Submarinus Girard Norcross (1834-1888)

From the Conway Daily Sun, August 26, 2011.

  New Year's Eve is upon us, and, as per the custom first established in 2013, the year's final posting is dedicated to an especially odd-named political figure. With six previous installments of '" Strangest Name of the Year" to reflect on, this year's honoree, with his rather nautical-sounding first name, is more than worthy of that title: Submarinus Girard Norcross of Conway, New Hampshire! A native of Maine, Norcross was a clergyman who held pastorates in several states and for the last sixteen years of his life resided in Conway, New Hampshire, where he had a considerable impact through religious work and education. Despite not being a political office seeker, Norcross earns a place here on the site due to his service as a delegate from New Hampshire to the Republican National Convention of 1880.

   The eighth of nine children born to Leonard and Deborah (Nelson) Norcross, Submarinus Girard Norcross's birth occurred in Dixfield, Maine on January 21, 1834. When compared to other unusual 19th-century names featured here, the name Submarinus rests as a true U.F.O., and this bizarre first name may leave you with several questions, including "Why a first name that sounds like submarine?", "what possessed his parents to give him this name?", and "what did Norcross himself think of it?" 

  The answer behind Norcross's unwieldy first name can be found in his 1888 Poultney, Vermont Journal obituary. The father of our subject, Leonard Norcross (1798-1864), was a church deacon and inventor who in June 1834 received a patent for what would later be acknowledged as "the first fully enclosed diving suit." This inventive diving apparatus pioneered the use of elastic Indian rubber and was successfully tested without injury or fatality on the Webb River in Maine earlier in 1834. So proud was Leonard Norcross of his invention that he bestowed the name Submarinus upon his most recent child, with the Journal later relating that:

"He received his deep sounding name from the submarine dress which his father had patented the year of his son's birth."

   History doesn't record Norcross's own feelings in regards to his name, except note of his preferring to write his name as "S. Girard". The name's spelling is recorded as ending in both "-nus" and "-nas". Of these spellings, the former looks to be the correct one, as Norcross is recorded under that name by multiple sources, including the 1850 census, the 1889 General Conference of the Congregational Churches in Maine, and his 1888 Poultney Journal obituary.

  S. Girard Norcross obtained his early education at various academies in his native Maine, studying at Farmington, Bloomfield and Lewiston Falls. He briefly followed a teaching career at the last two academies and was called to the ministry in 1854 at age 20. After a two-year period of attending lectures at Harvard, Norcross returned to Maine and was licensed to preach in July 1858. Following graduation from the Bangor Theological Seminary in 1859, Norcross was ordained as a "colleague pastor" in South Bridgeton, where he remained until May 1861. On August 25, 1861, Norcross married Turner, Maine native Clara Elizabeth Cary (1836-1889), to whom he was wed until his death. The couple would remain childless. 

  After leaving his pastorate at South Bridgeton Norcross briefly resided in Florence, Alabama, where he held a pastorate in late 1861-62, and later returned to teaching, and from 1862-63 taught in Saxonville, Massachusetts. This was followed by a five year (1863-68) stint teaching at academies in Sewickley and Wilkinsburg, Pennsylvania, and in 1869 returned to the ministry when he accepted a pastorate in Caledonia County, Vermont.

  Norcross and his wife resided and worked in McIndoes Falls, Vermont until 1872, and in June of that year removed to Conway, New Hampshire, where he accepted the pastorate of that town's Congregationalist Church. He would hold the pastorate until his death and beginning in June 1873 held an additional pastorate in North Conway. Norcross's long pastorate saw him oversee multiple additions to the church at Conway, and through his "urgent recommendation", a second church was constructed and completed for Conway in 1886, the Second Congregational Church. Norcross and his wife also proved influential in local education, and in addition to his time as supervisor of schools for Conway taught school at both the Conway Academy and a school under their own supervision.

  In 1880 Norcross made his lone foray into politics when he was elected as an alternate delegate from Conway to that year's Republican National Convention that was to be held in Chicago. One of twenty members of the New Hampshire delegation, Norcross saw congressman James Garfield and Chester A. Arthur of New York nominated as the party standard-bearers.

From the 1880 Republican Convention proceedings.

  Following his service as a delegate, Norcross returned to his pastorate in Conway and in 1886 was a delegate from New Hampshire's Stafford Conference to the National Council of the Congregational Churches of the United States held in Chicago. In 1887 he took ill and in February of that year retired from the pastorate of the Second Congregational Church in Conway. Through 1887-88 Norcross's health failed to improve and on September 16, 1888, he died of consumption in North Conway, aged 54. Clara Norcross survived her husband by less than a year, dying on June 16, 1889. Both were interred at the North Conway Cemetery under a headstone denoting both's devotion to "the cause of education in Conway."

From the Poultney, Vermont Journal, October 5, 1888.

  

Orizaba Manasco (1882-1919)

From the 1905 Birmingham Medical College composite portrait.

  Following December 24th's profile on Alabama state senator Shorter Clyde Hudgens, another oddly named Alabaman squeaks in under the wire before the end of the year--Orizaba Manasco of Walker County. Although he lacked length of years (he died aged 37 in 1919) Manasco carved a notable career for himself in his native county as a physician and state representative, dying in office before the completion of his term. The son of John (1852-1923) and Sarah Jane (Grace) Manasco, Orizaba Manasco was born in Townley, Alabama on January 28, 1882.

  Born into a leading Townley family, Manasco's grandfather was Gen. John Manasco (1800-1895), a fourteen term Alabama state representative who had earlier been commissioned a Brigadier General by President James Knox Polk. Manasco was also a delegate to the Alabama Constitutional Convention of 1875, and by the time of his death at age 95 had achieved near-legendary status in his county. Bestowed the unusual name "Orizaba" upon his birth, Manasco shares his first name with the like-named city in the Mexican state of Veracruz, an area that gained importance during the Mexican-American War. Sadly no source mentioning Orizaba Manasco (or his family) denotes why he gained the name of a Mexican city as his given name.

  A student in schools local to the Walker County area, Manasco decided upon a medical career at an early age, and following study at Howard University enrolled at the Birmingham Medical College. Graduating with his medical degree in 1905, Manasco established his practice in Townley in 1906 and married in April of that year to Elzodie Demaris "Hodie" Boshell (1885-1964). The couple were wed until Orizaba's death in 1919 and had five children, Fred Sinclair (1906-1975), Charles Mayo (1910-1983), Gilmore Kurley (1912-2005), John (birthdate unknown) and Sarah (1918-1921).

  In addition to practicing medicine in Townley Manasco became a leading figure in the civic and fraternal life of his community, holding memberships in the Masonic order, the Shriners, Knights Templar, and was a member of the Missionary Baptist Church. He began his political career in 1913 when he took office as a member of the Townley Board of Aldermen (serving until 1918) and in that year was elected as Walker County's representative in the Alabama state legislature "by a flattering majority."

From the 1903 Birmingham Medical College composite portrait.

  Manasco's tenure in the legislature saw him chair the house committee on temperance and held seats on the committees on Corporations, Education, Penitentiary and Criminal Administrations, and Public Health. Manasco's time as a state representative, although brief, was favorably reviewed in his 1919 obituary:

"Although a new, inexperienced member, Dr. Manasco soon became one of the leading figures in the legislature and fathered important legislation in reference to vocational education, temperance and health laws."

  In early 1919 Manasco developed severe health problems, later to be noted in his obituary as the effects of "emenia" (anemia/lead) poisoning. These health concerns led him to seek treatment at Hot Springs, Arkansas, and later at the St. Luke's Hospital in Little Rock. He failed to recover and died at that hospital, aged 37, on April 9, 1919. The loss of the popular legislator and physician was felt significantly in Townley, with his obituary noting an attendance of nearly 3,000 people for Manasco's funeral services. He was survived by his wife and children and was interred at the Manasco family cemetery in Townley.

Manasco's obituary from the Daily Mountain Eagle, April 12, 1919.

Shorter Clyde Hudgens (1892-1963)

From the Montgomery Advertiser, June 9, 1923.

   Although 2019 is nearly at an end, there are still several states that haven't been featured here in quite some time. One term Alabama state senator Shorter Clyde Hudgens is the only political figure from the "Heart of Dixie" to have been profiled this year, and in addition to his service in state government had earlier distinguished himself as a fraternal organizer and high school principal. The son of William Greene and Lousia (Ellison) Hudgens, Shorter Clyde Hudgens was born in Luverne, Crenshaw County, Alabama on December 18, 1892.

  A student in schools local to Crenshaw County, Hudgens graduated from the Luverne High School and would enroll at the Male College at Meridian, Mississippi in 1913. After two years of study, Hudgens went on the road as a "lecturer and organizer" for the Woodmen of the World fraternal organization. For a year he traversed Georgia extolling the benefits of "Woodcraft and fraternalism", with the Montgomery Advertiser remarking that: 

"He accomplished a great deal toward the upbuilding of a better feeling among fraternal orders and his aggressive work gave the Woodmen of the World a greater standing in Georgia than they have ever had before."

  After returning to Alabama Hudgens entered into the insurance business in Crenshaw County, and put his business interests on hold in March 1918 when he enlisted for service during the First World War. Following a period of training at Camp Gordon in Atlanta he was transferred to Camp McClellan at Anniston, Alabama, where he remained until his discharge in March 1919, never having seen combat.
  Following his return from service Hudgens returned to his earlier insurance business in Luverne and turned his efforts towards education. By 1921 he had become principal of the Vernledge Public School in Crenshaw County, and in 1922 announced his candidacy for the Democratic nomination for state senator from the 25th district. Hoping to represent the counties of Crenshaw, Coffee, and Pike in the senate, Hudgens won the Democratic primary that August, defeating two other candidates and that November won the general election, polling  2,690 votes.

From the Elba Clipper, April 13, 1922.

   Taking his seat at the start of the 1923-27 senate term, Hudgens would chair the committees on Immigration and Industrial Resources, and held seats on the committees on Agriculture, Printing, and Public Roads and Highways. This term also saw Hudgens introduce one of the "most drastic school measures to be introduced in any state legislature", a compulsory bill: 

"Requiring all children between the ages of 8 and 16 years to either attend public schools or to pass an examination in subjects which would be equivalent to an education received in the public schools during that period."

  During his term, Hudgens retired from the insurance business and in 1924 was Alabama state manager for the Loyal Order of Moose fraternal organization. On October 21, 1925, Hudgens married Elizabeth Dowdell "Bessie" Warthen (1895-1999), to who he was wed until his death. The couple would remain childless. Little is known of Hudgens' life after he left the senate in 1927, excepting notice of his death at a Montgomery, Alabama hospital on May 19, 1963, at age 70. He was survived by his wife Bessie, who lived to become a centenarian, dying two months short of her 104th birthday in July 1999. Both were interred at the Rutledge Primitive Baptist Church Cemetery in Rutledge, Alabama.

Amable Oli Moreaux (1874-1942)

From the Sioux Falls Argus Leader, June 27, 1942.

  Just a few days following the write up on Nebraska newspaper publisher Mentor Alsworth Brown, another oddly named newspaperman is featured here, Amable Oli Moreaux of Minnesota. Like Brown, Moreaux headed his newspaper for the better part of forty years and also had fleeting involvement in politics in his state, being a delegate to the Republican National Convention of 1924. While still actively engaged as a publisher, Moreaux lost his life in a collision with a gas tanker truck near Luverne, Minnesota. A lifelong Minnesotan, Amable Oli Moreaux was born in Jackson County on June 28, 1874, one of seven children born to Isadore and Anna (Tweeton) Moreaux.

  In early childhood, Moreaux had brief residencies with his family in Winnebago City and Mankato, Minnesota before settling in Rock County in 1878. In the latter portion of that year, the Moreaux family established a home in Luverne, where young Amable worked the farm in the summer months and attended school during the winter. 

  Amable O. Moreaux first entered into the publishing field in October 1892 when he joined the staff of the Rock County Herald as a printer's apprentice, working under owner Herbert Miller (a future Minnesota state senator.) After several years of learning the trade and working his way through the paper's hierarchy Moreaux advanced to the post of foreman, and later took on the role of city editor. Upon the retirement of Herbert Miller in 1907 Moreaux succeeded to the ownership of the paper, and would eventually purchase it in 1909 upon Miller's death.

  Moreaux's stewardship of the Herald continued until his death in 1942, and the paper subsequently earned the reputation as "one of the leading country journals of Minnesota." Moreaux's editorial work would see him elected as president of the Second Congressional district's editorial association in 1910 and in 1918 was elected as president of the Minnesota Newspaper Association for a one year term. He married Nellie M. Brown (1889-1950) in November 1919 and later had three children, Amable (died in infancy in 1921), Charles Mabe (died in infancy in 1927) and Charles Mabe Moreaux (1929-1987).

   The 1920s would see Moreaux become heavily invested in the development of a proposed seaway to be constructed on the St. Lawrence River. This proposal later led to the establishment of the Great Lakes-St. Lawrence Tidewater Association, which comprised twenty-one states. Moreaux joined the association in 1920 and later served as its chairman for a number of years, and in 1936 was one of several delegates from the group to confer with President Roosevelt on the construction of the St. Lawrence Seaway. Moreaux's long connection to this project also saw him hold the presidency of the Minnesota Tidewater Association and the directorship of the Great Lakes Waterways Association.

  Long active in Rock County Republican circles, Moreaux served as part of the Minnesota delegation to the 1924 Republican National Convention in Cleveland where Calvin Coolidge was nominated for the presidency, and in 1926 was a member of the Minnesota State Republican Committee for the 2nd district.

  Amable O. Moreaux continued prominence in Minnesota civic affairs until his death in an automobile accident in June 1942. On June 26th of that year the car in which Moreaux was sole occupant collided with a gas truck near Luverne, and he succumbed to his injuries the following day. The driver of the truck, Albert Ericson of Willmar, Minnesota, was uninjured. Following funeral arrangements, Moreaux was returned to Luverne for burial at the Maplewood Cemetery.

This photo of the Moreaux accident appeared in the Sioux Falls Argus Leader, June 27, 1942.

From the Sioux Falls Argus Leader.

Medor Ewing Louisell (1869-1938), Meader Bly Pinkham (1837-1914)

Portrait from the Manual of the Constitutional Convention of Michigan, 1907.

  Benzie County, Michigan attorney Medor Ewing Louisell had fleeting involvement in Bay State politics with his service as a delegate to the Michigan Constitutional Convention of 1907-08. Born of French descent, Louisell possesses a rare first name, the first such instance of which I've found. Born in Fond du Lac, Wisconsin on May 5, 1869, Medor Ewing Louisell was the son of Joseph and Julia (Balthazar) Louisell. During childhood, Louisell removed with his family to the Dakota territory, and, after several years of residence in that area resettled in Manistee County, Michigan.

  Louisell would obtain his early education in the common schools during the winter months and during the summer months took employment in a local shingle mill. Resolving to better himself, he enrolled at the University of Notre Dame for a three year period and, while working for tuition and board, finished out his studies in 1891 when he graduated from the Manistee High School. Deciding to pursue a career in law, Louisell attended the University of Michigan from 1891-95 and during this period dabbled in journalism for a time, even serving as city editor for the newspaper that evolved into the Manistee Daily News.

  Following his graduation from the university's law and literary departments in 1896, Louisell was offered a teaching position (as a French language tutor) at his alma mater but declined, wanting to focus on law. By 1903 Louisell had established a practice in Calumet, Michigan, and married that year to Calumet native Mary J. Tallon (1875-1957) and later had seven children: Catherine Medora (1904-1991), Paul Jerome (1907-1986), John Henry (1909-1953), James Michael (1909-1975), Wilfred Francis (died in infancy in 1913), David William (1913-1977), and Charles Tallon (1917-1994). 

  During his residency in Calumet, Louisell was named an assistant prosecuting attorney for Houghton County, and after removing to Benzie County, won election as its prosecuting attorney, holding that post from at least 1905-06. In 1906 he was elected as the 27th district's delegate to the Michigan Constitutional Convention that was to be held in Lansing in 1907-08, and during the proceedings was named to the following committees: Arrangement and Phraseology, Education, and Liquor Traffic.

  Shortly after his service at the constitutional convention Medor Louisell removed with his family to Duluth, Minnesota, where he continued to practice law. In 1915 he returned to politics when he announced his candidacy for judge of the municipal court of Duluth, but was defeated. In the next year, Louisell was elected vice president of the French Naturalization Club of Duluth and continued residence in that city until his death at age 69 on August 5, 1938. He was survived by his wife and children and was interred at Duluth's Calvary Cemetery.

From the Duluth Labor World, April 3, 1915.

From the 1893 Maine legislative composite portrait.

  A one-term member of the Maine House of Representatives from Lincoln, Meader Bly Pinkham held the additional post of selectman for that city, and also operated a general store. Born in Lincoln on October 9, 1837, Meader Bly Pinkham was the son of James and Mollie (Bly) Pinkham. A student in schools local to the area of his birth, he entered into the mercantile trade at age 21, operating a general store in Lincoln for many years.

  In June 1857 Pinkham married in Lincoln to Lucy A. Brock (1838-1873), to who he was wed until her death. The couple's brief union produced two daughters, Cora (1859-1948) and Etta Eliza (1867-1963). Pinkham entered local politics with election to the Lincoln board of selectmen and was later appointed as U.S. Postmaster at Lincoln, where he served for nine years. In 1892 he was elected to the Maine House of Representatives, and during the 1893-95 session was a member of the committee on State Lands and State Roads.

  Prior to removing to Bangor from Lincoln, Pinkham served as a trustee for the Mattanawcook Acadamy in Lincoln, serving as board secretary. In his final years, he resided with his daughter in Bangor, where he died on May 3, 1914, aged 77. He was survived by his daughters and was interred alongside his wife at the West Broadway Cemetery in Lincoln.

From the Bangor Daily News, May 4, 1914.

Mentor Alsworth Brown (1853-1932)

From "the Official Programme of Exercises and Illustrated Inaugural History", 1904.

  As the Cornhusker State is so seldom featured here, it's always a pleasant surprise to have an oddly named Nebraskan pop up on the political radar. Yesterday afternoon the name of Mentor Alsworth Brown was discovered via a listing of early 20th century Nebraska postmasters, and hiding behind that odd name lay the story of one of the longest-tenured newspaper publishers in Nebraska. The founder, editor, and publisher of the Kearney Hub, Brown's stewardship of that paper extended nearly fifty years, and during that period also gained the reputation as a leading Buffalo County Republican. Brown earns placement here on the site not only for his eight-year stint as U.S. Postmaster at Kearney but also for his service as a Republican presidential elector for Nebraska in 1904.

  A native of Wisconsin, Mentor Alsworth Brown was born in Janesville on February 19, 1853, the son of Jeremiah and Anne (Pound) Brown. Young Mentor would lose his mother when just a year old and later saw his father go off to serve in the Civil War as a member of the 25th Wisconsin Volunteer Infantry. In 1864 Brown was left fatherless when Jeremiah Brown died during the "March to the Sea", while under the command of Gen. William T. Sherman.

  At age thirteen Mentor Brown left his native Wisconsin to take work as a printer's devil in Jefferson, Iowa. After a period of familiarizing himself with the basics of the printing trade, Brown left Iowa for Nebraska, and in 1870 became engaged with the Redfield Printing Office in Omaha. Following a brief residency in Council Bluffs, Iowa on the staff of the Daily Nonpareil, Brown returned to Nebraska to accept the post of foreman for the Beatrice Express. In 1874 he purchased a half interest in the paper and by 1877 had become its sole owner, purchasing it from I.W. Colby.

  Mentor A. Brown married in 1878 to Elizabeth Beecham Bunnell (1854-1901) and had three children, including Ulysses Alsworth (1880-1957). The couple later separated and in November 1883 Brown remarried in Beatrice to Sophia G. Schmidt and had three further children, Frederick, Oliver, and Hugh.  

  After assuming control of the Beatrice Express Brown switched its circulation to a daily format in 1884 and in 1888 sold off his controlling interest in the paper and removed to Kearney, where he purchased the Central Nebraska Press. Soon after, the paper underwent a name change to the Kearney Hub, and in the succeeding years Brown could boast of a large printing plant with many skilled workers and managers, along with "a leased wire telegraphic service."

From the Illustrated History of Nebraska, Vol. III, 1913.

   Active in the civic life of Kearney following his resettlement, Brown was a parishioner at the local Episcopal church and was a member of the Chamber of Commerce, the Kearney Country Club, Rotary Club, and Elks Lodge. In 1881 he held the presidency of the Nebraska Press Association. A longtime Republican in his region, Brown served as a Republican presidential elector for Nebraska in 1904 (backing the Roosevelt-Fairbanks ticket) and at the assembling of the electoral college was chosen as the messenger to bring the voting results to Washington, D.C. Following Theodore Roosevelt's election, Brown was appointed by him as U.S. Postmaster at Kearney. Brown would hold that post through the Roosevelt and Taft administrations and served one year into the administration of Democrat Woodrow Wilson before leaving office in April 1914.

From the Red Cloud Chief, March 15, 1923.

  By the early 1920s Mentor A. Brown could reflect on five decades in the newspaper business, and in that time had seen three of his sons (Ulysses, Oliver, and Hugh) follow him into the printing trade. Brown's twilight years were spent in devotion to his paper, as well as his favorite past-time, golfing. He remained as head of the Kearney Hub until his death on September 29, 1932, at age 79. His publishing career had spanned sixty-two years and he was succeeded as head by his son Hugh. Brown was survived by his wife and children and was interred at the Kearney Cemetery.

From the Nebraska State Journal, September 30, 1932.

Alembert Winthrop Brayton III (1915-1992)

From the Indianapolis Jewish Post, June 9, 1958.

    A leading, yet curious name in Indianapolis politics for the better part of four decades, Alembert Winthrop Brayton III served four consecutive terms in the Indiana House of Representatives and followed that office with a twenty-five-year tenure as deputy attorney general of his state. Born into a prominent Indianapolis family, Alembert Winthrop "Bert" Brayton III was born on July 6, 1915, the son of Alembert Brayton Jr. (1892-1961) and the former Lucille Scott. The grandson of Alembert W. Brayton (1848-1926), a zoologist, medical professor and a "pioneer" in the field of dermatology, Alembert Brayton III was a student at the Shortridge High School in Indianapolis and following graduation attended DePauw University in Greencastle, Indiana. 

  Deciding upon a career in law, Brayton enrolled at the Indiana State University law school. He would later graduate from the Harvard Law School and was also engaged with the Aetna Insurance Co. of New York in the early 1940s. Brayton would enlist in the Army during WWII and for a time was stationed in Elkins, West Virginia. He married in Indianapolis in June 1944 to Charlotte Donnahue (1914-1975), and later had three children, Charlotte Elizabeth, Charles, and William. Following his wife's death in 1975 Brayton remarried to Dorothy Davis Smith (1918-2002), who had two children from a prior marriage, Cheryl and David. 

  Following his service in WWII Brayton practiced law in Indianapolis and began his political career in 1948 when he entered into the Republican primary race for state representative from Marion County. One of over twenty candidates vying for the nod, Brayton polled 8,196 votes but was not one of the eleven candidates to be nominated. 

Brayton campaign notice from the Indianapolis Recorder, May 1, 1948.

  Brayton's political fortunes changed when he was again a candidate for the legislature in 1950. After winning the Republican primary that year, he went on to the general election and in November was elected. Taking his seat at the start of the 1951-53 session, Brayton's first term saw him named to the following committees: Affairs of the City of Indianapolis; Building, Loan and Savings Associations; Natural Resources; Organization of Courts and Criminal Code; and Phraseology, Engrossment, and Enrollment of Bills.

  Brayton would launch his reelection bid in 1952 and in that year won a second term. 1954 saw him coast to his third legislative win, and in 1956 won his fourth and final term in the statehouse. During the 1957-59 term, he sat on three new committees, those being Corporations, Legislative Apportionment, and Public Safety. In his last year in office, Brayton launched his candidacy for judge of the Indiana state superior court in the 1958 Republican primary. One of five candidates for the judgeship, Brayton would place second on election day, polling 9, 562 votes to William T. Sharp's 18,945.

From the Indianapolis Jewish Post, May 1958.

  Despite his defeat for judge, Brayton was afforded a measure of consolation that same year when he was selected as deputy attorney general of Indiana. He would serve in that capacity for twenty-five years before his retirement in 1983. Brayton's final years saw him serving as vice president and secretary of the Pat Day Personnel Inc., a business owned by his second wife Dorothy. Alembert W. Brayton died in Indianapolis on July 24, 1992, shortly after his 77th birthday. He was survived by his wife and children and was interred in the Brayton family plot at the Memorial Park Cemetery in Indianapolis.

Woodhull Irwin Spitler (1887-1962)

From the Lafayette Journal and Courier, January 9, 1962.

   After an extended visit in New Mexico, the Strangest Names In American Political History makes its first stop in Indiana in 2019 with an article on Woodhull Irwin Spitler, a World War I veteran and railway security department official who was elected to two terms as municipal judge for West Lafayette, Indiana. A lifelong Hoosier, Woodhull I. Spitler was born Rensselaer on December 14, 1887, the son of Charles Guy (1868-1926) and Mildred Belle (Powell) Spitler (1867-1953). Born into a family prominent in public service in Jasper County, Woodhull Spitler's grandfather Marion Lycurgus had served a term in the state legislature and was also elected to two terms as Jasper County clerk. Spitler's father Charles was a past mayor of Rensselaer, serving eight years in office (1914-22).

  A student in schools local to Jasper County, Spitler later attended the University of Wisconsin, where he earned his degree in law in 1910. He would subsequently practice law in Rensselaer, and joined his father in specializing in abstract and real estate law. In 1913 Spitler wed Edna Marie Hauter (1891-1975), and later had two sons, Woodhull Irwin Jr. (1916-2001) and Thomas Hauter Spitler (1922-1969). 

  Following America's entering into World War I, Spitler enlisted for service and underwent training at military installations in both the United States and England, including Fort Benjamin Harrison in Indiana, Camp Custer in Michigan, Camp Merritt in New Jersey, Camp Mills in New York, and lastly Camp Stony Brook in the United Kingdom. After completing his training Spitler was assigned to the 339th Infantry, 85th division in a machine gun company and in November 1917 received the rank of second lieutenant. He would see action throughout 1918 (including "detached service in Northern Russia") and served from July 22, 1918, until his discharge in July of the next year. Spitler was subsequently awarded the Croix de Guerre with bronze star for valor in battle during engagements in October 1918. 

  After his return from service, Spitler resettled with his wife in Lafayette, Indiana in 1921, and beginning in 1922 became affiliated with the Chicago, Indianapolis, and Louisville Railway (also referred to as the Monon Railway). His early years with the railway saw him with the claims department and in the late 1920s had assumed the post of chief special agent for the railroad's security department. His two decade-plus tenure as railway police chief also saw Spitler undertake an additional role as a lecturer in law at Indiana University's Institute of Criminal Law Administration, holding that post for six years.

Spitler (pictured left) during his time as police chief of the CI & L Railroad.

  Woodhull I. Spitler retired from the CI&L Railway in 1953 and shortly after his retirement joined the financial planning firm of Waddell and Reed. In 1955 he held the chairmanship of the Lafayette Republican city committee and in January 1956 was elected as municipal judge for West Lafayette, Indiana. He would win reelection to the bench in 1959 and died in office on January 8, 1962, of a heart attack suffered at his home. Spitler was survived by his wife Edna and following funeral services was interred at the Grand View Cemetery in West Lafayette.

From the Lafayette Journal and Courier, January 9, 1962.

Andrieus Aristieus Jones (1862-1927)

Jones during his senate tenure. courtesy of the Library of Congress.

  Following on the heels of Tranquilino Luna, an outstandingly named delegate to Congress from New Mexico, we conclude our stay in that state with a look at the life of Andrieus Aristieus Jones, one of the preeminent political figures that state produced during the early 20th century. A transplant to New Mexico from Tennessee, Jones served two terms as U.S. Senator from New Mexico and is regarded by this author as one of those "old guard" strange name political figures, having discovered his name via the Congressional Biographical Directory nearly two decades ago. In addition to his service in the senate, Jones attained earlier political distinction with his service as mayor of Las Vegas, New Mexico; as a delegate to the 1896 Democratic National Convention; special U.S. District Attorney for New Mexico; and as New Mexico's representative on the Democratic National Committee.

  Born on May 16, 1862, in Obion County, Tennessee, Andrieus Aristieus Jones was one of two children born to the Rev. James Henry Waldo Jones (1828-1898) and the former Hester Ann Augusta May (1836-1908). After attending the common schools of his native county Jones enrolled at the Bethel College in McKenzie, Tennessee and from 1884-85 studied at the Valparaiso University in Indiana, where he earned his bachelor of arts degree in 1885. Following graduation, Jones embarked on a teaching career in Tennessee but taught here only briefly, as he relocated to Las Vegas, Mexico that year.

   From 1885-87 Jones served as principal of schools in Las Vegas, and, after a period of study, was admitted to the New Mexico bar in 1888. Jones quickly advanced through the ranks of the territorial bar, and by 1893 had been elected as president of the New Mexico Bar Association for a one year term. After removing to New Mexico Jones married first to Ida May Knowles (1858-1914), with who he had two sons, Vincent K. (1889-1965) and Avery Knowles (1892-1920). The couple later separated and Jones remarried in 1902 to Natalia Stoneroad (1871-1933), later having a third son, Andrieus Aristieus Jr. (1909-1993).

  Jones began his political career with his election as mayor of Las Vegas, serving from 1893-94. In 1896 he served as part of the New Mexico delegation to the Democratic National Convention in that nominated William Jennings Bryan for the Presidency, and from 1894-98 held the office of special U.S. District Attorney for the New Mexico territory. Jones continued his political ascent in 1906 when he began a two-year stint as chairman of the state Democratic Committee, and in 1908 entered into a fourteen-year tenure as New Mexico's representative on the Democratic National Committee.

  In 1911 Jones was again chairman of the state Democratic Committee and in the year following set his sights on a U.S. Senate seat. In the last year that U.S. Senators weren't directly elected (instead being elected by the state legislature), New Mexico was to elect its first two members of the U.S. Senate after having gained statehood in January 1912. One of several candidates whose names had been brought forward for potential nomination, Jones was passed over in favor of Thomas B. Catron and Albert B. Fall, who were duly elected senators by the legislature in March 1912.

  

From the Odanah, Wisconsin Star, June 13, 1913.

  Despite his first senate candidacy coming to naught, Jones received a measure of consolation upon the 1912 election of Woodrow Wilson as president. Wilson, a Democrat,  sought out a Democrat from the west for the cabinet post of Secretary of the Interior. Despite the post going in favor of Franklin Knight Lane of California, Andrieus A. Jones received the appointment as assistant interior secretary and was subsequently confirmed by the senate. Jones' entering that post garnered mention in New Mexico newspapers of the time, which noted that it "comes as a fitting reward for services well rendered."
  Jones' time in the Wilson administration extended until 1916 when he resigned to begin his second candidacy for the U.S. Senate. In this election season, Jones saw his career highlighted in newspapers as far away as Nebraska, and in the October 1916 edition of the Commoner, editors acknowledged that there was no better man to represent New Mexico in the senate than A.A. Jones, remarking:

"Mr. Jones is not only an example of what he like to think is typical and representative New Mexico manhood, he is an integral part of New Mexico. Thirty years close contact with every phase of the slow and struggling growth of the territory and the rapid advancement which followed statehood, have fitted him as no other man to be the spokesman and the advocate for New Mexico people, to take the lead in solving their problems of development and economic progress. His keen insight and vigorous practical commonsense made his office of first assistant secretary of the interior redound immensly to the benefit of the people of the entire west. Mr. Jones' splendid training and experience made him ready for that job. His experience there has more than completed his readiness to step into the position of larger trust and responsibility."

Senator Andrieus Aristieus Jones.

  After gaining the Democratic nomination, Jones would face Frank Alaric Hubbell (1862-1929), former chairman of the state Republican Committee, in the November general election. On election day it was Jones who emerged triumphant, polling 33,981 votes to Hubbell's 30,609. Taking his seat at the start of the 1917-23 session, Jones was a member of the committee on Public Lands and Surveys and put his prior experience in the interior department to use when he introduced a bill that would provide "for the classification of stock grazing land in ten of the Western states." The bill was passed by the senate, and in May 1919 Jones introduced another bill to "extend the rights of stock rasing homesteaders", only to see it lose support and not be reported out of committee.

  Andrieus Jones announced his reelection bid in 1922 and that November defeated Republican nominee Stephen B. Davis (a former state supreme court justice) by a vote of 60,969 to 48,721. This second term saw Jones serving on the finance committee and as a member of the sub-committees on the Department of the Interior, the Department of the Navy, the District of Columbia, and Legislative Establishment. Sadly, Jones wasn't to live to see the conclusion of his second term, as he died in office on December 20, 1927, his death occurring at his Meridian Mansions apartment in Washington. His cause of death was reported as angina pectoris and several days after his death Bronson Murray Cutting was appointed to succeed him.

  Memorialized as a man of "strong intellect, of friendly disposition, and an attractive personality", Jones was survived by his wife and sons and was returned to New Mexico for burial at the Masonic Cemetery in Las Vegas. 

Jones as he looked during his second senate term.