John W. Grabiel
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John Willington Grabiel (March 17, 1867 – April 13, 1928) was an attorney in Fayetteville,
Arkansas Arkansas ( ) is a landlocked state in the South Central United States. It is bordered by Missouri to the north, Tennessee and Mississippi to the east, Louisiana to the south, and Texas and Oklahoma to the west. Its name is from the O ...
, who was the
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gubernatorial 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 ...
nominee in 1922 and 1924.


Background

Grabiel was one of nine children born to John Grabiel (1815-1900), a farmer, and the Sarah Downs Tharp (1834-1913) in the village of Rushsylvania, or Rushcreek Township, in
Logan County Logan County is the name of ten current counties and one former county in the United States: * Logan County, Arkansas * Logan County, Colorado * Logan County, Idaho (1889–1895) * Logan County, Illinois * Logan County, Kansas * Logan County, ...
,
Ohio Ohio () is a state in the Midwestern region of the United States. Of the fifty U.S. states, it is the 34th-largest by area, and with a population of nearly 11.8 million, is the seventh-most populous and tenth-most densely populated. The sta ...
. His paternal grandfather, Jacob Grabiel, migrated from
Pennsylvania Pennsylvania (; ( Pennsylvania Dutch: )), officially the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, is a state spanning the Mid-Atlantic, Northeastern, Appalachian, and Great Lakes regions of the United States. It borders Delaware to its southeast, ...
to Ohio in 1812. Earlier, Grabiel ancestors settled in 1635 in
Virginia Virginia, officially the Commonwealth of Virginia, is a state in the Mid-Atlantic and Southeastern regions of the United States, between the Atlantic Coast and the Appalachian Mountains. The geography and climate of the Commonwealth ar ...
. The ancestor of the Virginia Grabiels had lived in
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and was a
Calvin Calvin may refer to: Names * Calvin (given name) ** Particularly Calvin Coolidge, 30th President of the United States * Calvin (surname) ** Particularly John Calvin, theologian Places In the United States * Calvin, Arkansas, a hamlet * Calvi ...
ist refugee from Switzerland. The Grabiels were active
Presbyterian Presbyterianism is a part of the Reformed tradition within Protestantism that broke from the Roman Catholic Church in Scotland by John Knox, who was a priest at St. Giles Cathedral (Church of Scotland). Presbyterian churches derive their nam ...
s. The Tharps were a Virginia family too and were related to the Zanes, among the early pioneers of Ohio. Educated in the
common schools A common school was a public school in the United States during the 19th century. Horace Mann (1796–1859) was a strong advocate for public education and the common school. In 1837, the state of Massachusetts appointed Mann as the first secretary ...
and Rushsylvania High School, Grabiel completed the
liberal arts Liberal arts education (from Latin "free" and "art or principled practice") is the traditional academic course in Western higher education. ''Liberal arts'' takes the term '' art'' in the sense of a learned skill rather than specifically th ...
curriculum at the private
Ohio Northern University Ohio Northern University (Ohio Northern or ONU) is a private United Methodist Church–affiliated university in Ada, Ohio. Founded by Henry Solomon Lehr in 1871, ONU is accredited by the Higher Learning Commission. It offers over 60 programs to ...
in
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in Hardin County, took a special course at the newly opened Findlay College in Findlay, Ohio, and completed a law course at
Ohio State University The Ohio State University, commonly called Ohio State or OSU, is a public land-grant research university in Columbus, Ohio. A member of the University System of Ohio, it has been ranked by major institutional rankings among the best publ ...
in the capital city of Columbus. He was admitted to the Ohio bar in 1900 and practiced in
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, Ohio, until 1912, when he relocated to Fayetteville, Arkansas and started practicing law In 1892, Grabiel married the former Laura M. Hartman (1870-1908) of Findlay, Ohio. The couple had four children, Florence R. Ellis (1895-1965), Ruth R. Grabiel (1897-1984), John Kent Grabiel (1900-1970), and Richard H. Grabiel (born 1904). In 1912, four years after Laura's death, Grabiel wed the former Edith Houck (1881-1940) of
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, New York.


Civic and political affairs

Active in civic affairs while practicing law in Fayetteville, Grabiel was a member of the
Benevolent and Protective Order of Elks The Benevolent and Protective Order of Elks (BPOE; also often known as the Elks Lodge or simply The Elks) is an American fraternal order founded in 1868, originally as a social club in New York City. History The Elks began in 1868 as a soci ...
and the Knights of Pythias . He was the first president of the Fayetteville Chamber of Commerce. In 1917, he spoke before civic groups on behalf of the U.S. entry into what became
World War I World War I (28 July 1914 11 November 1918), often abbreviated as WWI, was one of the deadliest global conflicts in history. Belligerents included much of Europe, the Russian Empire, the United States, and the Ottoman Empire, with fightin ...
. In 1922 and 1924, Grabiel, a lifelong Republican, carried his party's gubernatorial banner. In the former year, he polled 28,055 votes (21.9 percent), having lost to the Democratic incumbent,
Thomas Chipman McRae Thomas Chipman McRae (December 21, 1851June 2, 1929) was an American attorney and politician from Arkansas. He served as a Democratic member of the United States House of Representatives (1885 to 1903) and the 26th Governor of Arkansas, from ...
, who received 99,987 votes (78.1 percent). In the general election, held in October 1924, a month prior to the Coolidge/ Davis presidential contest, Grabiel was again defeated, this time by the Democratic
nominee A candidate, or nominee, is the prospective recipient of an award or honor, or a person seeking or being considered for some kind of position; for example: * to be elected to an office — in this case a candidate selection procedure occurs. * t ...
, Tom J. Terral. The tabulation was 99,598 votes (79.8 percent) for Terral to 25,152 (20.2 percent) for Grabiel.Arkansas Secretary of State, October 1924 election returns Grabiel died in Fayetteville in 1928 at the age of sixty-one. His party did not win the governorship again for another thirty-eight years, with the victory of
Winthrop Rockefeller Winthrop Rockefeller (May 1, 1912 – February 22, 1973) was an American politician and philanthropist. Rockefeller was the fourth son and fifth child of American financer John D. Rockefeller Jr. and Abby Aldrich Rockefeller. He is one of the ...
, a native New Yorker, over the Conservative Democrat
James D. Johnson James Douglas Johnson (August 20, 1924 – February 13, 2010), known as "Justice Jim" Johnson, was an Arkansas legislator and jurist known for outspoken support of racial segregation during the mid-20th century. He served as an associate justi ...
.


References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Grabiel, John W. 1867 births 1928 deaths People from Logan County, Ohio Ohio Northern University alumni University of Findlay alumni Ohio State University Moritz College of Law alumni Politicians from Fayetteville, Arkansas Arkansas Republicans Arkansas lawyers American Presbyterians American people of German descent People from Bowling Green, Ohio 19th-century American lawyers