John Robert Procter
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John Robert Procter (March 16, 1844 – December 12, 1903) was an American
geologist A geologist is a scientist who studies the structure, composition, and History of Earth, history of Earth. Geologists incorporate techniques from physics, chemistry, biology, mathematics, and geography to perform research in the Field research, ...
and civil service reformer. He was the
Kentucky Kentucky (, ), officially the Commonwealth of Kentucky, is a landlocked U.S. state, state in the Southeastern United States, Southeastern region of the United States. It borders Illinois, Indiana, and Ohio to the north, West Virginia to the ...
state geologist from 1880 to 1893, and president of the
United States Civil Service Commission The United States Civil Service Commission was a government agency of the federal government of the United States. It was created to select employees of federal government on merit rather than relationships. In 1979, it was dissolved as part of ...
from 1893 to 1903.


Biography

John Robert Procter was born in
Mason County, Kentucky Mason County is a county located in the U.S. state of Kentucky. As of the 2020 census, the population was 17,120. Its county seat is Maysville. The county was created from Bourbon County, Virginia in 1788 and named for George Mason, a Vir ...
on March 16, 1844. His mother died when he was very young, and he was brought up by an aunt. When he showed an inclination to enlist in the
Confederate Army The Confederate States Army (CSA), also called the Confederate army or the Southern army, was the military land force of the Confederate States of America (commonly referred to as the Confederacy) during the American Civil War (1861–1865), fi ...
, his aunt sent him to the
University of Pennsylvania The University of Pennsylvania (Penn or UPenn) is a Private university, private Ivy League research university in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, United States. One of nine colonial colleges, it was chartered in 1755 through the efforts of f ...
to prevent this. He spent freshman year in a science program there, and then left and enlisted as a Confederate in 1863. He served until the end of the
war War is an armed conflict between the armed forces of states, or between governmental forces and armed groups that are organized under a certain command structure and have the capacity to sustain military operations, or between such organi ...
. At the close of the war, he returned to his home farm in Kentucky, where he remained until 1873. In 1873 he met Kentucky state geologist Nathaniel Shaler, also a
Harvard Harvard University is a private Ivy League research university in Cambridge, Massachusetts, United States. Founded in 1636 and named for its first benefactor, the Puritan clergyman John Harvard, it is the oldest institution of higher lear ...
professor. Procter became assistant in the
Kentucky Geological Survey The Kentucky Geological Survey (KGS) is a research center of the University of Kentucky that provides information on the geology of Kentucky, but has variously over the course of its history been a state level office, or a sub-division of a state co ...
, and also studied geology during 1875 at Harvard. In 1880 he succeeded Shaler as state geologist. As state geologist, he was brought into contact with the
spoils system In politics and government, a spoils system (also known as a patronage system) is a practice in which a political party, after winning an election, gives government jobs to its supporters, friends (cronyism), and relatives (nepotism) as a rewar ...
, to which his opposition was so uncompromising — he refused, even at the request of members of the
state legislature A state legislature is a Legislature, legislative branch or body of a State (country subdivision), political subdivision in a Federalism, federal system. Two federations literally use the term "state legislature": * The legislative branches of ...
, to remove competent assistants for political reasons — that he finally lost his position in 1893 when the
Governor of Kentucky The governor of the Commonwealth of Kentucky is the head of government of the Commonwealth (U.S. state), Commonwealth of Kentucky. Sixty-two men and one woman have served as governor of Kentucky. The governor's term is four years in length; sinc ...
finally refused the support Procter which had received from that office in the past. Allegedly the Governor wanted to make some appointments for political and personal reasons. Procter had resisted these appointments advising that the geological survey office be closed rather than make it a machine to be used to advance political interests by letting out the offices for partisan ends. His struggle with the spoils system brought him to national attention, and in the same year, at the recommendation of
Theodore Roosevelt Theodore Roosevelt Jr. (October 27, 1858 – January 6, 1919), also known as Teddy or T.R., was the 26th president of the United States, serving from 1901 to 1909. Roosevelt previously was involved in New York (state), New York politics, incl ...
, Procter was appointed by President
Grover Cleveland Stephen Grover Cleveland (March 18, 1837June 24, 1908) was the 22nd and 24th president of the United States, serving from 1885 to 1889 and from 1893 to 1897. He was the first U.S. president to serve nonconsecutive terms and the first Hist ...
as president of the Civil Service Commission, a post which he held till his death. Procter's criticism of the spoils system was based not only on its evil moral and social effects, but also on its absurdity as a method of conducting business. He presented this view constantly and effectively. His work as president of the commission was the means of increasing the effectiveness of the
civil service The civil service is a collective term for a sector of government composed mainly of career civil service personnel hired rather than elected, whose institutional tenure typically survives transitions of political leadership. A civil service offic ...
, and of gaining for it recognition in political life. During Procter's service on the commission, the number of positions subject to the merit system increased from 43,000 to 120,000. In 1896, Procter secured the release of the positions of chief clerks and chiefs of divisions from the spoils system and had them filled by promotions or transfers from within the classified service. Procter served as a member of the Jury of Awards at the Chicago World's Fair, and was a frequent contributor to magazines and journals on geologic, economic, international and political subjects. He was a member of the Century Club of
New York City New York, often called New York City (NYC), is the most populous city in the United States, located at the southern tip of New York State on one of the world's largest natural harbors. The city comprises five boroughs, each coextensive w ...
. He died of
angina pectoris Angina, also known as angina pectoris, is chest pain or pressure, usually caused by insufficient blood flow to the heart muscle (myocardium). It is most commonly a symptom of coronary artery disease. Angina is typically the result of part ...
on December 12, 1903, while at the
Cosmos Club The Cosmos Club is a 501(c)(7) private social club in Washington, D.C., that was founded by John Wesley Powell in 1878 as a gentlemen's club for those interested in science. Among its stated goals is, "The advancement of its members in science, ...
in Washington, D.C., where he was attending the annual meeting of the
National Civil Service Reform League The National Civil Service Reform League was a non-profit organization in the United States founded in 1881 for the purpose of investigating the efficiency of the civil service. Among its founders were George William Curtis, chairman of the first Un ...
.


References


External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Procter, John Robert 1844 births 1903 deaths American geologists American activists University of Pennsylvania alumni Confederate States Army soldiers People of Kentucky in the American Civil War People from Mason County, Kentucky