Mount Etna Morris (September 1, 1900 – July 8, 1988) was an American

politician A politician is a person active in party politics, or a person holding or seeking an elected office in government. Politicians propose, support, reject and create laws that govern the land and by an extension of its people. Broadly speaking, a ...

from

Missouri Missouri is a U.S. state, state in the Midwestern United States, Midwestern region of the United States. Ranking List of U.S. states and territories by area, 21st in land area, it is bordered by eight states (tied for the most with Tennessee ...

. 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 ...

, he served three non-consecutive terms as

State Treasurer of Missouri State may refer to: Arts, entertainment, and media Literature * '' State Magazine'', a monthly magazine published by the U.S. Department of State * ''The State'' (newspaper), a daily newspaper in Columbia, South Carolina, United States * ''Our ...

as well as two non-consecutive terms as Director of the

Missouri Department of Revenue The Missouri Department of Revenue is a U.S. state government agency in Missouri created under the Missouri Constitution in 1945, which is responsible for ensuring the proper functioning of state and local government through the collection and dis ...

and two terms in the

Missouri House of Representatives The Missouri House of Representatives is the lower chamber of the Missouri General Assembly. It has 163 members, representing districts with an average size of 37,000 residents. House members are elected for two-year terms during general elections ...

Early life and education

Morris was born September 1, 1900 in Dadeville, Missouri to hardware merchant Albert G. Morris and his wife. He had two siblings; a brother A. George Morris, an official with the

Missouri Department of Conservation The Missouri Department of Conservation (MDC) and the Missouri Conservation Commission were created by Article IV Sections 40-42 of the Missouri Constitution, which were adopted by the voters of the state in 1936 as Amendment 4 to the constitution ...

, and a sister Lucille Morris Upton, an author and newspaper reporter. Following graduation from

Walnut Grove High School The Walton County School District is a public school district in Walton County, Georgia, United States, based in Monroe. It includes all portions of Walton County except for areas in Social Circle. Its boundary includes, in addition to Monroe ...

, Morris served in the military during

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 ...

. After his military service, Morris attended

Southwest Missouri State College Missouri State University (MSU or MO State), formerly Southwest Missouri State University, is a public university in Springfield, Missouri. Founded in 1905 as the Fourth District Normal School, it is the state's second largest university by enr ...

Springfield Springfield may refer to: * Springfield (toponym), the place name in general Places and locations Australia * Springfield, New South Wales (Central Coast) * Springfield, New South Wales (Snowy Monaro Regional Council) * Springfield, Queenslan ...

and later the

University of Missouri The University of Missouri (Mizzou, MU, or Missouri) is a public university, public Land-grant university, land-grant research university in Columbia, Missouri. It is Missouri's largest university and the flagship of the four-campus Universit ...

. On December 24, 1922, he married the former Helen Adamson of

Everton, Missouri Everton is a city in southeast Dade County, Missouri, Dade County, Missouri, United States. The population was 273 at the 2020 United States census, 2020 census. History Everton was platted in 1881. The city was named by railroad officials in hono ...

, and had two children. In April, 1967, he married Margery Lott Adamson, the widow of one of his first wife's relatives.

Business and politics

In 1928, Morris founded and managed the People's Bank in

Miller, Missouri Miller is a town in Lawrence County, Missouri, United States. As of the 2010 census, the city population was 699. History A post office called Miller has been in operation since 1891. The community has the name of T. A. Miller, a railroad con ...

. From 1932 to 1936, he served two terms in the

. Following his service in the state legislature, he served as CEO of the Trenton National Bank from 1936 to 1945. He re-joined state government in 1945, serving for a year as commissioner of the state Division of Finance, before becoming the first director of the newly created

in the Cabinet of Governor

Phil M. Donnelly Philip Matthew Donnelly (March 6, 1891 – September 12, 1961) was an American politician serving as the List of governors of Missouri, 41st and 43rd Governor of Missouri. He was a United States Democratic Party, Democrat. Donnelly and Kit Bond, ...

in July, 1946, serving until his election as state treasurer. From 1949 to 1953, he served as

. He served again as director of the state Department of Revenue from 1953 to 1956, during Phil Donnelly's second term as governor, before resigning in order to seek a second term as state treasurer, which he served from 1957 to 1961. He was subsequently reelected to a third term as state treasurer, serving from 1965 to 1969.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Morris, Mount Etna 1900 births 1988 deaths Democratic Party members of the Missouri House of Representatives State cabinet secretaries of Missouri State treasurers of Missouri People from Dade County, Missouri People from Lawrence County, Missouri University of Missouri alumni 20th-century American politicians American military personnel of World War I Military personnel from Missouri