Francis Sylvester Monnett (March 19, 1857 – April 21, 1953) was

Ohio Attorney General The Ohio attorney general is the chief legal officer of the state of Ohio in the United States. The office is filled by general election, held every four years. The Ohio attorney general is Republican Dave Yost. History The office of the att ...

from 1896–1900 as a member of the Republican Party. Under the administration of Monnette, the

's office pursued and won the first major victories that finally led to the permanent break-up of

Standard Oil Trust Standard Oil Company was a corporate trust in the petroleum industry that existed from 1882 to 1911. The origins of the trust lay in the operations of the Standard Oil Company (Ohio), which had been founded in 1870 by John D. Rockefeller. The ...

established by

John D. Rockefeller John Davison Rockefeller Sr. (July 8, 1839 – May 23, 1937) was an American businessman and philanthropist. He was one of the List of richest Americans in history, wealthiest Americans of all time and one of the richest people in modern hist ...

. While previous courts had ordered the Trust to divide its interests, the company failed to do so until it was sued in the Ohio courts. While Monnett's term ended before the matter could be settled, the work done during his administration set the course for the final resolution. Rockefeller funds were lavishly donated to Monnette's opponents, which led to his loss in the November 1900 election. Monnett also worked with Ohio Senator H. E. Valentine in the investigation of trust problems undertaken by a committee of the Ohio state senate in 1898. As a result of this probe, Ohio enacted the Valentine Act. Under the terms of the Valentine Act, legal trust practices were defined and illegal practices were outlawed. The act also specified criminal penalties for violations of the law. He died in 1953 in

Columbus, Ohio Columbus (, ) is the List of capitals in the United States, capital and List of cities in Ohio, most populous city of the U.S. state of Ohio. With a 2020 United States census, 2020 census population of 905,748, it is the List of United States ...

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Monnette, Frank S. 1857 births 1953 deaths Ohio attorneys general Politicians from Columbus, Ohio People from Hardin County, Ohio People from Crawford County, Ohio Ohio Wesleyan University alumni Ohio lawyers Ohio Republicans Lawyers from Columbus, Ohio