Nathan Lewis Miller (October 10, 1868 – June 26, 1953) was an American lawyer and politician who was Governor of New York from 1921 to 1922.

Early life and education

Nathan Miller was born on October 10, 1868, the son of Samuel Miller, a tenant farmer, and Almira Russell Miller. He attended Groton Union School, and graduated from Cortland Normal School in 1887. While at Cortland Normal School, Nathan Miller was in Gamma Sigma Fraternity. He studied law in

Cortland, New York Cortland is a city and the county seat of Cortland County, New York. Known as the Crown City, Cortland is in New York's Southern Tier region. As of the 2020 census it had a population of 17,556. The city of Cortland, near the county's western bo ...

, and was admitted to the bar in 1893.

Career

Miller entered politics as a

Republican Republican can refer to: Political ideology * An advocate of a republic, a type of government that is not a monarchy or dictatorship, and is usually associated with the rule of law. ** Republicanism, the ideology in support of republics or agains ...

, and started his political career in Cortland as corporation counsel. He later moved to corporate law, and his rise in politics was strongly helped by his relationship with

Andrew Carnegie Andrew Carnegie (, ; November 25, 1835August 11, 1919) was a Scottish-American industrialist and philanthropist. Carnegie led the expansion of the American steel industry in the late 19th century and became one of the richest Americans i ...

and the

United States Steel Corporation United States Steel Corporation, more commonly known as U.S. Steel, is an American integrated steel producer headquartered in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, with production operations primarily in the United States of America and in several countries ...

. Miller helped to effect the mergers that created this early mega-corporation. The merger helped Carnegie get out of the steel business and make him one of the richest men in the world at the time. Miller was

New York State Comptroller The New York State Comptroller is an elected constitutional officer of the U.S. state of New York and head of the New York state government's Department of Audit and Control. The New York State Comptroller is the highest-paid state auditor or ...

from 1901 to 1903, first appointed to fill the unexpired term of Erastus C. Knight who had been elected Mayor of Buffalo, and in November 1902 elected to a full term. He resigned the comptrollership in 1903, and was appointed to the New York Supreme Court, where he served from 1903 to 1915. In 1904, he was designated to the Appellate Division. On January 13, 1913, he was designated an associate judge of the New York Court of Appeals under the amendment of 1899, but resigned from the bench on July 30, 1915. He served as president of the

New York State Bar Association The New York State Bar Association (NYSBA) is a voluntary bar association for the state of New York. The mission of the association is to cultivate the science of jurisprudence; promote reform in the law; facilitate the administration of justic ...

in 1920. He nominated

Herbert Hoover Herbert Clark Hoover (August 10, 1874 – October 20, 1964) was an American politician who served as the 31st president of the United States from 1929 to 1933 and a member of the Republican Party, holding office during the onset of the Gr ...

for president at the 1920 Republican National Convention.

Governor of New York

Miller was Governor of New York from 1921 to 1922, elected in 1920. As governor he instituted numerous economy measures, and he estimated that he had saved taxpayers $20 million. Against opposition from New York City Mayor John F. Hylan, Miller fashioned the law creating the

New York City Transit Commission New is an adjective referring to something recently made, discovered, or created. New or NEW may refer to: Music * New, singer of K-pop group The Boyz Albums and EPs * ''New'' (album), by Paul McCartney, 2013 * ''New'' (EP), by Regurgitator, ...

. He found the death penalty necessary, and was against its abolition. In

1922 Events January * January 7 – Dáil Éireann, the parliament of the Irish Republic, ratifies the Anglo-Irish Treaty by 64–57 votes. * January 10 – Arthur Griffith is elected President of Dáil Éireann, the day after Éamon de Valera ...

, he was defeated in a bid for re-election by his predecessor Al Smith, whom he had unseated in 1920. Miller was a strong supporter of the

Roman Catholic Church The Catholic Church, also known as the Roman Catholic Church, is the largest Christian church, with 1.3 billion baptized Catholics worldwide . It is among the world's oldest and largest international institutions, and has played a ...

, his wife's religion, and converted to Catholicism on his deathbed.

The Port Authority of New York and New Jersey The Port Authority of New York and New Jersey, PANYNJ; stylized, in logo since 2020, as Port Authority NY NJ, is a joint venture between the U.S. states of New York and New Jersey, established in 1921 through an interstate compact authorized b ...

was created while Miller was Governor.

Later career

From 1925 on he served as

general counsel A general counsel, also known as chief counsel or chief legal officer (CLO), is the chief in-house lawyer for a company or a governmental department. In a company, the person holding the position typically reports directly to the CEO, and their ...

for U.S. Steel. He, like his old adversary Smith was active in the

American Liberty League The American Liberty League was an American political organization formed in 1934. Its membership consisted primarily of wealthy business elites and prominent political figures, who were for the most part conservatives opposed to the New Deal of Pr ...

, a bipartisan anti- New Deal group founded by wealthy conservatives. While Miller was still the leading partner at his law firm in 1938, Carnegie's Pittsburgh Steamship Company named a ship "Governor Miller" in his honor.

Personal life

On November 23, 1896, he married Elizabeth Davern, and they had seven daughters. They resided at the Elmcroft Estate in Upper Brookville, New York. Miller died in 1953 at his New York hotel residence after fracturing his hip following a vacation in

Arizona Arizona ( ; nv, Hoozdo Hahoodzo ; ood, Alĭ ṣonak ) is a state in the Southwestern United States. It is the 6th largest and the 14th most populous of the 50 states. Its capital and largest city is Phoenix. Arizona is part of the Fou ...

. He was buried in Cortland at the historic

Cortland Rural Cemetery The Cortland Rural Cemetery is located in Cortland, New York, United States. A non-profit, non-denominational cemetery established in 1853, the still operational cemetery has a physical footprint of approximately and features the attributes typi ...

Honors

In January 1952, the New York State Bar Association awarded Miller its first gold medal for "distinguished service to the legal profession."

References

Sources

Appointment as Comptroller
in New York Times (NYT)(December 31, 1901)
Appointment to the Supreme Court
in NYT (November 11, 1903)
His opinion on the death penalty
in NYT (May 1, 1921)

External links

*
NGA.org
biography

Pat's Presidential Places {{DEFAULTSORT:Miller, Nathan L. 1868 births 1953 deaths Republican Party governors of New York (state) Judges of the New York Court of Appeals New York State Comptrollers People from Cortland, New York Converts to Roman Catholicism New York Supreme Court Justices Old Right (United States) Catholics from New York (state) People from Upper Brookville, New York