Lorenzo Dow Lewelling (December 21, 1846 – September 3, 1900) was the 12th Governor of Kansas. He was born in Salem, Iowa. He was the son of William Lewelling, an

abolitionist Abolitionism, or the abolitionist movement, is the movement to end slavery. In Western Europe and the Americas, abolitionism was a historic movement that sought to end the Atlantic slave trade and liberate the enslaved people. The British ...

and Quaker minister who died soon after making an impassioned speech in

Indiana Indiana () is a U.S. state in the Midwestern United States. It is the 38th-largest by area and the 17th-most populous of the 50 States. Its capital and largest city is Indianapolis. Indiana was admitted to the United States as the 19th s ...

. After the accidental burning to death of his mother in 1856, he lived with his older sister and struggled to gain an education. He attended

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, the

Eastman Business College The Eastman Business College was a business school located in Poughkeepsie, New York, United States. It operated from 1859 until it closed in 1931. At the height of its success, the school was one of the largest commercial colleges in the United St ...

and Whittier College (Iowa). He graduated from the Whittier College in 1867. Lewelling worked at various jobs until the Civil War broke out in 1861. He enlisted in an Iowa regiment, but since he was underage, he was discharged. He was employed by a bridge-building corps in

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. Employed by the Freedman's Aid Society in 1865, he taught at a black school at

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. Following the

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, Lewelling graduated from Whittier College in 1868 and became a teacher at the college in Salem, Iowa. He was known as an excellent lecturer and frequently gave public recitals of poetry. Lewelling became a teacher in the Iowa State Reform School and on April 18, 1870, he married Angelina M. Cook, a teacher, of Red Oak, Indiana. In 1872 he was made superintendent of the girls' department of the state reform school in Iowa, and his wife was appointed matron. He founded and edited the "Des Moines Capital", an "anti-ring" Republican newspaper from 1880 to 1882. His wife died while matron, leaving three daughters. He then married Ida Bishop and they had one daughter, Ruth. When Lewelling moved to

Wichita, Kansas Wichita ( ) is the largest city in the U.S. state of Kansas and the county seat of Sedgwick County. As of the 2020 census, the population of the city was 397,532. The Wichita metro area had a population of 647,610 in 2020. It is located in ...

, he broke with the Republican party and was swept into office as a third-party candidate in the gubernatorial election of 1892. The Democrats endorsed his candidacy and he was elected. His wife, Ida remained in Wichita while he was in the capitol and his daughter, Jesse, acted as his official hostess. Lewelling presided over a state that was largely in the control of the Populist Party. However, the state legislature was split, the Senate controlled by the Populists and the House by the Republicans. Lewelling attempted to recognize only the Populist members of the House. Despite both groups meeting in the same chamber at different times, conflict occurred and led to the "Legislative War", until the

Kansas Supreme Court The Kansas Supreme Court is the highest judicial authority in the state of Kansas. Composed of seven justices, led by Chief Justice Marla Luckert, the court supervises the legal profession, administers the judicial branch, and serves as the st ...

decided in favor of the Republicans. Lewelling died in Arkansas City, Kansas, and is interred at Maple Grove Cemetery in Wichita. The Governor L. D. Lewelling House in Wichita, where he lived, is listed on the

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References

External links

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Publications concerning Kansas Governor Lewelling's administration available via the KGI Online Library
{{DEFAULTSORT:Lewelling, Lorenzo D. 1846 births 1900 deaths People from Henry County, Iowa Eastman Business College alumni Knox College (Illinois) alumni Whittier College alumni Politicians from Wichita, Kansas Kansas state senators American Quakers Kansas Populists People's Party state governors of the United States Democratic Party governors of Kansas Iowa Republicans 19th-century American politicians

See also

References

External links