Robert Archer Cooper (June 12, 1874August 7, 1953) was the 93rd Governor of

South Carolina )''Animis opibusque parati'' ( for, , Latin, Prepared in mind and resources, links=no) , anthem = " Carolina";" South Carolina On My Mind" , Former = Province of South Carolina , seat = Columbia , LargestCity = Charleston , LargestMetro = ...

from January 21, 1919 to May 20, 1922.United States District Court for the District of Puerto Rico-Robert Archer Cooper (1874-1953)
/ref>

Biography

Born in Waterloo Township, Laurens County, Cooper graduated with a

law degree A law degree is an academic degree conferred for studies in law. Such degrees are generally preparation for legal careers. But while their curricula may be reviewed by legal authority, they do not confer a license themselves. A legal license is gra ...

from

Polytechnic Institute An institute of technology (also referred to as: technological university, technical university, university of technology, technological educational institute, technical college, polytechnic university or just polytechnic) is an institution of te ...

San Germán, Puerto Rico San Germán (, ) is a historic town and municipality located in the Sabana Grande Valley of southwestern region of Puerto Rico, south of Mayagüez and Maricao, north of Lajas, east of Hormigueros and Cabo Rojo, and west of Sabana Grande. San ...

. He was admitted to the bar in 1898 and practiced law in Laurens. In 1900, Cooper was elected to the

South Carolina House of Representatives The South Carolina House of Representatives is the lower house of the South Carolina General Assembly. It consists of 124 representatives elected to two-year terms at the same time as U.S. congressional elections. Unlike many legislatures, seati ...

until 1904 when he was elected the

solicitor A solicitor is a legal practitioner who traditionally deals with most of the legal matters in some jurisdictions. A person must have legally-defined qualifications, which vary from one jurisdiction to another, to be described as a solicitor and ...

of the Eighth Judicial Circuit of South Carolina. Cooper entered the gubernatorial election of 1918 and won the general election without opposition to become the 93rd governor of South Carolina. He continued the progressive policies of his predecessor,

Richard Irvine Manning III Richard Irvine Manning III (August 15, 1859 – September 11, 1931) was an American politician from the U.S. state of South Carolina. He served as a state legislator and as the 92nd governor of South Carolina. Biography Richard Irvine Manning I ...

, by establishing a seven-month school term, mandating compulsory school attendance, expanding health care and improving the state roadways. These initiatives were paid for by stricter enforcement of existing tax laws and the revaluation of state property. Cooper was elected to a second term in 1920. He resigned from the governorship in 1922 to accept an appointment to the

Federal Farm Loan Board The Federal Farm Loan Act of 1916 () was a United States federal law aimed at increasing credit to rural family farmers. It did so by creating a federal farm loan board, twelve regional farm loan banks and tens of farm loan associations. The act ...

that lasted five years. After which, Cooper returned to the practice of law, but was called by President

Franklin D. Roosevelt Franklin Delano Roosevelt (; ; January 30, 1882April 12, 1945), often referred to by his initials FDR, was an American politician and attorney who served as the 32nd president of the United States from 1933 until his death in 1945. As the ...

to serve as the General Counsel on the

Commodity Credit Corporation The Commodity Credit Corporation (CCC) is a wholly owned United States government corporation that was created in 1933 to "stabilize, support, and protect farm income and prices" (federally chartered by the CCC Charter Act of 1948 (P.L. 80-806) ...

. Roosevelt later appointed him in 1934 as Judge of the District Court for Puerto Rico, a position Cooper held until 1947. Cooper died on August 7, 1953, and was buried at the Laurens City Cemetery in Laurens. His house at Laurens is included in the South Harper Historic District, added to the

National Register of Historic Places The National Register of Historic Places (NRHP) is the United States federal government's official list of districts, sites, buildings, structures and objects deemed worthy of preservation for their historical significance or "great artistic v ...

in 1986.

References

Guillermo A. Baralt Guillermo A. Baralt is a Puerto Rican historian. He obtained his bachelor's degree from Duquesne University in 1970. Later he continued his studies in the University of Chicago where he earned his Master's and Doctor's degrees. He is currently ...

, ''History of the Federal Court in Puerto Rico: 1899-1999'' (2004) (also published in Spanish as ''Historia del Tribunal Federal de Puerto Rico'')

External links

SCIway Biography of Robert Archer Cooper

{{DEFAULTSORT:Cooper, Robert Archer 1874 births 1953 deaths People from Laurens County, South Carolina Interamerican University of Puerto Rico alumni South Carolina lawyers Democratic Party members of the South Carolina House of Representatives Democratic Party governors of South Carolina University of South Carolina trustees Judges of the United States District Court for the District of Puerto Rico United States Article I federal judges appointed by Franklin D. Roosevelt 20th-century American judges South Carolina state solicitors People from Laurens, South Carolina