Horace French Graham (February 7, 1862November 23, 1941) was an American politician who served as the 56th

governor of Vermont The governor of Vermont is the head of government of the U.S. state of Vermont. The officeholder is elected in even-numbered years by direct voting for a term of two years. Vermont and bordering New Hampshire are the only states to hold guberna ...

from 1917 to 1919.

Early life

Graham was born in

Brooklyn Brooklyn is a Boroughs of New York City, borough of New York City located at the westernmost end of Long Island in the New York (state), State of New York. Formerly an independent city, the borough is coextensive with Kings County, one of twelv ...

New York New York most commonly refers to: * New York (state), a state in the northeastern United States * New York City, the most populous city in the United States, located in the state of New York New York may also refer to: Places United Kingdom * ...

, the son of Samuel Hallett Graham and Lucy Fairbanks (Swett) Graham. He received his early education in

Craftsbury, Vermont Craftsbury is a town in Orleans County, Vermont, United States. The population was 1,343 at the 2020 census. The town includes the unincorporated villages of Craftsbury, Craftsbury Common, Mill Village, and East Craftsbury. History The state ...

, and was a graduate of Craftsbury Academy. He graduated from the College of the City of New York (now

New York University New York University (NYU) is a private university, private research university in New York City, New York, United States. Chartered in 1831 by the New York State Legislature, NYU was founded in 1832 by Albert Gallatin as a Nondenominational ...

) in 1882. He received his law degree from

Columbia Law School Columbia Law School (CLS) is the Law school in the United States, law school of Columbia University, a Private university, private Ivy League university in New York City. The school was founded in 1858 as the Columbia College Law School. The un ...

in 1888 and became an attorney in Craftsbury. Graham was a member of the

Phi Gamma Delta Phi Gamma Delta (), commonly known as Phi Gam and sometimes written as FIJI, is a North American social fraternity with 139 active chapters and 13 colonies across the United States and Canada. It was founded at Jefferson College, Pennsylvania ...

fraternity.

Early political career

A Republican, he served as Craftsbury's

Town Meeting Town meeting, also known as an "open town meeting", is a form of local government in which eligible town residents can directly participate in an assembly which determines the governance of their town. Unlike representative town meeting where ...

Moderator from 1902 to 1932, and in the

Vermont House of Representatives The Vermont House of Representatives is the lower house of the Vermont General Assembly, the state legislature of the U.S. state of Vermont. The House comprises 150 members, with each member representing around 4,100 citizens. Representatives a ...

in 1892 and 1900. He was Orleans County

State's Attorney In the United States, a district attorney (DA), county attorney, county prosecutor, state attorney, state's attorney, prosecuting attorney, commonwealth's attorney, or solicitor is the chief prosecutor or chief law enforcement officer represen ...

from 1898 to 1902, and a Republican

Presidential elector In the United States, the Electoral College is the group of presidential electors that is formed every four years for the sole purpose of voting for the president and vice president in the presidential election. This process is described in ...

in 1900. Graham was Vermont's Auditor from 1902 to 1916, and a member of the state Education Commission in 1913.

Election as Governor

In 1916 Graham was the successful candidate for the Republican nomination for Governor. In a state where only Republicans won statewide office from the 1850s to the 1960s, he easily won the

general election A general election is an electoral process to choose most or all members of a governing body at the same time. They are distinct from By-election, by-elections, which fill individual seats that have become vacant between general elections. Gener ...

. He served from 1917 to 1919, the one term then available to Vermont Republicans under the "Mountain Rule." Graham's governorship was notable for his advocacy of women's suffrage in local elections, and for his efforts to mobilize the

Vermont National Guard The Vermont National Guard is composed of the Vermont Army National Guard and the Vermont Air National Guard. Together, they are collectively known as the Green Mountain Boys. Both units use the original Revolutionary War-era Flag of the Green Mo ...

and other state resources for

World War I World War I or the First World War (28 July 1914 – 11 November 1918), also known as the Great War, was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War I, Allies (or Entente) and the Central Powers. Fighting to ...

Charges of embezzlement

While Graham was governor, an investigation revealed that a large sum of state money (nearly $25,000, or $450,000 in 2019) was unaccounted for during his term as Auditor. Graham repaid the missing funds, but was charged with embezzlement and convicted at trial. He was then pardoned by the new Governor, Percival Clement, who lauded Graham's integrity (his nickname was "Honest Horace") and efforts as Governor during

. Graham always maintained his innocence, but stated that since the loss took place while he was Auditor, he felt personally obligated to reimburse the state for the missing money.

Post gubernatorial career

His reputation for integrity was largely undamaged, and he served in the Vermont House again from 1923 to 1925, and also took part in revising Vermont's Statutes in 1933.

Death and burial

Graham died in Craftsbury on November 23, 1941. He was buried at Craftsbury Common Cemetery.

Personal

Graham was a lifelong bachelor and lived with his sister Isabel.1930 U.S. Census entry, Horace F. Graham family

References

External resources

Horace French Graham biography
accessed November 19, 2011

VT Digger

* * * * {{DEFAULTSORT:Graham, Horace F. 1862 births 1941 deaths People from Craftsbury, Vermont New York University alumni Columbia Law School alumni Vermont lawyers State's attorneys in Vermont Republican Party governors of Vermont State auditors of Vermont Republican Party members of the Vermont House of Representatives Vermont politicians convicted of crimes Recipients of American gubernatorial pardons 19th-century members of the Vermont General Assembly 20th-century members of the Vermont General Assembly