Edwin Lee Norris (August 15, 1865 – April 25, 1924) was a Democratic politician from

Montana Montana ( ) is a landlocked U.S. state, state in the Mountain states, Mountain West subregion of the Western United States. It is bordered by Idaho to the west, North Dakota to the east, South Dakota to the southeast, Wyoming to the south, an ...

. He served as the fifth Governor of Montana.

Biography

Norris was born in

Cumberland County, Kentucky Cumberland County is a county located in the Pennyroyal Plateau region of the U.S. state of Kentucky. As of the 2020 census, the population was 5,888. Its county seat is Burkesville. The county was formed in 1798 and named for the Cumberland ...

, in 1865, and graduated from the Southern Normal School, now

Western Kentucky University Western Kentucky University (WKU) is a public university in Bowling Green, Kentucky, United States. It was founded by the Commonwealth of Kentucky in 1906, though its roots reach back a few decades earlier. It operates regional campuses in Glas ...

Bowling Green, Kentucky Bowling Green is a city in Warren County, Kentucky, United States, and its county seat. Its population was 72,294 as of the 2020 United States census, 2020 census, making it the List of cities in Kentucky, third-most populous city in the stat ...

. He moved from Kentucky to Montana in 1888, studied law and was admitted to the Montana bar on October 8, 1889. He married Elizabeth June Wilkins. He practiced law in

Dillon, Montana Dillon is a city in and the county seat of Beaverhead County, Montana, Beaverhead County, Montana, United States. The population was 3,880 at the 2020 United States census, 2020 census. The city was named for Sidney Dillon (1812–1892), preside ...

, and was city attorney there for five years.

Career

Norris was elected to the

Montana State Senate The Montana State Senate is the upper house of the Montana Legislature, the state legislative branch of the U.S. state of Montana. The body is composed of 50 senators elected for four years. Half of the Senate is up for election every two years. ...

in 1896 and served until 1900, serving as the Senate President in 1899. He served as the state's fifth

Lieutenant Governor A lieutenant governor, lieutenant-governor, or vice governor is a high officer of state, whose precise role and rank vary by jurisdiction. Often a lieutenant governor is the deputy, or lieutenant, to or ranked under a governor — a "second-in-comm ...

from 1905 to 1908. He became

Governor A governor is an politician, administrative leader and head of a polity or Region#Political regions, political region, in some cases, such as governor-general, governors-general, as the head of a state's official representative. Depending on the ...

on April 1, 1908, upon the resignation of Joseph K. Toole, and was elected in his own right in the November 1908 election, serving until 1913. Norris is credited with signing state laws prohibiting discrimination by life insurance companies and making mine operators liable when employees became disabled. Norris championed the use of prison labor to build roads in Montana. As governor, he sat on the State Board of Prison Commissioners. Thanks to his influence, prison labor built more than 230 miles of roads in Montana between 1913 and 1921.

Death

Norris died in Great Falls, Montana in 1924, where he had lived since leaving the Governor's office. He was first buried in Fairview Cemetery and later moved to New Highland Cemetery where he is still interred.

References

External links

State of Montana profile
{{DEFAULTSORT:Norris, Edwin L. 1865 births 1924 deaths People from Cumberland County, Kentucky Western Kentucky University alumni Montana lawyers Democratic Party Montana state senators Lieutenant governors of Montana Democratic Party governors of Montana American Presbyterians People from Dillon, Montana 19th-century American lawyers 19th-century Montana politicians