Edwin U. Curtis
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Edwin Upton Curtis (May 26, 1861 – March 28, 1922) was an American attorney and politician from
Massachusetts Massachusetts (Massachusett language, Massachusett: ''Muhsachuweesut assachusett writing systems, məhswatʃəwiːsət'' English: , ), officially the Commonwealth of Massachusetts, is the most populous U.S. state, state in the New England ...
who served as the 34th
Mayor of Boston The mayor of Boston is the head of the municipal government in Boston, Massachusetts. Boston has a mayor–council government. Boston's mayoral elections are nonpartisan (as are all municipal elections in Boston), and elect a mayor to a four- ...
(1895–1896). Later, as Boston Police Commissioner (1918–1922), his refusal to recognize the union formed by the department's officers provoked the 1919 Boston Police Strike.


Early years

Curtis was the son of George and Martha Ann (Upton) Curtis, who were seventh-generation Bostonians. After attending the grammar and
Latin Latin (, or , ) is a classical language belonging to the Italic branch of the Indo-European languages. Latin was originally a dialect spoken in the lower Tiber area (then known as Latium) around present-day Rome, but through the power of the ...
schools in Roxbury, Curtis went to the little Blue Family School for Boys in
Farmington, Maine Farmington is a town in and the county seat of Franklin County, Maine, United States. As of the 2020 census, its population was 7,592. Farmington is home to the University of Maine at Farmington, Nordica Memorial Auditorium, the Nordica Homestea ...
. He graduated from
Bowdoin College Bowdoin College ( ) is a private liberal arts college in Brunswick, Maine. When Bowdoin was chartered in 1794, Maine was still a part of the Commonwealth of Massachusetts. The college offers 34 majors and 36 minors, as well as several joint eng ...
.


Career

After apprenticing with former Massachusetts governor (and former Boston mayor)
William Gaston William J. Gaston (September 19, 1778 – January 23, 1844) was a jurist and United States Representative from North Carolina. Gaston is the author of the official state song of North Carolina, "The Old North State". Gaston County, North Carolin ...
, Curtis studied law and took the bar. He and a Bowdoin classmate formed the law firm Curtis & Reed. He also became active in politics as a member of the
Republican Party Republican Party is a name used by many political parties around the world, though the term most commonly refers to the United States' Republican Party. Republican Party may also refer to: Africa *Republican Party (Liberia) * Republican Part ...
."In the Public Eye,"
''
Munsey's Magazine ''Munsey's Weekly'', later known as ''Munsey's Magazine'', was a 36-page quarto United States, American magazine founded by Frank Munsey, Frank A. Munsey in 1889 and edited by John Kendrick Bangs. Frank Munsey aimed to publish "a magazine of the pe ...
'' vol. 15 (1896), p. 487.
After serving as Boston
city clerk A clerk is a senior official of many municipal governments in the English-speaking world. In some communities, including most in the United States, the position is elected, but in many others, the clerk is appointed to their post. In the UK, a Tow ...
from 1889 to 1890, Curtis was elected Boston mayor in December 1894, serving a one-year term in office from January 1895 to January 1896. In the election of December 1895, Curtis was defeated for re-election by Josiah Quincy. Curtis ran against Quincy again in December 1897, with the same outcome. After leaving the mayoralty, Curtis was successively Boston's Assistant
United States Treasurer The treasurer of the United States is an officer in the United States Department of the Treasury who serves as custodian and trustee of the federal government's collateral assets and the supervisor of the department's currency and coinage produc ...
and then the Collector of the Port."Edwin U. Curtis, Dead,"
''New York Times'' (Mar. 29, 1922).
In December 1918, Curtis was appointed as the Commissioner of the
Boston Police Department The Boston Police Department (BPD), dating back to 1854, holds the primary responsibility for law enforcement and investigation within the city of Boston, Massachusetts. It is the oldest municipal police department in the United States. The ...
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 ...
. He was sworn into office on December 30 at the Governor's home in
Winchester, Massachusetts Winchester is a town in Middlesex County, Massachusetts, located 8.2 miles (13.2 km) north of downtown Boston as part of the Greater Boston metropolitan area. It is also one of the List of Massachusetts locations by per capita income, wealt ...
.


Boston Police Strike

In 1919, in response to rumors that Boston policemen planned to form a
union Union commonly refers to: * Trade union, an organization of workers * Union (set theory), in mathematics, a fundamental operation on sets Union may also refer to: Arts and entertainment Music * Union (band), an American rock group ** ''Un ...
, Curtis issued a statement denying that police officers had any right to form a union, much less one affiliated with a larger organization like the
American Federation of Labor The American Federation of Labor (A.F. of L.) was a national federation of labor unions in the United States that continues today as the AFL-CIO. It was founded in Columbus, Ohio, in 1886 by an alliance of craft unions eager to provide mutu ...
(AFL). In August of that year, the AFL issued a charter to the Boston Police Union. Curtis said the union's leaders were insubordinate and planned to relieve them of duty, but said that he would suspend the sentence if the union was dissolved by September 4. Boston mayor
Andrew James Peters Andrew James Peters (April 3, 1872 – June 26, 1938) was an American politician who served in the United States House of Representatives and was the 42nd Mayor of Boston. Early years Peters was born on April 3, 1872, in Jamaica Plain, a neigh ...
convinced Curtis to delay his action for a few days, but Curtis ultimately suspended the union leaders on September 8. The following day, about three-quarters of the policemen in Boston went on strike. That night and the next, there was sporadic violence and
riot A riot is a form of civil disorder commonly characterized by a group lashing out in a violent public disturbance against authority, property, or people. Riots typically involve destruction of property, public or private. The property targete ...
ing in the lawless city. Mayor Peters, concerned about
sympathy strike Solidarity action (also known as secondary action, a secondary boycott, a solidarity strike, or a sympathy strike) is industrial action by a trade union in support of a strike initiated by workers in a separate corporation, but often the same en ...
s, had called up some units of the
Massachusetts National Guard The Massachusetts National Guard is the National Guard component for the Commonwealth of Massachusetts. Founded as the Massachusetts Bay Colonial Militia on December 13, 1636, it contains the oldest units in the United States Army. What is toda ...
stationed in the Boston area and relieved Curtis of duty. Massachusetts Governor
Calvin Coolidge Calvin Coolidge (born John Calvin Coolidge Jr.; ; July 4, 1872January 5, 1933) was the 30th president of the United States from 1923 to 1929. Born in Vermont, Coolidge was a History of the Republican Party (United States), Republican lawyer ...
, furious that the mayor had called out ''state'' guard units, finally acted. He called up more units of the National Guard, restored Curtis to office, and took personal control of the police force.
Samuel Gompers Samuel Gompers (; January 27, 1850December 13, 1924) was a British-born American cigar maker, labor union leader and a key figure in American labor history. Gompers founded the American Federation of Labor (AFL) and served as the organization's ...
of the AFL recognized that the strike was damaging the cause of labor in the public mind and advised the strikers to return to work. Commissioner Curtis remained adamant and refused to re-hire the striking policemen, and Coolidge called for a new police force to be recruited.


Legacy

Curtis served as Police Commissioner until his sudden death in 1922; ''
The Boston Globe ''The Boston Globe'' is an American daily newspaper founded and based in Boston, Massachusetts. The newspaper has won a total of 27 Pulitzer Prizes, and has a total circulation of close to 300,000 print and digital subscribers. ''The Boston Glob ...
'' wrote that he had "sacrificed his life to duty". Curtis plays a key role in
Dennis Lehane Dennis Lehane (born August 4, 1965) is an American author. He has published more than a dozen novels; the first several were a series of mysteries featuring recurring characters, including ''A Drink Before the War''. Of these, four were adapted a ...
's 2008 novel, ''
The Given Day ''The Given Day'' is a novel by American writer Dennis Lehane published in September 2008; it is about the early twentieth-century period and set in Boston, Massachusetts, where its actions include the 1919 police strike, and Tulsa, Oklahoma, w ...
''. The Edwin Upton Curtis Memorial is installed along the
Charles River Esplanade The Charles River Esplanade of Boston, Massachusetts, is a state-owned park situated in the Back Bay area of the city, on the south bank of the Charles River Basin. Description The limited-access parkway Storrow Drive forms the southern bounda ...
.


See also

*
Timeline of Boston This article is a timeline of the history of the city of Boston, Massachusetts, USA. 17th century * 1625 – William Blaxton arrives. * 1630 - When Boston was founded ** English Puritans arrive. ** First Church in Boston established. ** Septe ...
, 1880s-1920s


References


External links


Curtis election records
at ourcampaigns.com
Curtis obituary
in ''
The New York Times ''The New York Times'' (''the Times'', ''NYT'', or the Gray Lady) is a daily newspaper based in New York City with a worldwide readership reported in 2020 to comprise a declining 840,000 paid print subscribers, and a growing 6 million paid ...
'' * {{DEFAULTSORT:Curtis, Edwin Upton 1861 births 1922 deaths Boston city clerks Bowdoin College alumni Collectors of the Port of Boston Commissioners of the Boston Police Department Massachusetts Republicans Mayors of Boston Roxbury Latin School alumni 19th-century American politicians