Emmet Montgomery Reily (October 21, 1866 – October 31, 1954), sometimes E. Mont Reily was a

Texas Texas ( , ; or ) is the most populous U.S. state, state in the South Central United States, South Central region of the United States. It borders Louisiana to the east, Arkansas to the northeast, Oklahoma to the north, New Mexico to the we ...

and, later,

Missouri Missouri (''see #Etymology and pronunciation, pronunciation'') is a U.S. state, state in the Midwestern United States, Midwestern region of the United States. Ranking List of U.S. states and territories by area, 21st in land area, it border ...

politician A politician is a person who participates in Public policy, policy-making processes, usually holding an elective position in government. Politicians represent the people, make decisions, and influence the formulation of public policy. The roles ...

who served a number of local offices, especially in

Fort Worth Fort Worth is a city in the U.S. state of Texas and the county seat of Tarrant County, Texas, Tarrant County, covering nearly into Denton County, Texas, Denton, Johnson County, Texas, Johnson, Parker County, Texas, Parker, and Wise County, Te ...

and

Kansas City The Kansas City metropolitan area is a bi-state metropolitan area anchored by Kansas City, Missouri. Its 14 counties straddle the border between the U.S. states of Missouri (9 counties) and Kansas (5 counties). With and a population of more t ...

. He was active in the Republican Party. He was later appointed as the

governor of Puerto Rico The governor of Puerto Rico () is the head of government of the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico, an unincorporated territory of the United States. Elected to a 4 year-term through popular vote by the residents of the archipelago and island, ...

by President

Warren G. Harding Warren Gamaliel Harding (November 2, 1865 – August 2, 1923) was the 29th president of the United States, serving from 1921 until his death in 1923. A member of the Republican Party (United States), Republican Party, he was one of the most ...

Missouri/Texas career

Reily was born in

Sedalia, Missouri Sedalia is a city located approximately south of the Missouri River and, as the county seat of Pettis County, Missouri, Pettis County, Missouri, United States, it is the principal city of the Sedalia Micropolitan Statistical Area. As of the 2020 ...

, but moved to

Fort Worth, Texas Fort Worth is a city in the U.S. state of Texas and the county seat of Tarrant County, Texas, Tarrant County, covering nearly into Denton County, Texas, Denton, Johnson County, Texas, Johnson, Parker County, Texas, Parker, and Wise County, Te ...

, as a teenager, where he worked both in the

newspaper A newspaper is a Periodical literature, periodical publication containing written News, information about current events and is often typed in black ink with a white or gray background. Newspapers can cover a wide variety of fields such as poli ...

and real estate businesses. During this time, he first became active in local politics and was appointed as the

chairman The chair, also chairman, chairwoman, or chairperson, is the presiding officer of an organized group such as a board, committee, or deliberative assembly. The person holding the office, who is typically elected or appointed by members of the gro ...

of the Republican City Committee (which he served on for eight years) and the Republican County Committee, as well as being twice nominated for

County Clerk A clerk is a white-collar worker who conducts record keeping as well as general office tasks, or a worker who performs similar sales-related tasks in a retail environment. The responsibilities of clerical workers commonly include record keepin ...

. (However, he never won that office.) In 1892, Reily went to Kansas City and was appointed Secretary to the Mayor for two terms. Following that, he returned to private life but was subsequently appointed as Chief Deputy to the

County Assessor Tax assessment, or assessment, is the job of determining the value, and sometimes determining the use, of property, usually to calculate a property tax. This is usually done by an office called the assessor or tax assessor. Governments need to ...

. In 1902, he was appointed as the assistant postmaster for Kansas City. In 1901, Reily founded the Roosevelt Club, which had a stated goal of nominating

Vice President A vice president or vice-president, also director in British English, is an officer in government or business who is below the president (chief executive officer) in rank. It can also refer to executive vice presidents, signifying that the vi ...

Theodore Roosevelt Theodore Roosevelt Jr. (October 27, 1858 – January 6, 1919), also known as Teddy or T.R., was the 26th president of the United States, serving from 1901 to 1909. Roosevelt previously was involved in New York (state), New York politics, incl ...

for

President President most commonly refers to: *President (corporate title) * President (education), a leader of a college or university *President (government title) President may also refer to: Arts and entertainment Film and television *'' Præsident ...

in the 1904 elections. The group was disbanded when Roosevelt became president after the assassination of

William McKinley William McKinley (January 29, 1843September 14, 1901) was the 25th president of the United States, serving from 1897 until Assassination of William McKinley, his assassination in 1901. A member of the Republican Party (United States), Repub ...

in September of that year. As a newspaper editor in Kansas City, Reily was said to be the first prominent figure to endorse

for the office of President of the United States. When Harding was elected president in 1920, he is said to have sought an appointive office to which he could nominate Reily as a reward for his loyalty without giving him too much power or presence in Washington.

Puerto Rico

On July 30, 1921, President Harding nominated Reily as

Governor of Puerto Rico The governor of Puerto Rico () is the head of government of the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico, an unincorporated territory of the United States. Elected to a 4 year-term through popular vote by the residents of the archipelago and island, ...

. During his time in office, he was a strong supporter of "Americanism", the introduction of some aspects of mainland United States culture and their advancement over native Puerto Rican culture. During his inauguration address, he insisted that the United States flag ("Old Glory") should be the only flag used over the island. Additionally, he placed several mainland politicians in prominent positions in the Puerto Rican government. Although Reily was a strong proponent of "Americanism", he reportedly saw Spanish culture—such as that of Texas, Florida, and California—as part of this culture. During his term as governor, Spanish

Renaissance Revival Renaissance Revival architecture (sometimes referred to as "Neo-Renaissance") is a group of 19th-century architectural revival styles which were neither Greek Revival nor Gothic Revival but which instead drew inspiration from a wide range of ...

became the "official"

architectural Architecture is the art and technique of designing and building, as distinguished from the skills associated with construction. It is both the process and the product of sketching, conceiving, planning, designing, and construction, constructi ...

style of the territory for public buildings, and the new

Puerto Rico Capitol The Capitol of Puerto Rico (), also known as the ''Casa de las Leyes'' (House of Laws), and most commonly referred to as the ''El Capitolio'' (The Capitol), is the seat of the Legislative Assembly of Puerto Rico, a bicameral legislature compose ...

Building was erected in that style. During his time in office, Reily advocated reducing the use of

Spanish Spanish might refer to: * Items from or related to Spain: **Spaniards are a nation and ethnic group indigenous to Spain **Spanish language, spoken in Spain and many countries in the Americas **Spanish cuisine **Spanish history **Spanish culture ...

in schools in favor of teaching exclusively in English. Reily was an extremely unpopular governor. A common nickname for him, given by the Puerto Rican populace, was ''"Moncho Reyes"'', a name closely resembling Reily's and giving the impression ("Moncho" being a common countryside nickname for the name "Ramón") that Reily was an uncivilized hick. He became involved in disputes with numerous political factions in Puerto Rico, some of which called for his removal from office. Reily reported, in a letter to Harding, that he had received death threats. He was also the subject of corruption allegations and an investigation by Puerto Rican local officials. Under pressure to leave office, and suffering from an illness he had contracted during a return visit to the continental United States, Reily resigned as governor on February 16, 1923. He was succeeded by the U.S. Representative

Horace Mann Towner Horace Mann Towner (October 23, 1855 – November 23, 1937) was an American politician who served as a member of the United States House of Representatives from Iowa's 8th congressional district and appointed the governor of Puerto Rico. In a ...

, the Chairman of the House Committee on Insular Affairs, which had jurisdiction over Puerto Rico. A collection of original correspondence between Reily and President Harding is archived in the Manuscripts Division of the

New York Public Library The New York Public Library (NYPL) is a public library system in New York City. With nearly 53 million items and 92 locations, the New York Public Library is the second-largest public library in the United States behind the Library of Congress a ...

References

''The Architecture of Power'' by Enrique Vivoni-Farage, a history of architecture in Puerto Rico
* ttp://worldstatesmen.org/Puerto_Rico.html Puerto Rico on WorldStatesmen.orgbr>Political Graveyard: Reily to Remsen
*NEW GOVERNOR TAKES OFFICE IN PORTO RICO; E. Mont Reily Brings Cheers When He Says Old Glory Is Only Flag for Island. New York Times. New York, N.Y.: Jul 31, 1921. pg. 8, 1 pgs *PORTO RICANS DEMAND REMOVAL OF GOV. REILY; Representatives of New York Colony Call Harding's Appointee Unfair to Independence Party. *ENGLISH IN PORTO RICO.; Governor Asked That It Be Taught Equally With Spanish. J.R. HULL, A.W. BAAR, F. SMITH., JAMES V. CHALMERS., ''et al.'' New York Times. New York, N.Y.: Sep 27, 1921. pg. 15, 1 pgs {{DEFAULTSORT:Reily, Emmet Montgomery 1866 births 1954 deaths People from Sedalia, Missouri Texas Republicans Missouri Republicans Politicians from Kansas City, Missouri Governors of Puerto Rico Politicians from Fort Worth, Texas Republican Party (Puerto Rico) politicians