Lynn Joseph Frazier (December 21, 1874January 11, 1947) was an American educator and politician who served as the 12th

governor of North Dakota The governor of North Dakota is the head of government of North Dakota and serves as the commander-in-chief of the state's North Dakota National Guard, military forces. The Constitution of North Dakota specifies that "the executive power is ves ...

from 1917 until being recalled in 1921 and later served as a

U.S. Senator The United States Senate is a chamber of the bicameral United States Congress; it is the upper house, with the U.S. House of Representatives being the lower house. Together, the Senate and House have the authority under Article One of the ...

from

North Dakota North Dakota ( ) is a U.S. state in the Upper Midwest, named after the indigenous Dakota people, Dakota and Sioux peoples. It is bordered by the Canadian provinces of Saskatchewan and Manitoba to the north and by the U.S. states of Minneso ...

from 1923 to 1941. He was the first American governor ever successfully recalled from office. The only other American governor to ever be recalled is

Gray Davis Joseph Graham "Gray" Davis Jr. (born December 26, 1942) is an American attorney and former politician who served as the 37th governor of California from 1999 until he was recalled and removed from office in 2003. He is the second state governor ...

, who was recalled in 2003.

Early life

Frazier was born in

Medford, Minnesota Medford ( ) is a city in Steele County, Minnesota, United States. The population was 1,239 at the 2010 census. History Medford was platted in 1856, and named for Medford Colling, the son of an early settler. A post office has been in operatio ...

. His family moved to North Dakota when he was six years old. He graduated from Grafton High School in 1892, and Mayville Normal School in 1895. He completed his bachelor's degree at the

University of North Dakota The University of North Dakota (UND) is a Public university, public research university in Grand Forks, North Dakota, United States. It was established by the Dakota Territory, Dakota Territorial Assembly in 1883, six years before the establishm ...

and graduated with honors. Prior to his career in state and national politics, Frazier was a farmer and school teacher. Frazier intended to become a doctor, but the unexpected deaths of his father and brother forced him to take over the family farm.

Career

After winning the Republican primary as the

Nonpartisan League The Nonpartisan League (NPL) was a left-wing political party founded in 1915 in North Dakota by Arthur C. Townley, a former organizer for the Socialist Party of America. On behalf of small farmers and merchants, the Nonpartisan League advocated ...

candidate, Frazier was elected Governor in

1916 Events Below, the events of the First World War have the "WWI" prefix. January * January 1 – The British Empire, British Royal Army Medical Corps carries out the first successful blood transfusion, using blood that has been stored ...

with 79% of the vote. Frazier was extremely popular and implemented several reforms such as the establishment of the

Bank of North Dakota The Bank of North Dakota (BND) is a State-owned enterprise, state-owned, state-run financial institution based in Bismarck, North Dakota, Bismarck, North Dakota. It is the only government-owned general-service bank in the United States. It is th ...

and the

North Dakota Mill and Elevator The North Dakota Mill and Elevator is the largest flour mill in the United States. It is located in the city of Grand Forks, North Dakota. Established by the state government when it was led by Nonpartisan League representatives, it is the only ...

, which have been a lasting legacy of the Nonpartisan League election success until today. During the 1919 national coal strike, Governor Frazier took a unique approach to the strike. He declared martial law, took over the mines with United Mine Workers of America contracts and ran them in cooperation with the union. He was re-elected twice, in

1918 The ceasefire that effectively ended the World War I, First World War took place on the eleventh hour of the eleventh day of the eleventh month of this year. Also in this year, the Spanish flu pandemic killed 50–100 million people wor ...

and

1920 Events January * January 1 ** Polish–Soviet War: The Russian Red Army increases its troops along the Polish border from 4 divisions to 20. ** Kauniainen in Finland, completely surrounded by the city of Espoo, secedes from Espoo as its ow ...

, but an economic depression hit the agricultural sector during his third term and resulted in a successful private-business-led

grassroots A grassroots movement is one that uses the people in a given district, region or community as the basis for a political or continent movement. Grassroots movements and organizations use collective action from volunteers at the local level to imp ...

movement to press for his

recall Recall may refer to: * Recall (baseball), a baseball term * Recall (bugle call), a signal to stop * Recall (information retrieval), a statistical measure * ReCALL (journal), ''ReCALL'' (journal), an academic journal about computer-assisted langua ...

. In 1921, Frazier was the first governor to be successfully removed from office.

Independent Voters Association The Independent Voters Association, or IVA, was a North Dakota, United States, political organization. It formed on May 1, 1918, at the height of the Nonpartisan League's influence on the North Dakota Republican Party. The IVA was a conservative ...

member

Ragnvald Nestos Ragnvald Anderson Nestos (April 12, 1877July 15, 1942) was a Norwegian Americans, Norwegian-American politician who served as the 13th governor of North Dakota from 1921 to 1925. Early life Ragnvold Anderson Nestos was a native of Voss, Norway. ...

was elected to his place. After the recall, Frazier was elected in

1922 Events January * January 7 – Dáil Éireann (Irish Republic), Dáil Éireann, the parliament of the Irish Republic, ratifies the Anglo-Irish Treaty by 64–57 votes. * January 10 – Arthur Griffith is elected President of Dáil Éirean ...

to the

U.S. Senate The United States Senate is a chamber of the bicameral United States Congress; it is the upper house, with the U.S. House of Representatives being the lower house. Together, the Senate and House have the authority under Article One of the ...

, again as the NPL candidate on the Republican ticket. He served until losing a bid for re-election in

1940 A calendar from 1940 according to the Gregorian calendar, factoring in the dates of Easter and related holidays, cannot be used again until the year 5280. Events Below, events related to World War II have the "WWII" prefix. January *Janu ...

, when he was unseated in the Republican primary by

William Langer William "Wild Bill" Langer (September 30, 1886November 8, 1959) was an American lawyer and politician who served as the 17th governor of North Dakota from 1932 to 1934 and the 21st governor from 1937 to 1939. His governorship was demarcated by ...

Personal life

Frazier was twice married, to Lottie J. Stafford, with whom he had five children, from November 26, 1903, until her death on January 14, 1935, and to Catherine Paulson, whom he married in 1937.

Death and legacy

Frazier died in Riverdale, Maryland, on January 11, 1947, at the age of 72. He is buried in Hoople Cemetery, Hoople, North Dakota. Governor Frazier is portrayed in the 1984 Nebraska Public TV documentary ''Plowing up a Storm''.

External links

* *
National Governors Association
, - , - , - , - , -

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Frazier, Lynn 1874 births 1947 deaths 20th-century North Dakota politicians Methodists from North Dakota Republican Party governors of North Dakota Nonpartisan League state governors of the United States Nonpartisan League United States senators People from Steele County, Minnesota People from Walsh County, North Dakota Recalled American politicians Republican Party United States senators from North Dakota University of North Dakota alumni Nonpartisan League politicians 20th-century United States senators