Clifford Townsend
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Maurice Clifford Townsend (August 11, 1884 – November 11, 1954) was an American politician and the 35th governor of the U.S. state of
Indiana Indiana ( ) is a U.S. state, state in the Midwestern United States, Midwestern region of the United States. It borders Lake Michigan to the northwest, Michigan to the north and northeast, Ohio to the east, the Ohio River and Kentucky to the s ...
from 1937 to 1941. During his term, he led relief efforts during and after the
Great Flood of 1937 The Ohio River flood of 1937 took place in late January and February 1937. With damage stretching from Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, to Cairo, Illinois, 385 people died, one million people were left homeless and property losses reached $500 million ...
.


Early life

Maurice Clifford Townsend was born on a farm in
Blackford County, Indiana Blackford County is located in the east central portion of the U.S. state of Indiana. The county is named for Judge Isaac Blackford, who was the first speaker of the Indiana General Assembly and a long-time chief justice of the Indiana Supre ...
to David and Lydia Glancy Townsend on August 11, 1884. He had one sister, Myrtle, and the two were raised on a country farm. He was the great-great-grandson of Eber Townsend (1760-1822) who fought in the Revolutionary War as a volunteer in the New York militia. After completing high school in 1901, Townsend worked as a teamster in the oil fields during the
Indiana Gas Boom The Indiana gas boom was a period of active drilling and production of natural gas in the Trenton Gas Field, in the US state of Indiana and the adjacent northwest part of Ohio. The boom began in the early 1880s and lasted into the early 20th cent ...
, and later in a factory. In 1907 he entered Marion College in
Grant County Grant County may refer to: Places ;Australia * County of Grant, Victoria ;United States * Grant County, Arkansas * Grant County, Indiana * Grant County, Kansas *Grant County, Kentucky Grant County is a county located in the northern pa ...
. After working as a teacher for six years to pay for his education, he graduated in 1907. He then taught in the common schools until 1909, when he became the
superintendent Superintendent may refer to: *Building superintendent, a manager, maintenance or repair person, custodian or janitor, especially in the United States; sometimes shortened to "super" *Prison warden or superintendent, a prison administrator *Soprin ...
of
Blackford County Blackford County is located in the east central portion of the U.S. state of Indiana. The county is named for Judge Isaac Blackford, who was the first speaker of the Indiana General Assembly and a long-time chief justice of the Indiana Suprem ...
schools. He remained superintendent there until 1919. He entered politics as a representative in the Indiana House in 1923. His single term in the legislature was focused mostly on reforming the state's tax code, an issue he worked on up through his term as governor. From 1925 to 1929, he served as superintendent of Grant County schools. When he began his tenure, he also became a member of the executive committee of the Indiana's Teachers Association. In 1928 he ran an unsuccessful campaign for Congress but was defeated. Townsend's experience made
Paul V. McNutt Paul Vories McNutt (July 19, 1891 – March 24, 1955) was an American diplomat and politician who served as the 34th governor of Indiana, high commissioner to the Philippines, administrator of the Federal Security Agency, chairman of the ...
consider him as a candidate for Lieutenant Governor and helped him to win the nomination at the state's Democratic convention in 1932. He was elected the 33rd Lieutenant Governor on the Democratic ticket and served from 1933 until 1937. The position of Lieutenant Governor was dramatically altered during his term. Previously, the position received only required active work during legislative sessions, which amounted to sixty days every two years. The salary at the time was only $1,000 () and a daily stipend when needed to preside over the State Senate. The position was granted significantly more power after the passage of the 1932 Executive Reorganization Act when the lieutenant-governor was made head of the state's agricultural department and assigning him other administrative duties. The change put a large number of patronage jobs under his control.


Governor

Townsend's mother placed his name in nomination for governor at the 1936 Democratic state convention. His nomination though was a tough battle. The Democratic Party was split between three strong faction, with McNutt supporting Townsend, powerful senator
Sherman Minton Sherman "Shay" Minton (October 20, 1890 – April 9, 1965) was an American politician and jurist who served as a U.S. senator from Indiana and later became an associate justice of the Supreme Court of the United States; he was a member of the ...
supporting Pleas Greenlee, and the chairman of the state party supporting Kirk McKinney. The fight at the convention was bitter, and a fist fight broke out before the final vote took place. In the end McNutt's control over the party machine determined the nomination in favor of Townsend. The popular McNutt campaigned heavily on Townsend's behalf in the general election. Republicans again made gains in the General Assembly, but Democrat kept the majority and Townsend won the election, defeating Republican Raymond Springer by over 180,000 votes. Townsend was inaugurated on January 11, 1937. The state was immediately beset with a disaster as the
Great Flood of 1937 The Ohio River flood of 1937 took place in late January and February 1937. With damage stretching from Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, to Cairo, Illinois, 385 people died, one million people were left homeless and property losses reached $500 million ...
began. Within a week, every community on the
Ohio River The Ohio River () is a river in the United States. It is located at the boundary of the Midwestern and Southern United States, flowing in a southwesterly direction from Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, to its river mouth, mouth on the Mississippi Riv ...
was destroyed and hundreds of thousands were homeless. In the early stages, he coordinated evacuation efforts, routing all available trains to carry people to safety as flood waters rose. Thousand of relief workers and the national guard were called out to help rebuild. The disaster remains the second worse to have ever hit the state. Indiana was the only state affected by the flood, and there were no drownings reported. Harry L. Hopkins of the
National Relief Administration National may refer to: Common uses * Nation or country ** Nationality – a ''national'' is a person who is subject to a nation, regardless of whether the person has full rights as a citizen Places in the United States * National, Maryland, ce ...
said, "No state was better managed during the flood than Indiana." Before the flood relief was completed, a large strike broke out in
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factories across the state. Violence broke out in Anderson and the National Guard was called out by Townsend to restore order and protect the factory. The strike prompted Townsend to request the creation of the state Division of Labor to provide voluntary mediation in union strikes. Steel workers in Gary launched a strike in 1937, and the division successfully prevented it from turning violent. As the end of his term neared, the former state party chairman
Frederick Van Nuys Frederick Van Nuys (April 16, 1874 – January 25, 1944) was a United States senator from Indiana. Born in Falmouth, he attended the public schools and graduated from Earlham College (Richmond, Indiana) in 1898 and from Indiana Law School ( ...
, who had been elected Senator again, attempted take control of the party from the McNutt-Townsend faction. The battle was primarily over who would control federal patronage jobs. President
Franklin Roosevelt Franklin Delano Roosevelt (January 30, 1882April 12, 1945), also known as FDR, was the 32nd president of the United States, serving from 1933 until his death in 1945. He is the longest-serving U.S. president, and the only one to have served ...
intervened after Van Nuys opposed his plan to stack the
United States Supreme Court The Supreme Court of the United States (SCOTUS) is the highest court in the federal judiciary of the United States. It has ultimate appellate jurisdiction over all U.S. federal court cases, and over state court cases that turn on question ...
, and used his own influence to have Van Nuys defeated in his reelection bid. Townsend at first agreed to go along with Roosevelt's plan, but after McNutt decided it would be to harmful to the state party, Townsend changed his mind, much to Roosevelt's chagrin. In the mid-term elections, Republican took the control of the
Indiana House of Representatives The Indiana House of Representatives is the lower house of the Indiana General Assembly, the state legislature of the U.S. state of Indiana. The House is composed of 100 members representing an equal number of constituent districts. House mem ...
, 51 to 49. The Republicans blocked Townsend's proposed new social programs and attempted to roll back many of his predecessor's programs. The Senate blocked the bills from passage, and the session ended in deadlock. Only a few pieces of legislation were passed: the driver's license examination became required by law, pensions for the state's firemen were approved, free textbooks were authorized for public schools and the state ordered school buses to be painted yellow for safety's sake—this last starting a nationwide trend.


Later life

After Townsend left office, he extricated himself from internal politics of the state party and did not involve himself in the selection of his successor. During World War II Townsend used his farm experience in government service, directing the Office of Agricultural War Relations, the Agricultural Conservation and Adjustment Administration, and the Food Production Administration. In 1943 he resigned from federal service and returned to Indiana to manage his farms in Blackford and Grant counties. Townsend was the Democratic nominee for the United States Senate in 1946, but was defeated by
William E. Jenner William Ezra Jenner (July 21, 1908 – March 9, 1985) was an American lawyer and politician from the state of Indiana. A Republican, Jenner was an Indiana state senator from 1934 to 1942, and a U.S. senator from 1944 to 1945 and again from 1 ...
. He died November 11, 1954, from a heart attack, and was buried at the
Odd Fellows Odd Fellows (or Oddfellows when referencing the Grand United Order of Oddfellows or some British-based fraternities; also Odd Fellowship or Oddfellowship) is an international fraternity consisting of lodges first documented in 1730 in 18th-cen ...
Cemetery in
Hartford City, Indiana Hartford City is a city in the U.S. state of Indiana, and the county seat of Blackford County, Indiana, Blackford County. Located in the northeast East Central Indiana, central portion of the state, the small farming community underwent a dramat ...
.


See also

* List of governors of Indiana


References

Notes Bibliography *


External links


Indiana Historical Bureau: Biography and portrait
*
National Governors Association
{{DEFAULTSORT:Townsend, M. Clifford 1884 births 1954 deaths Democratic Party governors of Indiana Governors of Indiana Indiana Democrats Methodists from Indiana 20th-century Indiana politicians