Justin Rice Whiting (February 18, 1847 – January 31, 1903) was a politician and businessman from the

U.S. state In the United States, a state is a constituent political entity, of which there are 50. Bound together in a political union, each state holds governmental jurisdiction over a separate and defined geographic territory where it shares its so ...

Michigan Michigan ( ) is a peninsular U.S. state, state in the Great Lakes region, Great Lakes region of the Upper Midwest, Upper Midwestern United States. It shares water and land boundaries with Minnesota to the northwest, Wisconsin to the west, ...

. Whiting was born in

Bath, New York Bath is a town in Steuben County, New York, United States, with an area of 96.3 square miles (249 km2) and a population of 11,426 in 2020. Its largest settlement is the Village of Bath, which has an area of 2.9 sq mi (7.5 km2) and a ...

, and moved to Michigan in 1849 with his parents, who settled in St. Clair, Michigan. He attended the public schools and the

University of Michigan The University of Michigan (U-M, U of M, or Michigan) is a public university, public research university in Ann Arbor, Michigan, United States. Founded in 1817, it is the oldest institution of higher education in the state. The University of Mi ...

Ann Arbor Ann Arbor is a city in Washtenaw County, Michigan, United States, and its county seat. The 2020 United States census, 2020 census recorded its population to be 123,851, making it the List of municipalities in Michigan, fifth-most populous cit ...

from 1863 to 1865. He worked as a merchant, manufacturer and ran several businesses, among them, a power company. Whiting was elected mayor of St. Clair in 1879 and represented the 17th District in the

Michigan State Senate The Michigan Senate is the upper house of the Michigan Legislature. Along with the Michigan House of Representatives, it composes the state legislature, which has powers, roles and duties defined by Article IV of the Constitution of Michigan, Mi ...

in 1882. He was elected as a

Democrat Democrat, Democrats, or Democratic may refer to: Politics *A proponent of democracy, or democratic government; a form of government involving rule by the people. *A member of a Democratic Party: **Democratic Party (Cyprus) (DCY) **Democratic Part ...

from

Michigan's 7th congressional district Michigan's 7th congressional district is a United States congressional district in Southern Michigan and portions of Central Michigan. The current district, drawn in 2022, centers around Lansing, Michigan, Lansing, Michigan's state capital, and ...

to the

50th United States Congress The 50th United States Congress was a meeting of the legislative branch of the United States federal government, consisting of the United States Senate and the United States House of Representatives. It met in Washington, D.C., from March 4, 1887 ...

and reelected to the 51st, 52nd, and

53rd 53 may refer to: * 53 (number) * one of the years 53 BC, AD 53, 1953, 2053 * FiftyThree, an American privately held technology company that specializes in tools for mobile creation and visual thinking * 53rd Regiment Alabama Cavalry * 53rd Regiment ...

Congresses, serving from March 4, 1887 until March 3, 1895. After leaving Congress, Whiting resumed his former business pursuits in St. Clair. He was an unsuccessful Fusion candidate for

Governor of Michigan The governor of Michigan is the head of government of the U.S. state of Michigan. The current governor is Gretchen Whitmer, a member of the Democratic Party, who was inaugurated on January 1, 2019, as the state's 49th governor. She was re-ele ...

in 1898, losing to incumbent Republican

Hazen S. Pingree Hazen Stuart Pingree (August 30, 1840 – June 18, 1901) was an American politician and businessman who was the 43rd mayor of Detroit from 1889 to 1897 and the 24th governor of Michigan from 1897 to 1901. A Yankee who migrated from New England, h ...

. He also ran for election in 1900 to the 57th Congress, losing to incumbent Republican

Edgar Weeks Edgar Weeks (August 3, 1839 – December 17, 1904) was a military officer, judge and politician from the U.S. state of Michigan. Biography Weeks was born in Mount Clemens, Michigan, where he attended the public schools and learned the printi ...

. Whiting married Emily F. Owen, with whom he had 10 children. Their son, also named Justin Rice Whiting (1886–1965), was president of the

Consumers Power Company Consumers Energy is an investor owned utility that provides natural gas and electricity to 6.7 million of Michigan's 10 million residents. It serves customers in all 68 of the state's Lower Peninsula of Michigan, Lower Peninsula counties. It is ...

from 1949 to 1959. Whiting also served as chairman of the Democratic State central committee. He died in St. Clair and is interred there at Hillside Cemetery.

References

External links

The Political Graveyard
{{DEFAULTSORT:Whiting, Justin R. 1847 births 1903 deaths Democratic Party members of the United States House of Representatives from Michigan Mayors of places in Michigan Michigan Silverites Democratic Party Michigan state senators People from Bath, New York People from St. Clair, Michigan University of Michigan alumni Methodists from Michigan 19th-century members of the Michigan Legislature 19th-century members of the United States House of Representatives

See also

References

External links