Gideon Tabor Stewart (August 7, 1824 – June 10, 1909) was an American lawyer and politician who served as the Prohibition Party's vice presidential nominee in 1876. He was elected three times as grand worthy chief templar of the

Good Templars The International Organisation of Good Templars (IOGT; founded as the Independent Order of Good Templars), whose international body is known as Movendi International, is a fraternal organization which is part of the temperance movement, promoting ...

of Ohio.

Early life and education

Stewart was born on August 7, 1824, in

Johnstown, New York Johnstown is a city in and the county seat of Fulton County in the U.S. state of New York. The city was named after its colonial founder, Sir William Johnson, Superintendent of Indian Affairs for Britain in the Province of New York and a major ...

, to Thomas and Elizabeth Ferguson Stewart. He studied at

Oberlin College Oberlin College is a Private university, private Liberal arts colleges in the United States, liberal arts college and conservatory of music in Oberlin, Ohio, United States. Founded in 1833, it is the oldest Mixed-sex education, coeducational lib ...

, but left before graduating to study law in Norwalk, Ohio. He later studied under

Noah Haynes Swayne Noah Haynes Swayne (December 7, 1804 – June 8, 1884) was an American jurist and politician. He was the first Republican appointed as a justice to the United States Supreme Court. Early life Swayne was born in Frederick County, Virginia in th ...

in Columbus, Ohio, for more than a year, and spent two years in

Florida Florida ( ; ) is a U.S. state, state in the Southeastern United States, Southeastern region of the United States. It borders the Gulf of Mexico to the west, Alabama to the northwest, Georgia (U.S. state), Georgia to the north, the Atlantic ...

with his brother, before returning to Norwalk, where he was admitted to the bar in 1846. From 1850 to 1856 he served as auditor of

Huron County, Ohio Huron County ( ) is a county located in the U.S. state of Ohio. As of the 2020 census, the population was 58,565. Its county seat is Norwalk. The county was created in 1809 and later organized in 1815. Huron County is included in the Norwal ...

Career

During 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 ...

he published Union newspapers in Iowa and then Toledo, Ohio, before returning to law practice in Norwalk in 1866. Throughout the 1850s, he attempted to organize a permanent prohibition party and in 1869 a convention was held, with Stewart as one of the delegates, that established the national

Prohibition Party The Prohibition Party (PRO) is a Political parties in the United States, political party in the United States known for its historic opposition to the sale or consumption of alcoholic beverages and as an integral part of the temperance movemen ...

and he was selected as the national secretary. Afterward, he served as the party candidate three times for governor of Ohio, seven times for judge on that state's Supreme Court, once for circuit court judge, and once for congress. During the 1876 presidential election, he received three delegate votes for the Prohibition presidential nomination and was later given the vice presidential nomination to serve alongside

Green Clay Smith Green Clay Smith (July 4, 1826 – June 29, 1895) was a United States soldier and politician. Elected to the Kentucky state house before the American Civil War, he was commissioned as a Union officer when he volunteered, advancing to the rank o ...

and received 9,737 votes. In 1880, he was selected as the national chairman of the Prohibition party. During the

1892 presidential election Year 189 ( CLXXXIX) was a common year starting on Wednesday of the Julian calendar. At the time, it was known as the Year of the Consulship of Silanus and Silanus (or, less frequently, year 942 ''Ab urbe condita''). The denomination 189 for th ...

he ran for the Prohibition presidential nomination, but was defeated by

John Bidwell John Bidwell (August 5, 1819 – April 4, 1900), known in Spanish as Don Juan Bidwell, was an American pioneer, politician, and soldier. Bidwell is known as the founder of the city of Chico, California. Born in New York, he emigrated at the age ...

with 590 delegates to 179 delegates.

Personal life

In 1857, he married Abby Newell Simmons and later had four children with her. He died at his home in

Pasadena, California Pasadena ( ) is a city in Los Angeles County, California, United States, northeast of downtown Los Angeles. It is the most populous city and the primary cultural center of the San Gabriel Valley. Old Pasadena is the city's original commerci ...

, from heart failure, on June 10, 1909, aged 85.

Electoral history

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Stewart, Gideon T. 1824 births 1909 deaths 1876 United States vice-presidential candidates Activists from Ohio American newspaper editors American temperance activists County officials in Ohio Iowa Republicans Journalists from Ohio Ohio lawyers Ohio Prohibitionists Oberlin College alumni Ohio Republicans Ohio Whigs People from Johnstown, New York People from Norwalk, Ohio Prohibition Party (United States) vice presidential nominees