Hugh Ellsworth Rodham (April 2, 1911 – April 7, 1993) was an American businessman. He was the father of

Hillary Clinton Hillary Diane Rodham Clinton ( Rodham; born October 26, 1947) is an American politician, lawyer and diplomat. She was the 67th United States secretary of state in the administration of Barack Obama from 2009 to 2013, a U.S. senator represent ...

Early life and education

Hugh Ellsworth Rodham was born on April 2, 1911, in

Scranton, Pennsylvania Scranton is a city in and the county seat of Lackawanna County, Pennsylvania, United States. With a population of 76,328 as of the 2020 United States census, 2020 census, Scranton is the most populous city in Northeastern Pennsylvania and the ...

, the son of Hugh Rodham (1879–1965) and Hannah Jones (1882–1952). His parents were from the

United Kingdom The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, commonly known as the United Kingdom (UK) or Britain, is a country in Northwestern Europe, off the coast of European mainland, the continental mainland. It comprises England, Scotlan ...

– his father emigrated from

Oxhill, County Durham Oxhill is a small village in the civil parish of Stanley, County Durham, Stanley, in County Durham, England. It is located to the west of Stanley, on the bottom of the hill which leads up to New Kyo and Annfield Plain to its east. Down the hill ...

, England, at a young age with his family, he being the son of a

coal miner Coal mining is the process of extracting coal from the ground or from a mine. Coal is valued for its energy content and since the 1880s has been widely used to generate electricity. Steel and cement industries use coal as a fuel for extrac ...

, while his mother was born in

Pennsylvania Pennsylvania, officially the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, is a U.S. state, state spanning the Mid-Atlantic (United States), Mid-Atlantic, Northeastern United States, Northeastern, Appalachian, and Great Lakes region, Great Lakes regions o ...

, to immigrant parents from

Wales Wales ( ) is a Countries of the United Kingdom, country that is part of the United Kingdom. It is bordered by the Irish Sea to the north and west, England to the England–Wales border, east, the Bristol Channel to the south, and the Celtic ...

, one of whom was from

Merthyr Tydfil Merthyr Tydfil () is the main town in Merthyr Tydfil County Borough, Wales, administered by Merthyr Tydfil County Borough Council. It is about north of Cardiff. Often called just Merthyr, it is said to be named after Tydfil, daughter of K ...

; she was also descended from

parents.Clinton, Hillary Rodham. ''

Living History Living history is an activity that incorporates historical tools, activities and dress into an interactive presentation that seeks to give observers and participants a sense of stepping back in time. Although it does not necessarily seek to ree ...

''. Simon & Schuster, 2003. . pp. 4–9. Rodham attended

Pennsylvania State University The Pennsylvania State University (Penn State or PSU) is a Public university, public Commonwealth System of Higher Education, state-related Land-grant university, land-grant research university with campuses and facilities throughout Pennsyl ...

and was a third-string

tight end The tight end (TE) is an offense (sports), offensive position in American football, arena football, and Canadian football. It is a hybrid that combines the characteristics and roles of both an offensive lineman and a receiver (football), receiv ...

for the

Penn State Nittany Lions football The Penn State Nittany Lions team represents the Pennsylvania State University in college football. Penn State Nittany Lions, The Nittany Lions compete in the National Collegiate Athletic Association, NCAA NCAA Division I Football Bowl Subdivisi ...

team. pp. 16–18. He joined the

Delta Upsilon Delta Upsilon (), commonly known as DU, is a collegiate men's fraternity founded on November 4, 1834, at Williams College in Williamstown, Massachusetts. It is the sixth-oldest, all-male, college Greek-letter organization founded in North America ...

. He graduated with a

Bachelor of Science A Bachelor of Science (BS, BSc, B.S., B.Sc., SB, or ScB; from the Latin ') is a bachelor's degree that is awarded for programs that generally last three to five years. The first university to admit a student to the degree of Bachelor of Scienc ...

degree in

physical education Physical education is an academic subject taught in schools worldwide, encompassing Primary education, primary, Secondary education, secondary, and sometimes tertiary education. It is often referred to as Phys. Ed. or PE, and in the United Stat ...

from the College of Education in 1935, at the height of the

Great Depression The Great Depression was a severe global economic downturn from 1929 to 1939. The period was characterized by high rates of unemployment and poverty, drastic reductions in industrial production and international trade, and widespread bank and ...

Career

Rodham briefly worked for his mother's employer,

Scranton Lace Company The Scranton Lace Company, also known as the Scranton Lace Curtain Company and Scranton Lace Curtain Manufacturing Company, was an American lace manufacturer in Scranton, Pennsylvania. History The company was established by the Scranton Board of ...

, then freighthopped to

Chicago Chicago is the List of municipalities in Illinois, most populous city in the U.S. state of Illinois and in the Midwestern United States. With a population of 2,746,388, as of the 2020 United States census, 2020 census, it is the List of Unite ...

without telling his parents. Rodham found work there selling

drapery Drapery is a general word referring to cloths or textiles (Old French , from Late Latin">-4; we might wonder whether there's a point at which it's appropriate to talk of the beginnings of French, that is, when it wa ... , from Late Latin ). It ma ...

fabric Textile is an umbrella term that includes various fiber-based materials, including fibers, yarns, filaments, threads, and different types of fabric. At first, the word "textiles" only referred to woven fabrics. However, weaving is no ...

s around the

Midwest The Midwestern United States (also referred to as the Midwest, the Heartland or the American Midwest) is one of the four census regions defined by the United States Census Bureau. It occupies the northern central part of the United States. It ...

, sending the money he made back home. In

World War II World War II or the Second World War (1 September 1939 – 2 September 1945) was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War II, Allies and the Axis powers. World War II by country, Nearly all of the wo ...

, Rodham served in the

United States Navy The United States Navy (USN) is the naval warfare, maritime military branch, service branch of the United States Department of Defense. It is the world's most powerful navy with the largest Displacement (ship), displacement, at 4.5 millio ...

. He became a

chief petty officer A chief petty officer (CPO) is a senior non-commissioned officer in many navies and coast guards, usually above petty officer. By country Australia "Chief Petty Officer" is the second highest non-commissioned rank in the Royal Australian Navy ...

stationed at the

Great Lakes Naval Station Naval Station Great Lakes (NAVSTA Great Lakes) is the home of the United States Navy's only current boot camp, located near North Chicago, in Lake County, Illinois, along Lake Michigan. Important tenant commands include the Recruit Training C ...

, performing training duties for sailors headed for the

Pacific Ocean theater of World War II The Pacific Ocean theater of World War II was a major theater of the Pacific War, the war between the Allies and the Empire of Japan. It included the U.S. Pacific Ocean Areas (command). which included most of the Pacific Ocean and its isl ...

. After the war, he established a successful career in the

textile Textile is an Hyponymy and hypernymy, umbrella term that includes various Fiber, fiber-based materials, including fibers, yarns, Staple (textiles)#Filament fiber, filaments, Thread (yarn), threads, and different types of #Fabric, fabric. ...

supply industry, starting with Rodrik Fabrics, a drapery fabric business located in Chicago's famous

Merchandise Mart The Merchandise Mart (or the Merch Mart, or the Mart) is a commercial building in Chicago Loop, downtown Chicago, Illinois. When it opened in 1930, it was the List of largest buildings, world's largest building, with of floor space. The Art De ...

building. His company made

draperies Drapery is a general word referring to cloths or textiles (Old French , from Late Latin">-4; we might wonder whether there's a point at which it's appropriate to talk of the beginnings of French, that is, when it wa ... , from Late Latin ). It ma ...

and

window shade A window blind is a type of window covering. There are many different kinds of window blinds which use a variety of control systems. A typical window blind is made up of several long horizontal or vertical slats of various types of hard mate ...

s; customers included offices, hotels, airlines, and theaters. He later opened a fabric print plant building on the North Side. During the 1940s, Rodham and his wife Dorothy lived in the Edgewater neighborhood of Chicago. Rodham entered politics once. Hoping to work his way into favor with the

Cook County Democratic Party The Cook County Democratic Party is an American county-level political party organization which represents voters in 50 wards in the city of Chicago and 30 suburban townships of Cook County. The organization has dominated Chicago politics (and ...

political machine In the politics of representative democracies, a political machine is a party organization that recruits its members by the use of tangible incentives (such as money or political jobs) and that is characterized by a high degree of leadership c ...

in order to capitalize on a downtown investment he had made, he ran for

Chicago alderman The Chicago City Council is the legislative branch of the government of the City of Chicago in Illinois. It consists of 50 alderpersons elected from 50 wards to serve four-year terms. The council is called into session regularly, usually monthly ...

as a Democratic-leaning

independent Independent or Independents may refer to: Arts, entertainment, and media Artist groups * Independents (artist group), a group of modernist painters based in Pennsylvania, United States * Independentes (English: Independents), a Portuguese artist ...

in 1947. The contest, held in Chicago's 49th Ward, was won by Frank Keenan, a Democratic ward committeeman running on the regular Democratic line, with 17,073 votes; a Republican, Joseph Reubens, finished second with 5,509 votes. Rodham finished fifth out of eight candidates with only 382 votes, or 1.5 percent of the total votes cast. See also According to some family members, this episode led to his strong dislike of the Democratic Party for the rest of his life. Rodham was a staunch supporter of

Barry Goldwater Barry Morris Goldwater (January 2, 1909 – May 29, 1998) was an American politician and major general in the United States Air Force, Air Force Reserve who served as a United States senator from 1953 to 1965 and 1969 to 1987, and was the Re ...

's 1964 presidential campaign and remained a committed Republican until his death. Even after his daughter married Democrat

Bill Clinton William Jefferson Clinton (né Blythe III; born August 19, 1946) is an American politician and lawyer who was the 42nd president of the United States from 1993 to 2001. A member of the Democratic Party (United States), Democratic Party, ...

, he (according to Bill Clinton) "never gave up hope that his son-in-law would join him in the Republican Party and support a cut in the

capital gains tax A capital gains tax (CGT) is the tax on profits realized on the sale of a non-inventory asset. The most common capital gains are realized from the sale of stocks, bonds, precious metals, real estate, and property. In South Africa, capital g ...

."The Rodham Family Biography
AllPolitics, CNN.com, 1996. In late 1992, following son-in-law Bill Clinton's election as president, Rodham made a cameo appearance on the television comedy ''

Hearts Afire ''Hearts Afire'' is an American television sitcom created by Linda Bloodworth-Thomason, starring John Ritter and Markie Post, that aired on CBS from September 14, 1992, to February 1, 1995. The series' title is taken from a line in the Earth, ...

'', whose producers were friends of the Clintons.

Personal life

In 1937, while Rodham was making a sales call at a textile company, he met Dorothy Emma Howell (1919–2011), who was applying for a job at that company. After a lengthy courtship, they married in early 1942. The Rodhams had three children:

Hillary Hillary Diane Rodham Clinton ( Rodham; born October 26, 1947) is an American politician, lawyer and diplomat. She was the 67th United States secretary of state in the administration of Barack Obama from 2009 to 2013, a U.S. senator represent ...

(born 1947),

Hugh Hugh is the English-language variant of the masculine given name , itself the Old French variant of '' Hugo (name)">Hugo'', a short form of Continental Germanic Germanic name">given names beginning in the element "mind, spirit" (Old English ). ...

(born 1950), and

Tony Tony may refer to: People and fictional characters * Tony the Tiger, cartoon mascot for Frosted Flakes cereal * Tony (given name), including a list of people and fictional characters * Gregory Tony (born 1978), American law enforcement officer * ...

(1954–2019). In 1950, they moved to the more affluent Chicago suburb of

Park Ridge, Illinois Park Ridge is a city in Cook County, Illinois, United States, and a suburb of Chicago. Per the 2020 United States census, 2020 census, the population was 39,656. It is located north of downtown Chicago. It is close to O'Hare International Airpo ...

. The family still maintained ties to Scranton: all three children were christened there, and they spent summers in a rural region that overlooks

Lake Winola Lake Winola is a public glacial lake in Overfield Township, Wyoming County, Pennsylvania, United States The United States of America (USA), also known as the United States (U.S.) or America, is a country primarily located in North Ameri ...

, located in Overfield Township in the

Endless Mountains The Endless Mountains is a geographical, geological, and cultural region in Northeastern Pennsylvania. The Endless Mountains region includes Bradford County, Pennsylvania, Bradford, Sullivan County, Pennsylvania, Sullivan, Susquehanna County, Pe ...

area of Pennsylvania. staying in a cottage that in 1921, Hugh and his father had built themselves.

Death

Hugh Rodham died in

Little Rock, Arkansas Little Rock is the List of capitals in the United States, capital and List of municipalities in Arkansas, most populous city of the U.S. state of Arkansas. The city's population was 202,591 as of the 2020 census. The six-county Central Arkan ...

, on Wednesday, April 7, 1993, five days after his 82nd birthday, three weeks after suffering a stroke, and less than three months after his son-in-law Bill Clinton's inauguration as 42nd President of the United States. Following a private memorial service in Little Rock attended by the Clintons, he was buried in the Washburn Street Cemetery in his native Scranton, Pennsylvania, in a private funeral also attended by the Clinton family.

References

External links

Hugh E. Rodham Memorial
at Find A Grave {{DEFAULTSORT:Rodham, Hugh E. 1911 births 1993 deaths American people of English descent American people of Welsh descent American textile industry businesspeople Arkansas Republicans Businesspeople from Pennsylvania Illinois Republicans Military personnel from Pennsylvania Penn State Nittany Lions football players Pennsylvania Republicans Penn State College of Education alumni Politicians from Little Rock, Arkansas People from Park Ridge, Illinois Players of American football from Pennsylvania Sportspeople from Little Rock, Arkansas Sportspeople from Scranton, Pennsylvania United States Navy chiefs Rodham family United States Navy personnel of World War II 20th-century Illinois politicians Delta Upsilon members