John Strong, Jr. (April 7, 1830 – April 2, 1913) was an American Democratic politician from the U.S. state of Michigan."s.v. Strong, John, Jr. (1830-1913)"
Index to Politicians: Strong, The Political Graveyard

Early life and family

Strong, the son of

John Strong Sr. John Strong Sr. (November 26, 1798 – February 23, 1881) was an English–American farmer and politician who served one term in the Michigan House of Representatives, and was an early settler of Greenfield Township, Michigan. Biography John ...

(1798–1881), from Wroxton, Oxfordshire, England, was a first generation American born in a

log cabin A log cabin is a small log house, especially a less finished or less architecturally sophisticated structure. Log cabins have an ancient history in Europe, and in America are often associated with first generation home building by settlers. Eur ...

Greenfield Township, Michigan Greenfield is a former civil township of Wayne County, Michigan; it was created from a portion of neighboring Springwells Township in 1833. Greenfield eventually encompassed the survey township T1S R11E. It even had its own police force. By ...

, which is now part of Detroit. He received a common school education and engaged in farming. In 1863, he moved to

Monroe County Monroe County may refer to seventeen counties in the United States, all named for James Monroe: * Monroe County, Alabama *Monroe County, Arkansas * Monroe County, Florida * Monroe County, Georgia *Monroe County, Illinois *Monroe County, Indian ...

where he founded South Rockwood and engaged in milling, manufacturing barrel staves, heading, lumber,

merchandising Merchandising is any practice which contributes to the sale of products to a retail consumer. At a retail in-store level, merchandising refers to displaying products that are for sale in a creative way that entices customers to purchase more i ...

, farming and raising cattle. During a sawmill accident, he lost two fingers on his right hand. He married Emily Buhl, the sister of two Detroit mayors, Frederick and Christian H. Buhl. His nephew John Strong Haggerty (1866–1950) served as Michigan Secretary of State from 1927 to 1931."s.v. Haggerty, John Strong (1866-1950)"
Index to Politicians: Haggerty, The Political Graveyard

Politics

In 1860, Strong was elected 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 ...

to the

Michigan House of Representatives The Michigan House of Representatives is the lower house of the Michigan Legislature. There are 110 members, each of whom is elected from constituencies having approximately 77,000 to 91,000 residents, based on population figures from the 2010 ...

from Wayne County (2nd district), just as his father had been from 1835 to 1836, and served from 1861 to 1862. In 1878, he was again elected to the state house, yet instead from Monroe County (2nd district) and served from 1879 to 1880. In 1880, he was elected to the

Michigan Senate The Michigan Senate is the upper house of the Michigan Legislature. Along with the Michigan House of Representatives, it composes the state legislature, which has powers, roles and duties defined by Article IV of the Michigan Constitution, ado ...

from the

5th district District 5, 5 District or 5th District may refer to: Europe * District 5 (Zürich) * District 5, Düsseldorf * V District, Turku * Districts of Malta#District 5, District 5, an electoral district of Malta * Districts of Malta#District 5 2, Distric ...

and served from 1881 to 1884. In 1890, Strong was elected as the 26th

lieutenant governor of Michigan The lieutenant governor of Michigan is the second-ranking official in U.S. state of Michigan, behind the governor. The current lieutenant governor by default is Garlin Gilchrist, a Democrat, who has held the office since January 1, 2019. Proce ...

and served under Governor Edwin B. Winans from 1891 to 1893. He was the first Democrat to be elected to the office of

lieutenant governor A lieutenant governor, lieutenant-governor, or vice governor is a high officer of state, whose precise role and rank vary by jurisdiction. Often a lieutenant governor is the deputy, or lieutenant, to or ranked under a governor — a "second-in-comm ...

in Michigan since Andrew Parsons thirty-eight years earlier. In 1912, he served as an alternate delegate from Michigan to the

Democratic National Convention The Democratic National Convention (DNC) is a series of presidential nominating conventions held every four years since 1832 by the United States Democratic Party. They have been administered by the Democratic National Committee since the 1852 ...

which nominated for

U. S. President The president of the United States (POTUS) is the head of state and head of government of the United States of America. The president directs the executive branch of the federal government and is the commander-in-chief of the United States ...

Woodrow Wilson who won in the general election.

Death

During his life Strong became a member of

Freemasons Freemasonry or Masonry refers to fraternal organisations that trace their origins to the local guilds of stonemasons that, from the end of the 13th century, regulated the qualifications of stonemasons and their interaction with authorities ...

. He died in South Rockwood just five days before his eighty-third birthday and one month after Wilson's first inauguration. He is interred at Riverside Cemetery of South Rockwood.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Strong Jr., John 1830 births 1913 deaths Democratic Party Michigan state senators Democratic Party members of the Michigan House of Representatives Burials in Michigan Lieutenant Governors of Michigan Michigan state senators Members of the Michigan House of Representatives 19th-century American legislators