William A. Stone
William A. Stone | |
---|---|
22nd Governor of Pennsylvania | |
In office January 17, 1899 – January 20, 1903 | |
Lieutenant | John P. S. Gobin |
Preceded by | Daniel H. Hastings |
Succeeded by | Samuel W. Pennypacker |
Member of the U.S. House of Representatives from Pennsylvania's 23rd district | |
In office March 4, 1891 – November 9, 1898 | |
Preceded by | Thomas McKee Bayne |
Succeeded by | William Harrison Graham |
Personal details | |
Born | April 18, 1846 Wellsboro, Pennsylvania |
Died | March 1, 1920 Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania | (aged 73)
Nationality | American |
Political party | Republican |
Spouse(s) | Ellen F. Stevens (1870–1878; her death) Elizabeth B. White (1879–1919; her death) |
William Alexis Stone (April 18, 1846 – March 1, 1920) was an American politician who served as the 22nd governor of Pennsylvania, serving from 1899 to 1903.[1]
Early life and family
[edit]Stone was born in Wellsboro, Pennsylvania. He was descended from Simon Stone, Jr (1631 - 1708), who was born in Bocking, Essex, England, and settled in the Massachusetts Bay Colony.[2] In 1864, Stone enlisted in the Union Army as a private during the American Civil War, and became a second lieutenant in 1865.[3] He continued his military service after the war in the Pennsylvania National Guard. He attended Mansfield State Normal School and taught while studying law.
The eldest daughter by his first wife married Dr. Percy D. Hickling, a prominent physician in Washington, D.C. Dr. Hickling was on the Committee of President Cleveland's Inaugural Ball. They were both members of the Shakespeare Club of Washington of which Dr. Hickling was also President.[4]
Col. William A. Stone's wife was the youngest daughter of Judge R.C. White, of Wellsboro, Ohio. She was connected with one of the oldest and best of Pennsylvania's families. Benjamin Franklin's daughter married into the Bach family, of which her mother was descended, and her mother was a cousin of Dr. William Carpenter and Dr. Mary Carpenter, of London, who, with the Princess Alice, established a Mission School in India. Elizabeth White Stone was born in Tioga County. She attended school in New York City, where she was graduated at a musical academy. They had 4 children, 3 daughters and 1 son.[5]
Appointments
[edit]In 1872, he was appointed as a clerk for the Pennsylvania State House of Representatives. Two years later, he ran for his first political office, becoming district attorney of Tioga County. In 1876, he was appointed district attorney for the U.S. District Court for the Western District of Pennsylvania by President Rutherford B. Hayes. He held that post until 1886 when he violated President Chester A. Arthur's edict for political office-holders not to campaign for political candidates. Stone campaigned for James A. Beaver, and his removal only increased his popularity.
Congress and Pennsylvania Governorship
[edit]Stone served four terms in the United States House of Representatives before running for governor in 1898. During his term in office, Pennsylvania's state debt was eliminated, and a new capitol building was commissioned. After serving as governor, Stone joined his son in private law practice in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. He also served briefly as prothonotary for the Pennsylvania Supreme Court in 1915.
In Memoriam
[edit]Stone Hall, a residence hall on Penn State's University Park campus is named for Stone.
References
[edit]- ^ "The Governors of Pennsylvania." Mount Union, Pennsylvania: The Mount Union Times, January 27, 1911, p. 1 (subscription required).
- ^ "Simon Stone, Jr". Geni. Retrieved September 19, 2015.
- ^ Dunaway, Wayland F. (1948). A History of Pennsylvania. New York, New York: Prentice-Hall, Inc. p. 469.
...William A. Stone...entered the Union Army as a private in his eighteenth year and in 1865 became second lieutenant.
- ^ Hinman, Ida (1895). The Washington Sketch Book. p. 81. This article incorporates text from this source, which is in the public domain.
- ^ Hinman 1895, pp. 79, 81 This article incorporates text from this source, which is in the public domain.
- United States Congress. "William A. Stone (id: S000966)". Biographical Directory of the United States Congress.
- The Political Graveyard
External links
[edit]- 1846 births
- 1920 deaths
- People from Wellsboro, Pennsylvania
- American people of English descent
- Republican Party members of the United States House of Representatives from Pennsylvania
- Republican Party governors of Pennsylvania
- Union army officers
- United States Attorneys for the Western District of Pennsylvania
- People of Pennsylvania in the American Civil War
- Politicians from Pittsburgh
- Mansfield University of Pennsylvania alumni
- 19th-century members of the United States House of Representatives