Len Small | |
|---|---|
 Small in 1900 | |
| 26th Governor of Illinois | |
| In office January 10, 1921 – January 14, 1929 | |
| Lieutenant | Fred E. Sterling |
| Preceded by | Frank Orren Lowden |
| Succeeded by | Louis Lincoln Emmerson |
| 33rd and 39th Treasurer of Illinois | |
| In office 1917–1919 | |
| Governor | Frank Orren Lowden |
| Preceded by | Fred E. Sterling |
| Succeeded by | Andrew Russel |
| In office 1905–1907 | |
| Governor | Charles S. Deneen |
| Preceded by | Fred A. Busse |
| Succeeded by | John F. Smulski |
| Member of theIllinois Senate from the 20th district | |
| In office 1902 (1902) – 1904 (1904) | |
| Preceded by | re-districted |
| Succeeded by | Edward C. Curtis |
| Member of theIllinois Senate from the 16th district | |
| In office 1900 (1900) – 1902 (1902) | |
| Preceded by | Isaac Miller Hamilton |
| Succeeded by | re-districted |
| Personal details | |
| Born | (1862-06-16)June 16, 1862 |
| Died | May 17, 1936(1936-05-17) (aged 73) Kankakee, Illinois, U.S. |
| Political party | Republican |
| Spouse | Ida Moore |
| Alma mater | Valparaiso University |
Lennington "Len" Small (June 16, 1862 – May 17, 1936) was an American politician who served as the26th Governor of Illinois from 1921 to 1929. He previously was a member of theIllinois state senate from the 16th District from 1901 to 1903 and wasIllinois state treasurer, from 1905 to 1907, and from 1917 to 1919. He is known for accusations ofembezzlement brought against him.
Small was born inKankakee County, Illinois, he was the son of Abram, a doctor, and Calista (Currier). and attended public Schools and Northern Indiana Normal School, nowValparaiso University,[1] through his senior year. After schooling, he became a teacher and invested in real estate, eventually owning a farm, a bank, and Kankakee's daily newspaper, theDaily Journal. On November 21st, 1883, Small married Ida Moore, and they had three children together, Budd, Leslie, and May. On June 26, 1922, Ida Moore Small died suddenly from astroke at the age of 60, while Small and his wife were being welcomed home following his acquittal on charges ofembezzlement.[2][3]
Small's political career began in 1896 when he was elected Clerk of the Kankakee County Circuit Court. In 1900, Small was elected to theIllinois Senate from the 20th district.[4] He served in the Illinois Senate from 1901 to 1905.[5] The 20th district includedGrundy,Iroquois, andKankakee counties.[6] Small was theIllinois Treasurer from 1905 to 1908, and again from 1917 to 1919. He served as the assistant U.S. Treasurer in charge of the subtreasury at Chicago from 1908 to 1912 and was a delegate to Republican National Convention from Illinois in 1908, 1912, and 1932.
Small was elected governor of Illinoisin 1920 and was re-electedin 1924. Six months after becoming governor, he was indicted on charges of embezzling more than a million dollars in a money-laundering scheme in which he placed state funds into a fake bank while he was state treasurer.[7] He was acquitted, but eight jurors later got state jobs, raising suspicions ofjury tampering. Despite this, he paid $650,000 to settle the case.[8][9]
As governor, Small pardoned 20 members of theCommunist Labor Party of America, convicted under the Illinois Sedition Act. He also pardoned or paroled more than 1,000 convicted felons, including Harry Guzik, brother of theChicago Outfit'sJake Guzik, ofPosen, Illinois, who was convicted of kidnapping young girls and forcing them into lives ofprostitution (then commonly calledwhite slavery).[10]
Small was also noted for his active highway program, he spent $200 million for an estimated 7,000 miles of concrete-paved roads, which led Illinois to have the most developed road system in the United States. But the roads got aBond (finance) of half the funding the Small administration spent on the roads, which had to be retired by auto license fees.[11]
In 1923,bootlegger Edward "Spike" O'Donnell of theSouth Side Chicago was pardoned by Small. O'Donnell returned to Chicago as the leader of one of the most powerful bootlegging gangs in the city.[12]
_at_Mound_Grove_Cemetery_1.jpg)
Small's reputation for corruption finally caught up with him at the ballot box when he was defeated in the 1928 Republican "Pineapple Primary" by a margin of 63% to 37% againstLouis Lincoln Emmerson, the incumbentIllinois Secretary of State.
Small made an unsuccessful run for governor in1932, and another in1936. During and after these runs, he lived on his farm and owned the KankakeeDaily Republican[13]
Small died on May 17, 1936. He is buried at Mound Grove Cemetery inKankakee, Illinois.
| Party political offices | ||
|---|---|---|
| Preceded by | Republican nominee forIllinois Treasurer 1904 | Succeeded by |
| Preceded by | Republican nominee forIllinois Treasurer 1916 | Succeeded by |
| Preceded by | Republican nominee forGovernor of Illinois 1920,1924 | Succeeded by Louis Lincoln Emmerson |
| Preceded by | Republican nominee forGovernor of Illinois 1932 | Succeeded by |
| Political offices | ||
| Preceded by | Treasurer of Illinois 1905–1907 | Succeeded by |
| Preceded by | Treasurer of Illinois 1917–1919 | Succeeded by |
| Preceded by | Governor of Illinois 1921–1929 | Succeeded by |
| International | |
|---|---|
| National | |
| Other | |
