Frederic T. Greenhalge
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Frederic Thomas Greenhalge (born Greenhalgh) (July 19, 1842 – March 5, 1896) was a
British British may refer to: Peoples, culture, and language * British people, nationals or natives of the United Kingdom, British Overseas Territories and Crown Dependencies. * British national identity, the characteristics of British people and culture ...
-born lawyer and politician in the United States state of
Massachusetts Massachusetts ( ; ), officially the Commonwealth of Massachusetts, is a U.S. state, state in the New England region of the Northeastern United States. It borders the Atlantic Ocean and the Gulf of Maine to its east, Connecticut and Rhode ...
. He served in the
United States House of Representatives The United States House of Representatives is a chamber of the Bicameralism, bicameral United States Congress; it is the lower house, with the U.S. Senate being the upper house. Together, the House and Senate have the authority under Artic ...
and was the state's 38th governor. He was elected three consecutive times, but died early in his third term. He was the state's first foreign-born governor.


Early years

Frederic Thomas Greenhalge was born in
Clitheroe Clitheroe () is a town and civil parishes in England, civil parish in the Ribble Valley, Borough of Ribble Valley, Lancashire, England; it is located north-west of Manchester. It is near the Forest of Bowland and is often used as a base for to ...
,
Lancashire Lancashire ( , ; abbreviated ''Lancs'') is a ceremonial county in North West England. It is bordered by Cumbria to the north, North Yorkshire and West Yorkshire to the east, Greater Manchester and Merseyside to the south, and the Irish Sea to ...
,
England England is a Countries of the United Kingdom, country that is part of the United Kingdom. It is located on the island of Great Britain, of which it covers about 62%, and List of islands of England, more than 100 smaller adjacent islands. It ...
, U.K. on July 19, 1842, to William Greenhalgh and Jane (Slater) Greenhalgh. He was the only son (of seven children). His father, the supervisor of a printing operation, was descended from the Greenhalghs, a family of longstanding note in Lancashire. The family moved first to Eshton and then Edenfield, where the young Greenhalge (who would change the spelling of his name as an adult) attended private school. In 1855 the family immigrated to
Lowell, Massachusetts Lowell () is a city in Massachusetts, United States. Alongside Cambridge, Massachusetts, Cambridge, it is one of two traditional county seat, seats of Middlesex County, Massachusetts, Middlesex County. With an estimated population of 115,554 in ...
, where the father had been offered a job heading the printing department of the Merrimack Manufacturing Company. Greenhalge attended the public schools of Lowell, where he excelled academically and participated in debating societies. In 1859, he enrolled in
Harvard College Harvard College is the undergraduate education, undergraduate college of Harvard University, a Private university, private Ivy League research university in Cambridge, Massachusetts, United States. Part of the Harvard Faculty of Arts and Scienc ...
, where he was a member of the Institute of 1770 and was well regarded as a debater. He left Harvard after three years because his father died, the family finances having suffered a setback due mill closures caused by the
American Civil War The American Civil War (April 12, 1861May 26, 1865; also known by Names of the American Civil War, other names) was a civil war in the United States between the Union (American Civil War), Union ("the North") and the Confederate States of A ...
.Beauchesne, p. 537 He briefly taught school in
Chelmsford, Massachusetts Chelmsford () is a town in Middlesex County, Massachusetts, United States. Chelmsford was incorporated in May 1655 by an act of the Massachusetts General Court. When Chelmsford was incorporated, its local economy was fueled by lumber mills, ...
, and studied law.Nesmith, pp. 26, 33 In 1863, he sought to enlist in the Union Army, but was rejected on account of poor health. He instead secured a civilian job work as a commissary for the army at
New Bern, North Carolina New Bern, formerly Newbern, is a city in Craven County, North Carolina, United States, and its county seat. It had a population of 31,291 at the 2020 United States census, 2020 census. It is located at the confluence of the Neuse River, Neuse a ...
. There he contracted
malaria Malaria is a Mosquito-borne disease, mosquito-borne infectious disease that affects vertebrates and ''Anopheles'' mosquitoes. Human malaria causes Signs and symptoms, symptoms that typically include fever, Fatigue (medical), fatigue, vomitin ...
, and was sent home in April 1864. He resumed his study of the law, was admitted to the bar in Lowell in 1865. On October 1, 1872, Greenhalge married Isabella (or Isabel) Nesmith, the daughter of John Nesmith, Lieutenant Governor of Massachusetts during the war. They had three children: Nesmith Greenhalge (1873–1874), Frederic B. Greenhalge (1875–?), and Harriet Nesmith Greenhalge (1878–?).


Political career

Greenhalge served on Lowell's common council in 1868 and 1869. He then became a member of the school committee in 1871, holding that post until 1873. In addition to his legal practice, he also served as a judge in the Lowell Police Court from 1874 to 1884. He was politically a reform-oriented Republican, but supported
Horace Greeley Horace Greeley (February 3, 1811 – November 29, 1872) was an American newspaper editor and publisher who was the founder and newspaper editor, editor of the ''New-York Tribune''. Long active in politics, he served briefly as a congres ...
in the 1872 presidential election. That year, he also ran unsuccessfully for the
Massachusetts Senate The Massachusetts Senate is the upper house of the Massachusetts General Court, the bicameral state legislature of the Commonwealth of Massachusetts. The Senate comprises 40 elected members from 40 single-member senatorial districts in the st ...
as a Democrat. Greenhalge was elected mayor of Lowell in 1880 and 1881 and was an unsuccessful candidate for election to the
Massachusetts Senate The Massachusetts Senate is the upper house of the Massachusetts General Court, the bicameral state legislature of the Commonwealth of Massachusetts. The Senate comprises 40 elected members from 40 single-member senatorial districts in the st ...
in 1881. He was a delegate to the
Republican National Convention The Republican National Convention (RNC) is a series of presidential nominating conventions held every four years since 1856 by the Republican Party in the United States. They are administered by the Republican National Committee. The goal o ...
in 1884 and a member of the
Massachusetts House of Representatives The Massachusetts House of Representatives is the lower house of the Massachusetts General Court, the State legislature (United States), state legislature of Massachusetts. It is composed of 160 members elected from 14 counties each divided into ...
in 1885 but was unsuccessful in his bid for reelection. He became city solicitor in 1888, practicing law in
Middlesex Middlesex (; abbreviation: Middx) is a Historic counties of England, former county in South East England, now mainly within Greater London. Its boundaries largely followed three rivers: the River Thames, Thames in the south, the River Lea, Le ...
and other counties. He was elected as a Republican to the Fifty-first Congress, serving from March 4, 1889, to March 3, 1891, but failed in 1890 to be re-elected to Congress, a casualty of that year's Democratic landslide.Hart, p. 5:172 In 1893, Greenhalge ran for
Governor of Massachusetts The governor of the Commonwealth of Massachusetts is the head of government of the Commonwealth (U.S. state), Commonwealth of Massachusetts. The governor is the chief executive, head of the state cabinet and the commander-in-chief of the commonw ...
. He was opposed for the Republican nomination by Albert E. Pillsbury, a member of the reform-oriented
Mugwump The Mugwumps were History of the Republican Party (United States), Republican political activists in the United States who were intensely opposed to political corruption. They were never formally organized. They famously Party switching, swit ...
wing of the party. Pillsbury was opposed by the powerful Senator-elect
Henry Cabot Lodge Henry Cabot Lodge (May 12, 1850November 9, 1924) was an American politician, historian, lawyer, and statesman from Massachusetts. A member of the History of the Republican Party (United States), Republican Party, he served in the United States ...
, and Greenhalge was chosen as a relatively safe candidate against the Democrat John E. Russell. Russell was not as popular as the outgoing Democratic governor William E. Russell (no relation), and the Democrats were further hurt by the start of the
Panic of 1893 The Panic of 1893 was an economic depression in the United States. It began in February 1893 and officially ended eight months later. The Panic of 1896 followed. It was the most serious economic depression in history until the Great Depression of ...
. Greenhalge won an easy victory. He was the state's first foreign-born governor. Greenhalge served in the office from January 1894, winning reelection until his death in 1896. While governor, the Commonwealth paid off its last public debt and he proclaimed the first
Patriots' Day Patriots' Day (Patriot's Day in Maine) is an annual event, formalized as a legal holiday or a special observance day in seven U.S. states, commemorating the battles of Lexington, Concord, and Menotomy, the inaugural battles of the America ...
, ending the 200-year-old Fast Day celebration in Massachusetts.Hart, pp. 5:172-173 Perhaps his greatest test in office came in February 1894 when an
angry mob Mobbing, as a sociological term, refers either to bullying in any context, or specifically to that within the workplace, especially when perpetrated by a group rather than an individual. Psychological and health effects Victims of workplace mo ...
of 5,000 gathered in front of the State House to demand unemployment subsidies; he came out of his office to address them and promise them relief, whereupon their anger subsided. Greenhalge fell ill with kidney disease early into his third term as governor, and died in office on March 5, 1896;Beauchesne, p. 538 businesses and schools closed in his honor. At his funeral Senator
Henry Cabot Lodge Henry Cabot Lodge (May 12, 1850November 9, 1924) was an American politician, historian, lawyer, and statesman from Massachusetts. A member of the History of the Republican Party (United States), Republican Party, he served in the United States ...
and Harvard President Charles William Eliot served as pallbearers; he is buried in Lowell Cemetery.


See also

*
List of U.S. state governors born outside the United States In total, 72 Governor (United States), governors of U.S. states have been born outside the current territory of the United States. Joe Lombardo of Nevada, born in Japan, is the only List of current United States governors, current governor ...


Notes


Sources

* * * (five volume history of Massachusetts until the early 20th century) *


External links

{{DEFAULTSORT:Greenhalge, Frederic T. Republican Party governors of Massachusetts English emigrants to the United States Harvard College alumni 1842 births 1896 deaths People from Clitheroe Mayors of Lowell, Massachusetts Republican Party members of the United States House of Representatives from Massachusetts Politicians from Lowell, Massachusetts 19th-century members of the United States House of Representatives 19th-century members of the Massachusetts General Court Lawyers from Lowell, Massachusetts Burials at Lowell Cemetery (Lowell, Massachusetts)