born(1856-01-01)January 1, 1856
Alburgh, Vermont,U.S.
DiedJuly 9, 1925(1925-07-09)(aged 69)
San Juan, Puerto Rico
Resting placePuerto Rico
Political partyRepublican
ProfessionAttorney
Signature

Willis Sweet(January 1, 1856 – July 9, 1925) was the firstUnited States Representativeelected fromIdahofollowing statehood in 1890. Sweet served as aRepublicanin the House from 1890 to 1895, representing the state at-large. He vigorously demanded "Free Silver"or the unrestricted coinage of silver into legal tender, in order to pour money into the large silver mining industry in the Mountain West, but he was defeated by supporters of the gold standard.

Early years[edit]

Born inAlburgh,Vermonton New Year's Day 1856, Sweet attended public schools and theUniversity of NebraskainLincoln,and was a member of thePhi Delta Thetafraternity.He learned the printer's trade in Lincoln and relocated west toMoscowin theIdaho Territoryin 1881. Sweet was the first editor of theMoscow Mirrorin 1882,[1]studied law and became an attorney, judge, and supreme court justice in the territory.

Career[edit]

In the late 1880s, he drafted the legislation that brought theUniversity of Idahoto Moscow, submitting it to territorial councilorJohn W. Brigham,who saw it enacted.[2]Sweet was the first president of the university's board of regents.[3]

On April 24, 1889, PresidentBenjamin Harrisongave Sweet arecess appointmentasUnited States Attorneyfor theTerritory of Idaho.[4]Sweet served as a delegate to theIdaho Constitutional ConventionforLatah Countyin July and August 1889.[5]On November 19, 1889, Harrison again gave Sweet a recess appointment, elevating him to associate justice of theIdaho Territorial Supreme Court.His nomination was received by the senate on December 16, 1889, and he was confirmed on January 27, 1890.[6][7]Following Idaho's statehood, per theIdaho Constitution,he remained in office until the state's supreme court justices were elected in October 1890.

While inCongressfrom1890to1895,Sweet was a leading advocate of thefree and unlimited coinageofsilver,which would pour large sums of money into Idaho. He closely followedCharles Parnell,theIrish agitatorin theBritish Parliament,who managed to force consideration of his proposals by blocking the legislative process there. Sweet tried to block everything until he got his Free Silver, but he was blocked bySpeakerThomas Reed.WhenWilliam McKinleywas nominated for president in1896on agold standardplatform, Sweet supported silver advocateWilliam Jennings Bryan,who was running on the Democratic,Populist,andSilver Republicanparty labels.

He was a candidate for theU.S. Senatein 1896, but was defeated in theIdaho LegislaturebyPopulistHenry Heitfeld.He was an attorney innorthernIdaho inCoeur d'Aleneuntil his appointment as the attorney general ofPuerto Ricoin 1903.[8]Sweet served until 1905 and then worked as a newspaper editor inSan Juanfrom 1913 until his death in 1925.[3][9]

Honors[edit]

A residence hall at the University of Idaho is named for Sweet.[10] Openedin 1936,the building is nowCarol Ryrie BrinkHall, a faculty officebuilding.[11]The Willis Sweet residence hall was relocated to the new Theophilus Towerin 1969,[12][13]and later to the former McConnell Hall, on the northeast corner of Sixth and Rayburnstreets.[14]

References[edit]

  1. ^"Rival papers at Moscow merged".Lewiston Morning Tribune.(Idaho). November 1, 1939. p. 12.
  2. ^Beal, Merrill D.; Wells, Merle W. (1959).History of Idaho.Vol. 3: Personal and Family History.
  3. ^ab"Willis Sweet and the founding of the university".University of Idaho Library. January 2001.RetrievedNovember 29,2012.
  4. ^"More Appointments".The Boston Globe.April 24, 1889.
  5. ^"Constitutional Convention List of Members".Territory of Idaho.August 6, 1889.
  6. ^Congressional Record.December 16, 1889. p. 178.
  7. ^Congressional Record.January 29, 1890. p. 945.
  8. ^"Idaho man given important appointment".Spokane Daily Chronicle.(Washington). May 7, 1903. p. 1.
  9. ^Dubois, Fred T.(August 6, 1925)."Sweet greatest orator of Idaho".Spokesman-Review.(Spokane, Washington). p. 10.
  10. ^"New residence hall honors Willis Sweet".Spokesman-Review.(Spokane, Washington). Associated Press. July 30, 1936. p. 10.
  11. ^"Brink and Phinney Halls".University of Idaho. (Campus Photograph Collection). 1936.RetrievedAugust 4,2018.
  12. ^"Theophilus Tower".Gem of the Mountains, University of Idaho yearbook. (1970-71, 2 yrs). 1971. p. 261.
  13. ^"Theophilus Tower".University of Idaho. (Campus Photograph Collection). 1967.RetrievedAugust 4,2018.
  14. ^"McConnell Hall".University of Idaho. (Campus Photograph Collection). 1957.RetrievedAugust 4,2018.

Further reading[edit]

  • Johnson, Claudius O. "The Story of Silver Politics in Idaho, 1892-1902."Pacific Northwest Quarterly(1942): 283-296.Online

External links[edit]

U.S. House of Representatives
Preceded by Member of theU.S. House of Representatives
fromIdaho's at-large congressional district
1890 – 1895 		Succeeded by
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