Charles Belknap Henderson (June 8, 1873November 8, 1954) was an American attorney, businessman, and politician who served as

United States Senator The United States Senate is the upper chamber of the United States Congress, with the House of Representatives being the lower chamber. Together they compose the national bicameral legislature of the United States. The composition and powe ...

from

Nevada Nevada ( ; ) is a state in the Western region of the United States. It is bordered by Oregon to the northwest, Idaho to the northeast, California to the west, Arizona to the southeast, and Utah to the east. Nevada is the 7th-most extensive, ...

Biography

Born in San Jose, California, he moved with his parents to Nevada in 1876, and attended the public schools in Elko, the University of the Pacific, and

Leland Stanford Junior University Stanford University, officially Leland Stanford Junior University, is a private research university in Stanford, California. The campus occupies , among the largest in the United States, and enrolls over 17,000 students. Stanford is considere ...

in California. He earned a law degree from the

University of Michigan , mottoeng = "Arts, Knowledge, Truth" , former_names = Catholepistemiad, or University of Michigania (1817–1821) , budget = $10.3 billion (2021) , endowment = $17 billion (2021)As o ...

in 1895, and was admitted to the

bar Bar or BAR may refer to: Food and drink * Bar (establishment), selling alcoholic beverages * Candy bar * Chocolate bar Science and technology * Bar (river morphology), a deposit of sediment * Bar (tropical cyclone), a layer of cloud * Bar (u ...

in 1896, commencing practice in Elko. He served as

first lieutenant First lieutenant is a commissioned officer military rank in many armed forces; in some forces, it is an appointment. The rank of lieutenant has different meanings in different military formations, but in most forces it is sub-divided into a ...

Theodore Roosevelt Theodore Roosevelt Jr. ( ; October 27, 1858 – January 6, 1919), often referred to as Teddy or by his initials, T. R., was an American politician, statesman, soldier, conservationist, naturalist, historian, and writer who served as the 26t ...

’s

Rough Riders The Rough Riders was a nickname given to the 1st United States Volunteer Cavalry, one of three such regiments raised in 1898 for the Spanish–American War and the only one to see combat. The United States Army was small, understaffed, and di ...

during the

Spanish–American War , partof = the Philippine Revolution, the decolonization of the Americas, and the Cuban War of Independence , image = Collage infobox for Spanish-American War.jpg , image_size = 300px , caption = (cloc ...

, and was district attorney of

Elko County Elko County is a county in the northeastern corner of Nevada, United States. As of the 2020 census, the population was 53,702. Its county seat is Elko. The county was established on March 5, 1869, from Lander County. Elko County is the fourth ...

from 1901 to 1905. He was a member of the

Nevada Assembly The Nevada Assembly is the lower house of the Nevada Legislature, the state legislature of the U.S. state of Nevada, the upper house being the Nevada Senate. The body consists of 42 members, elected to two-year terms from single-member district ...

from 1905 to 1907, and a

regent A regent (from Latin : ruling, governing) is a person appointed to govern a state '' pro tempore'' (Latin: 'for the time being') because the monarch is a minor, absent, incapacitated or unable to discharge the powers and duties of the monarchy ...

of the

University of Nevada The University of Nevada, Reno (Nevada, the University of Nevada, or UNR) is a public land-grant research university in Reno, Nevada. It is the state's flagship public university and primary land grant institution. It was founded on October 12 ...

from 1907 to 1917. Henderson was appointed to the U.S. Senate on January 12, 1918, by

Governor A governor is an administrative leader and head of a polity or political region, ranking under the head of state and in some cases, such as governors-general, as the head of state's official representative. Depending on the type of political ...

Emmet D. Boyle to fill the vacancy caused by the death of Francis G. Newlands. He was subsequently elected on November 5, 1918, as a

Democrat Democrat, Democrats, or Democratic may refer to: Politics *A proponent of democracy, or democratic government; a form of government involving rule by the people. *A member of a Democratic Party: **Democratic Party (United States) (D) **Democratic ...

and served until March 3, 1921. While in the Senate, Henderson was chairman of the Committee on Industrial Expositions (

65th Congress The 65th United States Congress was a meeting of the legislative branch of the United States federal government, composed of the United States Senate and the United States House of Representatives. It met in Washington, DC from March 4, 1917, to ...

) and a member of the Committee on Mines and Mining (65th Congress). Henderson was defeated in his bid for reelection in 1920 by former governor,

Tasker Oddie Tasker Lowndes Oddie (October 20, 1870 – February 17, 1950) was an American attorney and politician who served as the 12th Governor of Nevada and a United States Senator. He was a member of the Republican Party. Biography Oddie was born on O ...

, a

Republican Republican can refer to: Political ideology * An advocate of a republic, a type of government that is not a monarchy or dictatorship, and is usually associated with the rule of law. ** Republicanism, the ideology in support of republics or agains ...

. Days after his term ended as senator of Nevada, Henderson was approached in the Senate building by Charles August Grock, who had lost a land-related lawsuit to Henderson's law firm 25 years previously. Grock held a gun to Henderson's chest, a struggle ensued, and Henderson was shot in the forearm. Grock was arrested and Henderson was found "calmly bandaging his arm and not at all excited." He later said that he believed his assailant to be mentally unsound. In 1934, Henderson was appointed a member of the board of directors of the Reconstruction Finance Corporation; elected chairman in 1941, he served until he resigned in 1947. He retired from political activities, but remained was president and director of the Elko Telephone & Telegraph Co., and a director of the

Western Pacific Railroad The Western Pacific Railroad was a Class I railroad in the United States. It was formed in 1903 as an attempt to break the near-monopoly the Southern Pacific Railroad had on rail service into northern California. WP's Feather River Route dire ...

. In 1953, a largely industrial town south of Las Vegas incorporated itself as

Henderson Henderson may refer to: People *Henderson (surname), description of the surname, and a list of people with the surname *Clan Henderson, a Scottish clan Places Argentina *Henderson, Buenos Aires Australia *Henderson, Western Australia Canada * H ...

, Nevada, naming itself after the former senator. Charles Henderson died in San Francisco, California, in 1954, and was interred in Elko City Cemetery in Elko, Nevada.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Henderson, Charles 1873 births 1954 deaths American business executives American military personnel of the Spanish–American War American telecommunications industry businesspeople District attorneys in Nevada Democratic Party members of the Nevada Assembly Reconstruction Finance Corporation People from Elko, Nevada Politicians from San Jose, California Stanford University alumni Democratic Party United States senators from Nevada University of the Pacific (United States) alumni Businesspeople from San Jose, California University of Michigan Law School alumni