William Henry McMaster (May 10, 1877September 14, 1968) was an American Republican politician who served as the tenth

Governor of South Dakota The governor of South Dakota is the head of government of South Dakota. The governor is elected to a four-year term in even years when there is no presidential election. The current governor is Kristi Noem, a member of the Republican Party who t ...

, serving from 1921 until 1925. He also served as a member of the

United States Senate The United States Senate is the upper chamber of the United States Congress, with the House of Representatives being the lower chamber. Together they compose the national bicameral legislature of the United States. The composition and pow ...

from South Dakota from 1925 to 1931.

Biography

McMaster was born to Samuel and Sara (Woodsum) McMaster in Ticonic, Iowa,

Monona County, Iowa Monona County is a county located in the U.S. state of Iowa. As of the 2020 census, the population was 8,751. The county seat is Onawa. History The area around present-day Onawa was a stopping point in 1804 for Meriwether Lewis and William C ...

. His family moved to

Sioux City, Iowa Sioux City () is a city in Woodbury and Plymouth counties in the northwestern part of the U.S. state of Iowa. The population was 85,797 in the 2020 census, making it the fourth-largest city in Iowa. The bulk of the city is in Woodbury County ...

after the death of his father in 1880; and while growing up, he contributed to the family income by delivering the morning edition of the "Sioux City Journal." McMaster graduated from Sioux City High School and in 1899, he received a B.A. degree from

Beloit College Beloit College is a private liberal arts college in Beloit, Wisconsin. Founded in 1846, when Wisconsin was still a territory, it is the state's oldest continuously operated college. It is a member of the Associated Colleges of the Midwest and h ...

Wisconsin Wisconsin () is a state in the upper Midwestern United States. Wisconsin is the 25th-largest state by total area and the 20th-most populous. It is bordered by Minnesota to the west, Iowa to the southwest, Illinois to the south, Lake M ...

. McMaster served as the head football coach at the

University of Wisconsin–Oshkosh The University of Wisconsin Oshkosh (UW Oshkosh or UW Osh) is a public university in Oshkosh, Wisconsin. It is part of the University of Wisconsin System and offers bachelor's, master's, and doctoral degree programs to nearly 14,000 students e ...

, then known as Oshkosh Normal School in 1899.

Career

McMaster moved to

Gayville, South Dakota Gayville is a town in Yankton County, South Dakota, United States. The population was 382 at the 2020 census. History Gayville was originally settled chiefly by Scandinavian farmers. A post office was established as White Hall in 1870, rena ...

, and entered the banking industry, serving as the cashier of the Bank of Gayville. He was elected Gayville City Treasurer in 1905 and was re-elected in 1907. He was elected to the

South Dakota House of Representatives The South Dakota House of Representatives is the lower house of the South Dakota Legislature. It consists of 70 members, two from each legislative district. Two of the state's 35 legislative districts, Districts 26 and 28, are each subdivided into ...

from Yankton County in 1910. He was then elected to the State Senate in 1912, and was re-elected in 1914. In 1916, McMaster ran for Lieutenant Governor. He defeated fellow State Senator E. C. Miller and former State Representative T S. Everitt in the Republican primary, and then defeated the Democratic nominee, State Senator Andrew S. Anderson, in the general election with 55% of the vote. He was re-elected in a landslide in 1918, receiving 52% of the vote to

Nonpartisan League The Nonpartisan League (NPL) was a left-wing political party founded in 1915 in North Dakota by Arthur C. Townley, a former organizer for the Socialist Party of America. On behalf of small farmers and merchants, the Nonpartisan League advocat ...

nominee A. L. Putnam's 27% and Democratic nominee C. C. Siderius's 20%. In 1920, with Governor

Peter Norbeck Peter Norbeck (August 27, 1870December 20, 1936) was an American politician from South Dakota. After serving two terms as the ninth Governor of South Dakota, Norbeck was elected to three consecutive terms as a United States Senator. Norbeck was ...

opting to run for the U.S. Senate rather than seek re-election, McMaster entered the race to succeed him. He won the Republican primary over perennial candidate Richard O. Richards and faced two prominent candidates—

nominee Mark P. Bates and Democratic nominee William W. Howes—in the general election. Benefiting from the split field, McMaster won the election in a landslide, receiving 56% of the vote. He ran for re-election 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 ...

, and though he faced a similarly split field, his victory was considerably narrower; he won only 45% of the vote. As Governor, he revised the state tax code, provided state-guaranteed credit, and fought a successful battle against high gasoline taxes. McMaster declined to seek a third term in

1924 Events January * January 12 – Gopinath Saha shoots Ernest Day, whom he has mistaken for Sir Charles Tegart, the police commissioner of Calcutta, and is arrested soon after. * January 20– 30 – Kuomintang in China holds ...

and instead ran for the U.S. Senate. He defeated incumbent Senator Thomas Sterling in the Republican primary and won a 44% plurality in the ensuing general election against Democratic nominee Ulysses Simpson Grant Cherry and several independent candidates. He was narrowly defeated for re-election in

1930 Events January * January 15 – The Moon moves into its nearest point to Earth, called perigee, at the same time as its fullest phase of the Lunar Cycle. This is the closest moon distance at in recent history, and the next one will b ...

by Governor

William J. Bulow William John Bulow (January 13, 1869February 26, 1960) was an American politician and lawyer. He was the first Democratic Governor of South Dakota, serving from 1927 to 1931. He received the highest number of votes of any Democratic candidate f ...

. In retirement, he served as an officer of the Dixon National Bank in Illinois.

Death

At the age of 91 years, McMaster died in Yankton and was interred in Oakwood Cemetery, Dixon, Lee County, Illinois US.

Head coaching record

References

External links

National Governors Association
* {{DEFAULTSORT:McMaster, William H. 1877 births 1968 deaths Republican Party governors of South Dakota Lieutenant Governors of South Dakota People from Monona County, Iowa People from Yankton County, South Dakota Politicians from Sioux City, Iowa People from Dixon, Illinois Republican Party South Dakota state senators Wisconsin–Oshkosh Titans football coaches Republican Party members of the South Dakota House of Representatives Beloit College alumni Republican Party United States senators from South Dakota