Frank Orren Lowden
Encyclopedia
Frank Orren Lowden was a Republican Party
politician from Illinois, who served as the 25th Governor of Illinois
and as a United States Representatives
from Illinois. He was also a candidate for the Republican presidential nominations in 1920
and 1928
.
, he lived in Iowa
from the age of 7 until his graduation from Iowa State University
in 1885. He graduated from Chicago, Illinois
's Union College of Law in 1887, and was admitted to the bar the same year. He practised law in Chicago for about 20 years. His wife, Florence, was the daughter of George Pullman
. In 1899, he was professor of law at Northwestern University
, Evanston, Illinois
.
In 1900, Lowden declined the first assistant postmaster-generalship, offered him by President McKinley
, whom he had supported. He was a delegate to the Republican National Convention
in 1900 and 1904, and from 1904 to 1912 was a member of the Republican National Committee
. He was also a member of the executive committee in 1904 and 1908. Lowden was elected to the U.S. Representative
from Illinois
in 1906 to fill the unexpired term of Robert R. Hitt
, deceased. He was re-elected for succeeding terms until 1911, when he declined to run for another term.
From 1917 to 1921, he was the Governor of Illinois
. While governor, he won wide notice for the major reorganization of state government he spearheaded. He introduced the budget system for state expenditure, thereby reducing the rate of taxation in spite of rising prices. He was a strong supporter of the death penalty, and when in 1918 both houses of the Illinois General Assembly
voted to abolish capital punishment, he vetoed the bill. He was energetic in marshalling the resources of his state in support of the United States' World War I
effort. In 1917, when the mayor of Chicago
refused to interfere with a meeting of the People's Council, an organization accused of pro-Germanism, he ordered out the state troops to prevent the meeting. He favoured woman suffrage and the enforcement of the Volstead Act
for war-time prohibition. He was opposed to the League of Nations
without reservations, on the ground that it would create a super-state.
He was a leading candidate for the Republican
nomination for president in 1920
, but the delegates deadlocked over several ballots between Lowden and General Leonard Wood
, resulting in party leaders meeting privately to determine a compromise candidate. Their choice, Warren G. Harding
, went on to win the nomination. In the 1924 election
, he declined the Republican nomination for vice president. In 1928, he again positioned himself to run for the party's nomination, but he was never much more than a minor threat to front runner Herbert Hoover
, who went on to win the convention and the election.
. He served in this capacity with co-receivers Joseph B. Fleming and James E. Gorman (who had been president of the railroad since 1917) until his death in 1943 in Tucson, Arizona
. His remains are buried in Graceland Cemetery
in Chicago.
and Lowden-Miller State Forest, all near Oregon, Illinois
; the Frank O. Lowden Homes in Chicago; and two Lowden Halls, located on the campus of the Northwestern University School of Law in Chicago and Northern Illinois University
in DeKalb
.
Republican Party (United States)
The Republican Party is one of the two major contemporary political parties in the United States, along with the Democratic Party. Founded by anti-slavery expansion activists in 1854, it is often called the GOP . The party's platform generally reflects American conservatism in the U.S...
politician from Illinois, who served as the 25th Governor of Illinois
Governor of Illinois
The Governor of Illinois is the chief executive of the State of Illinois and the various agencies and departments over which the officer has jurisdiction, as prescribed in the state constitution. It is a directly elected position, votes being cast by popular suffrage of residents of the state....
and as a United States Representatives
United States House of Representatives
The United States House of Representatives is one of the two Houses of the United States Congress, the bicameral legislature which also includes the Senate.The composition and powers of the House are established in Article One of the Constitution...
from Illinois. He was also a candidate for the Republican presidential nominations in 1920
United States presidential election, 1920
The United States presidential election of 1920 was dominated by the aftermath of World War I and a hostile response to certain policies of Woodrow Wilson, the Democratic president. The wartime economic boom had collapsed. Politicians were arguing over peace treaties and the question of America's...
and 1928
United States presidential election, 1928
The United States presidential election of 1928 pitted Republican Herbert Hoover against Democrat Al Smith. The Republicans were identified with the booming economy of the 1920s, whereas Smith, a Roman Catholic, suffered politically from Anti-Catholic prejudice, his anti-prohibitionist stance, and...
.
Early life
Born in Sunrise Township, MinnesotaSunrise Township, Minnesota
Sunrise Township is a township in Chisago County, Minnesota, United States. The population was 1,594 at the 2000 census.-Geography:According to the United States Census Bureau, the township has a total area of 45.9 square miles , of which, 45.3 square miles of it is land and...
, he lived in Iowa
Iowa
Iowa is a state located in the Midwestern United States, an area often referred to as the "American Heartland". It derives its name from the Ioway people, one of the many American Indian tribes that occupied the state at the time of European exploration. Iowa was a part of the French colony of New...
from the age of 7 until his graduation from Iowa State University
Iowa State University
Iowa State University of Science and Technology, more commonly known as Iowa State University , is a public land-grant and space-grant research university located in Ames, Iowa, United States. Iowa State has produced astronauts, scientists, and Nobel and Pulitzer Prize winners, along with a host of...
in 1885. He graduated from Chicago, Illinois
Chicago
Chicago is the largest city in the US state of Illinois. With nearly 2.7 million residents, it is the most populous city in the Midwestern United States and the third most populous in the US, after New York City and Los Angeles...
's Union College of Law in 1887, and was admitted to the bar the same year. He practised law in Chicago for about 20 years. His wife, Florence, was the daughter of George Pullman
George Pullman
George Mortimer Pullman was an American inventor and industrialist. He is known as the inventor of the Pullman sleeping car, and for violently suppressing striking workers in the company town he created, Pullman .-Background:Born in Brocton, New York, his family moved to Albion,...
. In 1899, he was professor of law at Northwestern University
Northwestern University
Northwestern University is a private research university in Evanston and Chicago, Illinois, USA. Northwestern has eleven undergraduate, graduate, and professional schools offering 124 undergraduate degrees and 145 graduate and professional degrees....
, Evanston, Illinois
Evanston, Illinois
Evanston is a suburban municipality in Cook County, Illinois 12 miles north of downtown Chicago, bordering Chicago to the south, Skokie to the west, and Wilmette to the north, with an estimated population of 74,360 as of 2003. It is one of the North Shore communities that adjoin Lake Michigan...
.
Political career
William McKinley
William McKinley, Jr. was the 25th President of the United States . He is best known for winning fiercely fought elections, while supporting the gold standard and high tariffs; he succeeded in forging a Republican coalition that for the most part dominated national politics until the 1930s...
, whom he had supported. He was a delegate to the Republican National Convention
Republican National Convention
The Republican National Convention is the presidential nominating convention of the Republican Party of the United States. Convened by the Republican National Committee, the stated purpose of the convocation is to nominate an official candidate in an upcoming U.S...
in 1900 and 1904, and from 1904 to 1912 was a member of the Republican National Committee
Republican National Committee
The Republican National Committee is an American political committee that provides national leadership for the Republican Party of the United States. It is responsible for developing and promoting the Republican political platform, as well as coordinating fundraising and election strategy. It is...
. He was also a member of the executive committee in 1904 and 1908. Lowden was elected to the U.S. Representative
United States House of Representatives
The United States House of Representatives is one of the two Houses of the United States Congress, the bicameral legislature which also includes the Senate.The composition and powers of the House are established in Article One of the Constitution...
from Illinois
Illinois
Illinois is the fifth-most populous state of the United States of America, and is often noted for being a microcosm of the entire country. With Chicago in the northeast, small industrial cities and great agricultural productivity in central and northern Illinois, and natural resources like coal,...
in 1906 to fill the unexpired term of Robert R. Hitt
Robert R. Hitt
Robert Roberts Hitt was an Assistant Secretary of State and later a member of the United States House of Representatives....
, deceased. He was re-elected for succeeding terms until 1911, when he declined to run for another term.
From 1917 to 1921, he was the Governor of Illinois
Governor of Illinois
The Governor of Illinois is the chief executive of the State of Illinois and the various agencies and departments over which the officer has jurisdiction, as prescribed in the state constitution. It is a directly elected position, votes being cast by popular suffrage of residents of the state....
. While governor, he won wide notice for the major reorganization of state government he spearheaded. He introduced the budget system for state expenditure, thereby reducing the rate of taxation in spite of rising prices. He was a strong supporter of the death penalty, and when in 1918 both houses of the Illinois General Assembly
Illinois General Assembly
The Illinois General Assembly is the state legislature of the U.S. state of Illinois and comprises the Illinois House of Representatives and the Illinois Senate. The General Assembly was created by the first state constitution adopted in 1818. Illinois has 59 legislative districts, with two...
voted to abolish capital punishment, he vetoed the bill. He was energetic in marshalling the resources of his state in support of the United States' World War I
World War I
World War I , which was predominantly called the World War or the Great War from its occurrence until 1939, and the First World War or World War I thereafter, was a major war centred in Europe that began on 28 July 1914 and lasted until 11 November 1918...
effort. In 1917, when the mayor of Chicago
Mayor of Chicago
The Mayor of Chicago is the chief executive of Chicago, Illinois, the third largest city in the United States. He or she is charged with directing city departments and agencies, and with the advice and consent of the Chicago City Council, appoints department and agency leaders.-Appointment...
refused to interfere with a meeting of the People's Council, an organization accused of pro-Germanism, he ordered out the state troops to prevent the meeting. He favoured woman suffrage and the enforcement of the Volstead Act
Volstead Act
The National Prohibition Act, known informally as the Volstead Act, was the enabling legislation for the Eighteenth Amendment which established prohibition in the United States...
for war-time prohibition. He was opposed to the League of Nations
League of Nations
The League of Nations was an intergovernmental organization founded as a result of the Paris Peace Conference that ended the First World War. It was the first permanent international organization whose principal mission was to maintain world peace...
without reservations, on the ground that it would create a super-state.
He was a leading candidate for the Republican
Republican Party (United States)
The Republican Party is one of the two major contemporary political parties in the United States, along with the Democratic Party. Founded by anti-slavery expansion activists in 1854, it is often called the GOP . The party's platform generally reflects American conservatism in the U.S...
nomination for president in 1920
United States presidential election, 1920
The United States presidential election of 1920 was dominated by the aftermath of World War I and a hostile response to certain policies of Woodrow Wilson, the Democratic president. The wartime economic boom had collapsed. Politicians were arguing over peace treaties and the question of America's...
, but the delegates deadlocked over several ballots between Lowden and General Leonard Wood
Leonard Wood
Leonard Wood was a physician who served as the Chief of Staff of the United States Army, Military Governor of Cuba and Governor General of the Philippines. Early in his military career, he received the Medal of Honor. Wood also holds officer service #2 in the Regular Army...
, resulting in party leaders meeting privately to determine a compromise candidate. Their choice, Warren G. Harding
Warren G. Harding
Warren Gamaliel Harding was the 29th President of the United States . A Republican from Ohio, Harding was an influential self-made newspaper publisher. He served in the Ohio Senate , as the 28th Lieutenant Governor of Ohio and as a U.S. Senator...
, went on to win the nomination. In the 1924 election
United States presidential election, 1924
The United States presidential election of 1924 was won by incumbent President Calvin Coolidge, the Republican candidate.Coolidge was vice-president under Warren G. Harding and became president in 1923 when Harding died in office. Coolidge was given credit for a booming economy at home and no...
, he declined the Republican nomination for vice president. In 1928, he again positioned himself to run for the party's nomination, but he was never much more than a minor threat to front runner Herbert Hoover
Herbert Hoover
Herbert Clark Hoover was the 31st President of the United States . Hoover was originally a professional mining engineer and author. As the United States Secretary of Commerce in the 1920s under Presidents Warren Harding and Calvin Coolidge, he promoted partnerships between government and business...
, who went on to win the convention and the election.
Railroad career
In 1933, Lowden was appointed to be one of three receivers for the bankrupt Chicago, Rock Island and Pacific RailroadChicago, Rock Island and Pacific Railroad
The Chicago, Rock Island and Pacific Railroad was a Class I railroad in the United States. It was also known as the Rock Island Line, or, in its final years, The Rock.-Incorporation:...
. He served in this capacity with co-receivers Joseph B. Fleming and James E. Gorman (who had been president of the railroad since 1917) until his death in 1943 in Tucson, Arizona
Tucson, Arizona
Tucson is a city in and the county seat of Pima County, Arizona, United States. The city is located 118 miles southeast of Phoenix and 60 miles north of the U.S.-Mexico border. The 2010 United States Census puts the city's population at 520,116 with a metropolitan area population at 1,020,200...
. His remains are buried in Graceland Cemetery
Graceland Cemetery
Graceland Cemetery is a large Victorian era cemetery located in the north side community area of Uptown, in the city of Chicago, Illinois, USA. Established in 1860, its main entrance is at the intersection of Clark Street and Irving Park Road...
in Chicago.
Legacy
The following are named after Lowden: Camp Lowden Boy Scout Camp, Lowden State ParkLowden State Park
Lowden State Park is an Illinois state park on in Ogle County, Illinois, United States. The park was named after Governor Frank Orren Lowden. Governor Lowden had served Illinois during World War I. Lowden State Park is home to the Black Hawk Statue, by artist Lorado Taft...
and Lowden-Miller State Forest, all near Oregon, Illinois
Oregon, Illinois
Oregon is a city located in Ogle County, Illinois. As of the 2010 census, the city had a total population of 3,721, down from 4,060 at the 2000 census. It is the county seat of Ogle County.- History :...
; the Frank O. Lowden Homes in Chicago; and two Lowden Halls, located on the campus of the Northwestern University School of Law in Chicago and Northern Illinois University
Northern Illinois University
Northern Illinois University is a state university and research institution located in DeKalb, Illinois, with satellite centers in Hoffman Estates, Naperville, Rockford, and Oregon. It was originally founded as Northern Illinois State Normal School on May 22, 1895 by Illinois Governor John P...
in DeKalb
DeKalb, Illinois
DeKalb is a city in DeKalb County, Illinois, United States. The population was 43,862 at the 2010 census, up from 39,018 at the 2000 census. The city is named after decorated German war hero Johann De Kalb, who died during the American Revolutionary War....
.