Walter J. Bigelow

Last updated
Walter C. Bigelow
Walter J. Bigelow (Mayor of Burlington, Vermont).jpg
From Volume II (1913) of New England Families, Genealogical and Memorial
Mayor of Burlington, Vermont
In office
1907–1909
Preceded by James Edmund Burke
Succeeded byJames Edmund Burke
Personal details
Born(1865-01-22)January 22, 1865
Stowe, Vermont
DiedMay 2, 1935(1935-05-02) (aged 70)
Hartford, Connecticut
Resting placeWest Branch Cemetery, Stowe, Vermont
Political party Republican
Spouse(s)Florence E. Mooney (m. 1895-1935, his death)
Children1
Education University of Vermont (attended)
ProfessionNewspaper editor and publisher

Walter J. Bigelow (January 22, 1865 - May 2, 1935) was an American newspaper editor, author, and politician from Vermont. A Republican, he was most notable for serving as mayor of Burlington from 1907 to 1909 and owning and publishing the St. Johnsbury Caledonian from 1913 to 1918.

Contents

Early life

Walter Josephus Bigelow was born in Stowe, Vermont on January 22, 1865, the son of Phineas N. Bigelow and Charlotte E. (Munn) Bigelow. [1] He was educated in the public schools of Stowe, and graduated from Montpelier Seminary in Montpelier in 1889. [1] He received his qualification as a teacher, and taught school for two years before beginning college studies. [1] He attended the University of Vermont in Burlington for three years as a member of the class of 1895, but left before graduating to begin a career in the newspaper business. [1]

Start of career

While attending college, Bigelow worked on the night shift in the editorial room of The Burlington Free Press . [1] In 1894, he was appointed the newspaper's night editor. [1] He held this position he held until 1909. [1] Bigelow was also the Free Press journalist assigned to report on the 1897 session of the Vermont General Assembly. [2] A talented orator, Bigelow was frequently called upon to speak at public events including Memorial Day celebrations and rallies held in support of U.S. involvement in the Spanish–American War. [3] [4]

A Republican, in 1898 Bigelow was appointed to the legislature's Vermont Commission on Double Taxation, a special panel that investigated state laws which subjected to state tax both mortgages used to purchase real estate and the real estate used to secure the mortgages. [5] In 1900, the commission submitted recommendations to address the issue, many of which were adopted in subsequent legislative sessions. [5]

Continued career

In March 1906, Bigelow was the Republican Party's unsuccessful nominee for mayor. [6] In June 1906, he served as chairman of the Vermont Republican Party's state convention. [7] In 1907, he again received the Republican nomination for mayor of Burlington. [8] He defeated incumbent James Edmund Burke and served one term, 1907 to 1909, the first two-year mayoral term created as the result of a change to the city charter. [9] He was a candidate for reelection in 1909 and lost to Burke by 18 votes, 1,658 to 1,640. [10]

After leaving office, Bigelow purchased the St. Johnsbury Caledonian newspaper in 1909. [5] In 1910 he purchased the Ranlet Press, a St. Johnsbury publishing business. [5] Bigelow operated both ventures until 1918. [5] During World War I, Bigelow was a member of Vermont's Public Safety Committee. [5]

Bigelow was an author, and his published works included Vermont: Its Government, an annual publication of the early 1900s to mid-1950s for which Bigelow was responsible from 1919 to 1933. [5] He was also the author of a work about his hometown, 1934's History of Stowe, Vermont. [5] In 1919, Bigelow left St. Johnsbury and accepted an editorial position with the Brattleboro Reformer newspaper in Brattleboro. [5]

Death and burial

Bigelow remained with the Reformer until 1933, when he moved to Hartford, Connecticut. [5] In December 1934 he was struck by a car while crossing the street and his injuries included a broken hip. [5] He died in Hartford on May 2, 1935. [5] Bigelow was buried at West Branch Cemetery in Stowe. [5]

Family

In 1895, Bigelow married Florence E. Mooney (1868-1956) of Mansonville, Quebec, Canada. [1] They were the parents of a daughter, Ruth Barr (1899-1959), who was the wife of Clarence C. Mooney (d. 1956). [1]

Related Research Articles

Lawrence Brainerd

Lawrence Brainerd was an American businessman, abolitionist and United States Senator from Vermont. A longtime anti-slavery activist, after leaving the Jacksonians in the 1830s, Brainerd was active in the Whig, Liberty, and Free Soil parties, and was one of the organizers of the Republican Party when it was formed as the main anti-slavery party in the mid-1850s. Brainerd's longtime commitment to the cause of abolition was recognized in 1854, when opponents of slavery in the Vermont General Assembly chose him to fill a five-month vacancy in the United States Senate.

Peter T. Washburn

Peter Thacher Washburn was a Vermont lawyer, politician and soldier. A veteran of the American Civil War, he was elected Governor of Vermont as a Republican in 1869, and was the first Vermont Governor to die in office.

Henry A. Fletcher

Henry Addison Fletcher was an American Civil War veteran, a farmer and a U.S. politician of the Republican Party. He is most notable for his service as Lieutenant Governor of Vermont from 1890 to 1892.

Hoyt Henry Wheeler American judge

Hoyt Henry Wheeler was an Associate Justice of the Vermont Supreme Court and later a United States District Judge of the United States District Court for the District of Vermont.

Hollister Jackson American politician

Hollister Jackson was the 55th Lieutenant Governor of Vermont; he was killed in the Great Flood of 1927.

2016 Vermont gubernatorial election

The 2016 Vermont gubernatorial election took place on November 8, 2016 and elected the governor of Vermont, concurrently with the 2016 U.S. presidential election, as well as elections to the United States Senate in other states and elections to the United States House of Representatives and various state and local elections.

Frank D. Thompson American judge

Frank D. Thompson was a Vermont attorney and judge. He is most notable for his service as an Associate Justice of the Vermont Supreme Court from 1929 to 1937.

Frank L. Fish American judge

Frank Leslie Fish was a Vermont attorney and judge. He was most notable for his service as an Associate Justice of the Vermont Supreme Court from 1926 to 1927.

Fred M. Butler American judge

Fred M. Butler was a Vermont attorney and judge. He is notable for his service as an Associate Justice of the Vermont Supreme Court from 1923 to 1926.

John H. Watson (Vermont judge) American judge

John H. Watson was a Vermont attorney and judge. He served as an Associate Justice of the Vermont Supreme Court from 1899 to 1919, and Chief Justice from 1919 to 1929.

William C. Wilson (judge) American judge

William C. Wilson was a Vermont lawyer and judge who served as an Associate Justice of the Vermont Supreme Court from 1865 to 1869.

Joseph F. Radigan was an American attorney and politician from Vermont. A Democrat, He is most notable for serving as United States Attorney for the District of Vermont from 1961 to 1969.

Clarence H. Beecher

Clarence H. Beecher was an American politician who served as the 25th Mayor of Burlington, Vermont. His eight-vote victory against James E. Burke in 1927 is the smallest margin of victory in any Burlington mayoral race.

Horace W. Bailey U.S. Marshal for Vermont

Horace W. Bailey was a Vermont politician and government official. A Republican, he was most notable for his service as a member of the Vermont Senate from Orange County (1894-1896), a member of the Vermont House of Representatives from Newbury (1902-1904), and the United States Marshal for the District of Vermont from 1903 until his death.

Frank H. Chapman was an American public official from Vermont. He served as Vermont's Deputy United States Marshal for more than 20 years (1901-1923), and was acting U.S. Marshal for Vermont for several days in 1903 following the removal of his predecessor.

1866 Vermont gubernatorial election

The 1867 Vermont gubernatorial election took place on September 4, 1866. In keeping with the "Mountain Rule", Incumbent Republican Paul Dillingham was a candidate for a second one-year term as governor of Vermont. With the election taking place soon after the American Civil War, Dillingham ran as a pro-Union Republican. The Democratic nomination was won by Charles N. Davenport of Wilmington, an attorney and founder of the Brattleboro Reformer newspaper, who was also the Democratic nominee in 1865. In the general election, Dillingham was easily elected to a second one-year term as governor.

References

  1. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 Cutter, William Richard, ed. (1913). New England Families, Genealogical and Memorial. III. New York, NY: Lewis Historical Publishing Company. p. 1504 – via HathiTrust.
  2. ↑ "The New State Officials". St. Albans Daily Messenger . St. Albans, VT. December 6, 1898. p. 2 – via Newspapers.com.
  3. ↑ "Library Dedicated". Southern Vermont Mirror. Danby, VT. March 26, 1908 – via Mt. Tabor-Danby Historical Society.
  4. ↑ "With Flowers and Flags". The Earth. Burlington, VT. June 3, 1899. p. 5 – via Newspapers.com.
  5. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 "Former Mayor of Burlington Dead". St. Albans Daily Messenger . St. Albans, VT. May 3, 1935. p. 1 – via Newspapers.com.
  6. ↑ "Burlington's Mayoralty Contest". St. Albans Daily Messenger . St. Albans, VT. March 1, 1906. p. 11 – via Newspapers.com.
  7. ↑ "Good for "Big"". St. Albans Daily Messenger . St. Albans, VT. June 28, 1906. p. 11 – via Newspapers.com.
  8. ↑ "The New Mayor". The Burlington Free Press . Burlington, VT. March 6, 1907. p. 5 – via Newspapers.com.
  9. ↑ "Two Cities Change from "Wet" to "Dry"". Rutland Herald . Rutland, VT. March 4, 1908. p. 1 – via Newspapers.com.
  10. ↑ "Burke in Again". Barre Daily Times . Barre, VT. March 3, 1909. p. 1 – via Newspapers.com.
This page is based on this Wikipedia article
Text is available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 license; additional terms may apply.
Images, videos and audio are available under their respective licenses.