Albert E. Mead

Albert Edward Mead
5th Governor of Washington
In office
January 11, 1905 – January 27, 1909
LieutenantCharles E. Coon
Preceded byHenry McBride
Succeeded bySamuel G. Cosgrove
Member of the Washington House of Representatives
from the 48th district
In office
January 9, 1893 – January 14, 1895
Preceded byA. W. Tiffany
Succeeded byR. J. Glen
Personal details
Born
Albert Edward Mead

(1861-12-14)December 14, 1861
Manhattan, Kansas, U.S.
DiedMarch 19, 1913(1913-03-19) (aged 51)
Bellingham, Washington, U.S.
Political partyRepublican
Spouse(s)Lizzie Brown (1887–1898)
Mina Jane Hosmer Pifer (1899–1913)

Albert Edward Mead (December 14, 1861 – March 19, 1913) was an American lawyer and politician who served as the fifth governor of Washington from 1905 to 1909.[1]

Biography

[edit]

Mead was born in Kansas on December 14, 1861. There is conflicting information about his town of birth: most reliable sources say it was Manhattan, Kansas, but there is one claim he was born in Ashland, Kansas.[1][2] He received his formal education at Southern Illinois Normal University and at Northwestern University's Union College of Law in Chicago.[2]

Career

[edit]

After graduating from law school in 1885, Mead returned to Kansas to practice law for four years. He married Elizabeth "Lizzy" Pauline Brown and they had one daughter, Mary; and three sons, Wendell, Roland, and William.[3] In 1889, he moved to Washington Territory. Mead served as Mayor of Blaine, Washington (1892), as a member of the Washington State House of Representatives (1892), and as prosecuting attorney for Whatcom County, Washington from 1898 to 1903. His wife, "Lizzy", died in 1898, and on May 5, 1899, he married Mina Jane Hosmer Pifer, and they had one son, Albert Vincent.

Mead's election to the governor's office in 1904 over U.S. Senator George Turner was considered a significant upset at the time.[4] During his tenure, he supported legislation establishing a Railroad Commission, and acts establishing a State Bank Examiner, a State Tax Commission, and a State Highway Commission.[5]

After his term as governor ended, Mead moved to Bellingham, Washington, where he returned to private practice as a lawyer and served as president of the Chamber of Commerce.[1]

Death

[edit]

Mead died in Bellingham on March 19, 1913, and is interred at Bayview Cemetery.[6]

References

[edit]
  1. ^ a b c Washington State Bar Association (1913). Proceedings of the 25th Annual Convention. The Association. p. 181.
  2. ^ a b "Washington State Library Biography". Archived from the original on July 21, 2011. Retrieved April 29, 2011.
  3. ^ "Albert E. Mead". Washington Secretary of State. Archived from the original on December 8, 2019. Retrieved October 11, 2012.
  4. ^ "Ex-Senator Turner Beaten" (PDF). The New York Times. November 10, 1904. Retrieved April 29, 2011.
  5. ^ "Albert E. Mead". National Governors Association. Retrieved October 11, 2012.
  6. ^ "Albert E. Mead Dies Suddenly". Spokane Chronicle. Bellingham. March 20, 1913. p. 2. Retrieved April 5, 2020 – via Newspapers.com.

Further reading

[edit]
[edit]
Party political offices
Preceded by Republican nominee for Governor of Washington
1904
Succeeded by
Political offices
Preceded by Governor of Washington
1905–1909
Succeeded by