William Spry | |
|---|---|
 | |
| 34th Commissioner of the General Land Office | |
| In office March 22, 1921 – April 21, 1929 | |
| President | Warren G. Harding Calvin Coolidge Herbert Hoover |
| Preceded by | Clay Tallman |
| Succeeded by | Charles C. Moore |
| Chair of theNational Governors Association | |
| In office August 24, 1915 – December 14, 1916 | |
| Preceded by | David I. Walsh |
| Succeeded by | Arthur Capper |
| 3rd Governor of Utah | |
| In office January 4, 1909 – January 1, 1917 | |
| Preceded by | John Christopher Cutler |
| Succeeded by | Simon Bamberger |
| Personal details | |
| Born | (1864-01-11)January 11, 1864 Windsor,England,UK |
| Died | April 21, 1929(1929-04-21) (aged 65) Washington, D.C.,U.S. |
| Political party | Republican |
| Spouse | Mary Wrathall |
| Children | 3 |
William Spry (January 11, 1864 – April 21, 1929) was anAmerican politician who was thethird governor of the State of Utah. He is the namesake of the William Spry Agriculture Building that houses the Utah Department of Agriculture and Food.
Spry was born atWindsor,Berkshire,England. He emigrated toUtah Territory with his parents at the age of eleven.
In 1885, Spry was called as anLDS Church missionary and went to serve in the Southern StatesMission. From 1888 to 1891, Spry served aspresident of the Southern States Mission.[1] In 1890, during his mission, Spry received permission from the leaders of the church to return briefly toSalt Lake City where he married Mary Alice Wrathall.[2]
In 1894, Spry was elected county collector inTooele County, Utah. In 1902 Spry was elected to theUtah House of Representatives[3] and in 1905 he was appointed one of the members of the Utah state board of land commissioners.[2] From 1906 to 1908, Spry served asUnited States Marshal for theDistrict of Utah.
He served as governor ofUtah from 1909 to 1917. He was aRepublican. Spry was a strong opponent ofProhibition, and vetoed two bills that would have implemented this.[4] In 1915, Spry refused PresidentWoodrow Wilson's request to reconsider the impending execution ofJoe Hill and allowed the execution to take place on November 19.[5]
From 1921 to 1929 Spry served as commissioner of Public Lands.[6] Spry died inWashington, D.C., in 1929 when he was still serving as the Federal Commissioner of Public Lands. He was buried atSalt Lake City Cemetery.
Media related toWilliam Spry at Wikimedia Commons| Party political offices | ||
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| Preceded by | Republican nominee forGovernor of Utah 1908,1912 | Succeeded by |
| Political offices | ||
| Preceded by | Governor of Utah 1909–1917 | Succeeded by |
| Preceded by | Chair of theNational Governors Association 1915–1916 | Succeeded by |
| Preceded by | Commissioner of the General Land Office 1921–1929 | Succeeded by |
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| National | |
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