Marcus Lawrence Ward
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Marcus Lawrence Ward (November 9, 1812 – April 25, 1884) was an American Republican Party politician, who served as the 21st
governor of New Jersey The governor of New Jersey is the head of government of the U.S. state of New Jersey. The office of governor is an elected position with a four-year term. There is a two consecutive term limit, with no limitation on non-consecutive terms. The ...
from 1866 to 1869 and represented Essex County for one term from 1873 to 1875.


Early life

Marcus Lawrence Ward was born in
Newark, New Jersey Newark ( , ) is the List of municipalities in New Jersey, most populous City (New Jersey), city in the U.S. state of New Jersey, the county seat of Essex County, New Jersey, Essex County, and a principal city of the New York metropolitan area. ...
, on November 9, 1812, to Moses and Fanny (née Brown) Ward. His father Moses was a prosperous candle manufacturer and a descendant of John Ward, one of the founders of the city of Newark in 1666. He attended Newark's public schools and then joined his family's soap and candle making business. The business was operated by Ward's father and uncle, and Ward eventually became a partner. He was also active in other businesses, including serving as a director of the National State Bank and secretary of the Lawrence Cement and Manufacturing Company. By the 1840s, Ward's business success enabled him to concentrate much of his time and effort on civic causes and philanthropy. He was chairman of the executive committee of the New Jersey Historical Society, director of the National State Bank, and a founder of both the Newark Library Association and the New Jersey Art Union.


Civil War

By 1856, Ward became interested in the growing movement for the
abolition of slavery Abolitionism, or the abolitionist movement, is the political movement to end slavery and liberate enslaved individuals around the world. The first country to fully outlaw slavery was France in 1315, but it was later used in its colonies. T ...
, which led him to become involved in the new national Republican Party. In 1858, he traveled west to
Kansas Kansas ( ) is a landlocked U.S. state, state in the Midwestern United States, Midwestern region of the United States. It borders Nebraska to the north; Missouri to the east; Oklahoma to the south; and Colorado to the west. Kansas is named a ...
, a figurative and literal battleground between pro- and anti-slavery forces, to support the free-state cause. He soon returned to Newark, joined the Republican Party because of its anti-slavery stance, became involved in local Newark politics. He was a delegate to the
1860 Republican National Convention The 1860 Republican National Convention was a United States presidential nominating convention, presidential nominating convention that met May 16–18 in Chicago, Illinois. It was held to nominate the Republican Party (United States), Republic ...
. During the
American Civil War The American Civil War (April 12, 1861May 26, 1865; also known by Names of the American Civil War, other names) was a civil war in the United States between the Union (American Civil War), Union ("the North") and the Confederate States of A ...
, Ward became identified prominently with the Union cause, primarily as a philanthropic advocate for those serving in uniform. Ward devised and managed one of the first systems in New Jersey for enabling soldiers to set aside monthly allotments of their pay for delivery to their families and gained the nickname "the soldiers' friend." He invested personal funds to create a wartime hospital for convalescing service members, and later helped establish a soldiers' home for wounded and disabled veterans. Ward soon created an office devoted to aiding veterans, which assisted them in procuring pensions, medical care, and other benefits. Later in his career, Democratic critics and opponents would accuse Ward of making personal profit through his management of soldiers' pay, which Ward and Republicans denied.


Governor of New Jersey


1862 election

On the strength of his personal popularity and bipartisan support for his philanthropy, Ward was nominated on the National Union Party ticket for Governor in 1862, but he lost to Democrat Joel Parker. Soldiers serving in the field were unable to vote in the election, which may have cost Ward votes. Opposition to emancipation in the state may have also boosted Parker's support. During the 1864 presidential election, Ward was chairman and treasurer of the National Union Party in New Jersey.


1865 election

In the post-war environment, the atmosphere was ripe for a Republican victory. Ward stood for the Republican nomination as the representative of Newark, East Jersey, and veterans. He was opposed by Alexander G. Cattell, a wealthy grain merchant who had only recently returned to the state. At the 1865 Republican nominating convention in Trenton, there was a deadlock between the two candidates that refused to break. One strategy involved delegates working to convince influential General Hugh Judson Kilpatrick to give his support, but he refused. It was finally broken on the fourth ballot after a collection of civil war veteran delegates voted to hand the nomination to Ward. George M. Robeson, the leader of the Cattell campaign, made the nomination unanimous. In the general election, Ward defeated Theodore Runyon by a large margin bolstered by the veterans' vote.


Term in office

Ward served as Governor from 1866 to 1869. His administration was marked by active support for and involvement in the federal
Reconstruction Reconstruction may refer to: Politics, history, and sociology *Reconstruction (law), the transfer of a company's (or several companies') business to a new company *''Perestroika'' (Russian for "reconstruction"), a late 20th century Soviet Union ...
process, a marked contrast from his predecessor Joel Parker. Though the
Thirteenth Amendment to the United States Constitution The Thirteenth Amendment (Amendment XIII) to the United States Constitution abolished Slavery in the United States, slavery and involuntary servitude, except Penal labor in the United States, as punishment for a crime. The amendment was passed ...
had been ratified without New Jersey's vote, Ward made it a priority to symbolically ratify the amendment and "redeem" the state. He also led the state in ratifying the Fourteenth Amendment. On purely state affairs, Ward was convinced that active, energetic government could produce wise social and economic policies. His administration focused on reforming the state prison, establishing a state reform school, funding public education and instituting a statewide uniform health code. He also called for state action in riparian water rights, asking that owners of underwater land compensate the state for the right to build improvements. Ward's governorship was marked by division within the Republican Party, leading to the downfall of the party in the state. In an effort to stave off criticism from Cattell, he appointed George Robeson Attorney General and attempted to steer a middle course, but was criticized for favoring Newark Republicans, such as in his appointment of Frederick T. Frelinghuysen to the U.S. Senate. In his early days in office, Ward confidently predicted New Jersey was now "firmly fixed among the Republican states," but the state would not elect another Republican governor until 1895. While in office, Ward also served as chairman of the
Republican National Committee The Republican National Committee (RNC) is the primary committee of the Republican Party of the United States. Its members are chosen by the state delegations at the national convention every four years. It is responsible for developing and pr ...
from 1866 to 1868. In 1868, Ward became the first president of the Newark Industrial Exhibition.


Later career

After leaving the governor's office, Ward resumed his business and civic interests. In 1872, he was a successful candidate for Congress representing Essex County (numbered the 6th district). He served one term, 1873 to 1875, but was defeated for reelection in 1874 by Democrat Frederick H. Teese. After leaving Congress in 1875, Ward devoted the rest of his life to his family and personal affairs.


Personal life

In 1840, Ward married Susan Longworth Morris, a relative of Nicholas Longworth. The Wards had eight children, though only two lived to adulthood: * Joseph Morris (1841–1911) * Elizabeth Morris (1843–1848) * Frances Lavinia (1844–1846) * Marcus L. Ward Jr. (1847–1920) * Catharine Almira Morris (1849–1860) * Nicholas Longworth (1852–1857) * John Longworth Morris (1854–1855) * Frances Brown (1856–1864)


Death and legacy

Ward contracted malaria while on a trip to
Florida Florida ( ; ) is a U.S. state, state in the Southeastern United States, Southeastern region of the United States. It borders the Gulf of Mexico to the west, Alabama to the northwest, Georgia (U.S. state), Georgia to the north, the Atlantic ...
in early 1884. He returned home, but did not recover. Ward died in Newark on April 25, 1884, and was buried at Mount Pleasant Cemetery.


Legacy

After Ward's death, his son Marcus used part of the family fortune to found the Ward Homestead, a home for elderly bachelors and widowers. The site is now part of a larger retirement complex known as Winchester Gardens. In 1941, the Schoolmen's Club of Newark and the Newark Museum dedicated a memorial plaque to Ward in the Alice Ransom Dreyfuss Memorial Garden behind the Newark Museum. The museum was built on the site of Ward's former home.


References


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Marcus Lawrence Ward
at
National Governors Association The National Governors Association (NGA) is an American Politics of the United States, political organization founded in 1908. The association's members are the governors of the 55 U.S. state, states, Territories of the United States, territories ...

Marcus Lawrence Ward
at the Political Graveyard

at Dead Governors of New Jersey , - , - , - {{DEFAULTSORT:Ward, Marcus Lawrence 1812 births 1884 deaths American Protestants Burials at Mount Pleasant Cemetery (Newark, New Jersey) Republican Party governors of New Jersey Politicians from Newark, New Jersey Republican National Committee chairs Republican Party members of the United States House of Representatives from New Jersey 19th-century members of the United States House of Representatives