Benjamin Travis Laney, Jr. (November 25, 1896January 21, 1977), was an American businessman who served as the 33rd governor of

Arkansas Arkansas ( ) is a landlocked state in the South Central United States. It is bordered by Missouri to the north, Tennessee and Mississippi to the east, Louisiana to the south, and Texas and Oklahoma to the west. Its name is from the ...

from 1945 to 1949.

Life and career

Laney was born in

Camden Camden may refer to: People * Camden (surname), a surname of English origin * Camden Joy (born 1964), American writer * Camden Toy (born 1957), American actor Places Australia * Camden, New South Wales * Camden, Rosehill, a heritage res ...

, where he attended Ouachita County

public schools Public school may refer to: *State school (known as a public school in many countries), a no-fee school, publicly funded and operated by the government *Public school (United Kingdom), certain elite fee-charging independent schools in England and ...

but never graduated from

high school A secondary school describes an institution that provides secondary education and also usually includes the building where this takes place. Some secondary schools provide both '' lower secondary education'' (ages 11 to 14) and ''upper seconda ...

. He was, however, admitted in 1915 to

Hendrix College Hendrix College is a private liberal arts college in Conway, Arkansas. Approximately 1,000 students are enrolled, mostly undergraduates. While affiliated with the United Methodist Church, the college offers a secular curriculum and has a studen ...

, a

liberal arts Liberal arts education (from Latin "free" and "art or principled practice") is the traditional academic course in Western higher education. ''Liberal arts'' takes the term '' art'' in the sense of a learned skill rather than specifically th ...

institution in Conway. His studies were interrupted by

World War I World War I (28 July 1914 11 November 1918), often abbreviated as WWI, was List of wars and anthropogenic disasters by death toll, one of the deadliest global conflicts in history. Belligerents included much of Europe, the Russian Empire, ...

. Laney entered the

United States Navy The United States Navy (USN) is the maritime service branch of the United States Armed Forces and one of the eight uniformed services of the United States. It is the largest and most powerful navy in the world, with the estimated tonnage ...

in 1918 and served until the end of the war. In 1924, Laney earned a degree from the

University of Central Arkansas The University of Central Arkansas (Central Arkansas or UCA) is a public university in Conway, Arkansas. Founded in 1907 as the Arkansas State Normal School, the university is one of the oldest in the U.S. state of Arkansas. As the state's only n ...

(then known as Arkansas Teacher's College), also in Conway. He also took graduate courses from the

University of Utah The University of Utah (U of U, UofU, or simply The U) is a public research university in Salt Lake City, Utah. It is the flagship institution of the Utah System of Higher Education. The university was established in 1850 as the University of D ...

Salt Lake City Salt Lake City (often shortened to Salt Lake and abbreviated as SLC) is the capital and most populous city of Utah, United States. It is the seat of Salt Lake County, the most populous county in Utah. With a population of 200,133 in 2020, th ...

. Laney owned a drugstore in Conway, dealt in

real estate Real estate is property consisting of land and the buildings on it, along with its natural resources such as crops, minerals or water; immovable property of this nature; an interest vested in this (also) an item of real property, (more genera ...

, and had interests in cotton gins, feed, and banking.

Oil An oil is any nonpolar chemical substance that is composed primarily of hydrocarbons and is hydrophobic (does not mix with water) & lipophilic (mixes with other oils). Oils are usually flammable and surface active. Most oils are unsaturate ...

was discovered on Laney's farm near Camden. He was hence called "Business Ben" because of his varied business interests. Laney was elected

mayor In many countries, a mayor is the highest-ranking official in a municipal government such as that of a city or a town. Worldwide, there is a wide variance in local laws and customs regarding the powers and responsibilities of a mayor as well as ...

of Camden in 1935 and served until 1939. In 1944, he successfully ran for governor. In the Democratic primary, Laney polled 70,965 votes (38.6 percent), compared to J. Bryan Sims's 63,454 (34.5 percent), and former U.S. Representative David D. Terry's 49,685 (27 percent). Sims declined to pursue a party runoff election, and Laney was declared the Democratic nominee. He then overwhelmed the Republican nominee, Harley C. Stump of Stuttgart, 186,401 (86 percent) to 30,422 (14 percent). Stump had also run unsuccessfully in 1940 against

Carl E. Bailey Carl Edward Bailey (October 8, 1894 – October 23, 1948) was the 31st governor of Arkansas from 1937 to 1941. Early life Bailey was born in Bernie in Stoddard County in southeastern Missouri. He attended public schools and graduated high scho ...

. During the Laney administration, the Public Utilities Commission was formed and funds were appropriated for a stadium to be built in

Little Rock ( The "Little Rock") , government_type = Council-manager , leader_title = Mayor , leader_name = Frank Scott Jr. , leader_party = D , leader_title2 = Council , leader_name2 ...

. Plans were also formed for the construction of an official Governor's Mansion. Laney successfully ran for reelection in 1946. He defeated J. M. Malone in the primary, having polled 125,444 votes, or 64.6 percent of the total. Laney then overwhelmed the Republican W. T. Mills, 128,029 (84.1 percent) to 24,133 (15.9 percent) in the gubernatorial general election. Three Republicans gained seats in the

Arkansas House of Representatives The Arkansas State House of Representatives is the lower house of the Arkansas General Assembly, the state legislature of the US state of Arkansas. The House is composed of 100 members elected from an equal amount of constituencies across the s ...

, having represented

Madison Madison may refer to: People * Madison (name), a given name and a surname * James Madison (1751–1836), fourth president of the United States Place names * Madison, Wisconsin, the state capital of Wisconsin and the largest city known by this ...

, Newton, and Searcy counties. Laney sat out a gubernatorial term and unsuccessfully attempted to regain office in 1950, but he failed to unseat the more liberal Democratic incumbent, Sidney Sanders McMath. McMath received 298,559 votes (64 percent) to Laney's 112,651 (34.4 percent). Despite having previously served two terms, Laney campaigned against McMath under the slogan, "Re-Elect Ben Laney Governor, For a Second Time." After defeating Laney, McMath then trounced the Republican nominee, the young planter Jefferson W. Speck of Frenchmans Bayou in Mississippi County. In 1948, Laney was a top choice to serve as the

Dixiecrat The States' Rights Democratic Party (whose members are often called the Dixiecrats) was a short-lived segregationist political party in the United States, active primarily in the South. It arose due to a Southern regional split in opposition t ...

presidential nominee. At first, he balked and told reporters he would not attend the breakaway convention. However, he changed his mind and made the trip to

Birmingham Birmingham ( ) is a city and metropolitan borough in the metropolitan county of West Midlands in England. It is the second-largest city in the United Kingdom with a population of 1.145 million in the city proper, 2.92 million in the We ...

Alabama (We dare defend our rights) , anthem = " Alabama" , image_map = Alabama in United States.svg , seat = Montgomery , LargestCity = Huntsville , LargestCounty = Baldwin County , LargestMetro = Greater Birmingham , area_total_km2 = 135,7 ...

. Then he hesitated again and remained in his

hotel A hotel is an establishment that provides paid lodging on a short-term basis. Facilities provided inside a hotel room may range from a modest-quality mattress in a small room to large suites with bigger, higher-quality beds, a dresser, a ref ...

room. He did not attend the convention and formally withdrew his name from consideration before the nomination was made. The nomination ultimately fell to

Strom Thurmond James Strom Thurmond Sr. (December 5, 1902June 26, 2003) was an American politician who represented South Carolina in the United States Senate from 1954 to 2003. Prior to his 48 years as a senator, he served as the 103rd governor of South Caro ...

, then the

governor of South Carolina The governor of South Carolina is the head of government of South Carolina. The governor is the '' ex officio'' commander-in-chief of the National Guard when not called into federal service. The governor's responsibilities include making ye ...

. Laney was a delegate to the 1969 Arkansas Constitutional Convention. Laney died of a

heart attack A myocardial infarction (MI), commonly known as a heart attack, occurs when blood flow decreases or stops to the coronary artery of the heart, causing damage to the heart muscle. The most common symptom is chest pain or discomfort which m ...

Magnolia ''Magnolia'' is a large genus of about 210 to 340The number of species in the genus ''Magnolia'' depends on the taxonomic view that one takes up. Recent molecular and morphological research shows that former genera ''Talauma'', ''Dugandiodendro ...

, the seat of Columbia County south of Camden. He is interred at Camden Memorial Cemetery in Camden, alongside his wife, the former Lucille Kirtley (1906–1992).

References

External links

* Encyclopedia of Arkansas History & Culture entry
Benjamin Travis Laney Jr.
{{DEFAULTSORT:Laney, Benjamin Travis Democratic Party governors of Arkansas Arkansas Dixiecrats 1896 births 1977 deaths American real estate businesspeople Businesspeople from Arkansas Military personnel from Arkansas People from Camden, Arkansas University of Central Arkansas alumni University of Utah alumni Mayors of places in Arkansas Hendrix College alumni 20th-century American politicians 20th-century American businesspeople United States Navy personnel of World War I

Life and career

See also

References

External links