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Frank Steunenberg
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| In office January 4, 1897 – January 7, 1901 |
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| Lieutenant | George F. Moore (1897) J. H. Hutchinson (1899) |
| Preceded by | William J. McConnell |
| Succeeded by | Frank W. Hunt |
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| Born | August 8, 1861 Keokuk, Iowa |
| Died | December 30, 1905 (aged 44) Caldwell, Idaho |
| Political party | Democrat, Populist |
| Spouse | Belle Keppel Steunenberg |
| Residence | Caldwell |
| Profession | Newspaper Publisher, Politician |
| Religion | Christian |
Frank Steunenberg (August 8, 1861 – December 30, 1905) was the fourth Governor of the State of Idaho, serving from 1897 until 1901. He is perhaps best known for his 1905 assassination by one-time union member Harry Orchard, who also admitted to being a paid informant for the Cripple Creek, Colorado, Mine Owners' Association.1 Orchard attempted to implicate leaders of the radical Western Federation of Miners in the murder. The labor leaders were found innocent2 in two trials,3 but Orchard spent the rest of his life in prison.
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Early career
Steunenberg attended Iowa State at Ames and then went on to become a printer's apprentice, and publisher. In 1881 he was hired by the Des Moines Register in Des Moines, Iowa. Steunenberg later published a newspaper in Knoxville, Tennessee, before finally settling in Caldwell, Idaho where he joined his brother taking over the Caldwell Tribune for six years4
In Caldwell Steunenberg became active in politics and was elected to the first Idaho Legislature in 1890 as a fusion candidate endorsed by both the Democratic and Populist Parties.
Governor
With labor union support, in 1896 Steunenberg was nominated as both the Democratic and Populist candidate for governor. He won the November election and became the first Governor of Idaho who was not a member of the Republican Party. Steunenberg served during a period of considerable labor unrest in the Idaho mining industry. As a result, many corporations, fearing that Steunenberg's government would not support them if there was a strike, increased their wages for workers.
The Bunker Hill Mining Company, however, did not. In April 1899 striking members of the Western Federation of Miners destroyed the company's mill at Wardner. In response Steunenberg declared martial law and asked President William McKinley to send federal troops to quell the unrest. This action was seen as a betrayal by Steunenberg's union supporters. Steunenberg did not seek reelection in 1900.
Assassination
On December 30, 1905, Steunenberg was killed outside his house in Caldwell by a bomb rigged to his front gate. Harry Orchard was arrested shortly thereafter for the murder, and the investigation was conducted by Pinkerton agent James McParland. With the promise of a lighter sentence, McParland compelled Orchard to write a confession in which he implicated "Big Bill" Haywood, general secretary of the Western Federation of Miners, Charles Moyer, president of the Western Federation of Miners, and George Pettibone, a labor activist who had a prior conviction related to an 1892 dispute in Coeur d'Alene, as co-conspirators. McParland arrested the three in Colorado in February 1906.
The nationally publicized trial took place in Boise in 1907. There was a lack of evidence in a case that was supported only by Orchard's testimony. Clarence Darrow, a lawyer who specialized in defending trade union leaders, won an acquittal for Haywood. Pettibone was defended in a separate trial by Judge Hilton of Denver, and was also acquitted. Charges were dropped against Moyer.5 Orchard received a death sentence in a separate trial, but the sentence was commuted to life in prison.
More information about the Steunenberg trials at James McParland.
References
- ^ Roughneck, The Life and Times of Big Bill Haywood, Peter Carlson, 1983, page 119.
- ^ Roughneck, The Life and Times of Big Bill Haywood, Peter Carlson, 1983, page 135.
- ^ The Autobiography of Big Bill Haywood, William Dudley Haywood, 1929, page 224 ppbk.
- ^ Idaho State Historical Society Public Archives Research Library. http://www.idahohistory.net/Reference%20Series/0402.pdf
- ^ The Autobiography of Big Bil Haywood, William Dudley Haywood, 1929, page 224 ppbk.
Additional references
See also
- Harry Orchard, convicted murderer
- James McParland, Pinkerton Detective responsible for investigation
- Steve Adams, accused accomplice
- Bill Haywood, union leader accused of conspiracy
- Frank R. Gooding, Idaho Governor during murder and trials
- Coeur d'Alene miners' dispute, alleged reason for the murder
- List of assassinated American politicians
Further reading
- The Trial of Bill Haywood - a detailed account of the murder trial
- J. Anthony Lukas (1997-10-14). Big Trouble: A Murder in a Small Western Town Sets Off a Struggle for the Soul of America. Simon & Schuster. ISBN 0684808587. by J. Anthony Lukas. An extensive discussion of the class warfare occurring at the turn of the 20th century.
| Party political offices | ||
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| Preceded by Edward A. Stevenson |
Democratic Party nominee, Governor of Idaho 1896 (won), 1898 (won) |
Succeeded by Frank W. Hunt |
| Political offices | ||
| Preceded by William J. McConnell |
Governor of Idaho January 4, 1897 – January 7, 1901 |
Succeeded by Frank W. Hunt |
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