1911 Courtenay Crocker Massachusetts House of Representatives

Courtenay Crocker (February 4, 1881 – December 16, 1944) was an American attorney and politician.

Early life

Crocker was born on February 4, 1881, to George G. Crocker and Annie Bliss (Keep) Crocker. He graduated from

Harvard College Harvard College is the undergraduate college of Harvard University, an Ivy League research university in Cambridge, Massachusetts. Founded in 1636, Harvard College is the original school of Harvard University, the oldest institution of higher lea ...

in 1901 and

Harvard Law School Harvard Law School (Harvard Law or HLS) is the law school of Harvard University, a private research university in Cambridge, Massachusetts. Founded in 1817, it is the oldest continuously operating law school in the United States. Each class ...

in 1905.

Political career

In 1908, Crocker was elected to the

Boston Common Council The Boston City Council is the legislative branch of government for the city of Boston, Massachusetts. It is made up of 13 members: 9 district representatives and 4 at-large members. Councillors are elected to two-year terms and there is no l ...

. He was reelected in 1909. From 1910 to 1914, Crocker was a member of the

Massachusetts House of Representatives The Massachusetts House of Representatives is the lower house of the Massachusetts General Court, the state legislature of the Commonwealth of Massachusetts. It is composed of 160 members elected from 14 counties each divided into single-member ...

. He served as chairman of the House Ways and Means committee. In 1917 he was appointed to the Massachusetts Civil Service Commission by Governor

Samuel McCall Samuel Walker McCall (February 28, 1851 – November 4, 1923) was a Republican lawyer, politician, and writer from Massachusetts. He was for twenty years (1893–1913) a member of the United States House of Representatives, and the 47th Governo ...

. From 1910 to 1912, Crocker was the secretary of the Republican Club of Massachusetts. From 1914 to 1917 he served as the club's president. He later served as its vice president. He resigned from the club in 1920 due to the party's stance against the

League of Nations The League of Nations (french: link=no, Société des Nations ) was the first worldwide intergovernmental organisation whose principal mission was to maintain world peace. It was founded on 10 January 1920 by the Paris Peace Conference that ...

. He supported Democrat

Channing H. Cox Channing Harris Cox (October 28, 1879August 20, 1968) was an American Republican politician, lawyer, and businessman from Massachusetts. He served as the 49th Governor of Massachusetts, from 1921 to 1925. He attended Dartmouth College and serv ...

in that year's gubernatorial election. In 1924 Cox appointed Crocker to the Public Safety Committee.

Advisor to foreign governments

From 1924 to 1926, Crocker was an advisor to the

King of Siam The monarchy of Thailand (whose monarch is referred to as the king of Thailand; th, พระมหากษัตริย์ไทย, or historically, king of Siam; th, พระมหากษัตริย์สยาม) refers to the c ...

. He advised

Rama VII Prajadhipok ( th, ประชาธิปก, RTGS: ''Prachathipok'', 8 November 1893 – 30 May 1941), also Rama VII, was the seventh monarch of Siam of the Chakri dynasty. His reign was a turbulent time for Siam due to political and ...

on foreign affairs in cooperation with foreign minister Prince Traidos Prabandh. Crocker succeeded

Francis Bowes Sayre Sr. Francis Bowes Sayre Sr. (April 30, 1885 – March 29, 1972) was a professor at Harvard Law School, High Commissioner of the Philippines, and a son-in-law of President Woodrow Wilson. Biography He was born on April 30, 1885. He graduated fro ...

in this position. Upon his return to Boston he served as president of the Japan Society of Boston. In 1929 he succeeded Cox as Honorary Consul of Japan in Boston.

U.S. Senate campaign

In 1942, Crocker returned to the Republican Party and announced his candidacy for the

United States Senate 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 pow ...

Massachusetts Secretary of State The Massachusetts Secretary of the Commonwealth is the principal public information officer of the government of the U.S. state of Massachusetts. The Secretary of the Commonwealth oversees the Corporations Division, the Elections Division, the ...

Frederic W. Cook ruled that Crocker was ineligible to run in the Republican primary because he was not a registered Republican for at least 30 days before filing his nomination papers, however Suffolk Superior Court Judge John V. Spalding ordered Cook to place Crocker on the ballot. Crocker lost the primary to the incumbent

Henry Cabot Lodge Jr. Henry Cabot Lodge Jr. (July 5, 1902 – February 27, 1985) was an American diplomat and Republican United States senator from Massachusetts in both Senate seats in non-consecutive terms of service and a United States ambassador. He was considered ...

and supported the Democratic nominee, Joseph E. Casey in the general election.

Death

Crocker died on December 16, 1944, at his home in Boston.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Crocker, Courtenay 1881 births 1944 deaths 20th-century American politicians Massachusetts Democrats Massachusetts Republicans Members of the Massachusetts House of Representatives Politicians from Boston Harvard Law School alumni 20th-century American lawyers Lawyers from Boston Boston Common Council members