Jonathan Prentiss Dolliver | |
|---|---|
 | |
| United States Senator fromIowa | |
| In office August 22, 1900 – October 15, 1910 | |
| Preceded by | John H. Gear |
| Succeeded by | Lafayette Young |
| Member of theU.S. House of Representatives fromIowa's10th district | |
| In office March 4, 1889 – August 22, 1900 | |
| Preceded by | Adoniram J. Holmes |
| Succeeded by | James P. Conner |
| Personal details | |
| Born | (1858-02-06)February 6, 1858 Kingwood,Virginia (nowWest Virginia) |
| Died | October 15, 1910(1910-10-15) (aged 52) Fort Dodge, Iowa, U.S. |
| Political party | Republican |
Jonathan Prentiss Dolliver (February 6, 1858 – October 15, 1910) was aRepublican orator,U.S. Representative, thenU.S. Senator fromIowa at the turn of the 20th century.[1] In1900 and1908 Republican National Conventions, he was promoted as a vice-presidential candidate, but he was never chosen.
Dolliver was born in 1858 nearKingwood inPreston County, aVirginia county that would refuse to join theConfederacy and would instead remain in theUnion as part of the new state ofWest Virginia. He attended the public schools and graduated from theWest Virginia University atMorgantown in 1876. After studying law, Dolliver wasadmitted to the bar in 1878, and commenced practice inFort Dodge, Iowa. He served as city solicitor of Fort Dodge from 1880 to 1887.
In 1884, as a twenty-six-year-old, Dolliver received national attention for his skills as an orator, when campaigning around the nation on behalf of the Republican presidential candidateJames G. Blaine.[2] A famous political quotation is attributed to Dolliver. Referring to his adopted state's traditional allegiance with the Republican Party, Dolliver (son of aMethodist minister) said, "Iowa will go Democratic when Hell goes Methodist."[1]
In 1888, Dolliver challenged the incumbent congressman forIowa's 10th congressional district,Adoniram J. Holmes, for the Republican nomination. After 110 ballots in the district nominating convention, Dolliver won.[3] He easily won the general election and began to represent in north-central Iowa in theUnited States House of Representatives in 1889. He was re-elected to the House five times. He served as chairman of theHouse Committee on Expenditures in theFifty-sixth Congress.
In the1900 presidential election, PresidentWilliam McKinley needed a successor to replace his first vice president,Garret Hobart, who died in November 1899. Dolliver was considered by some as a favorite to win the spot at the 1900 Republican National Convention.[4] However,New York GovernorTheodore Roosevelt, renowned for his victory in theBattle of San Juan Hill in theSpanish–American War, soon emerged as the leading candidate for that position. Dolliver stepped aside.[5]
The following month (July 1900), Iowa U.S. SenatorJohn H. Gear died while in office.Iowa GovernorLeslie M. Shaw selected Dolliver to replace Gear.[6] Dolliver was twice re-elected to the Senate by theIowa General Assembly. In the Senate, he served as chairman of theCommittee on Pacific Railroads in the Fifty-seventh through Fifty-ninth Congresses,Committee on Education and Labor in the Fifty-ninth and Sixtieth Congresses, and theCommittee on Agriculture and Forestry in the Sixty-first Congress.
In the1908 presidential election, Dolliver's name was again touted as a potential vice-presidential candidate, this time on the ticket withWilliam Howard Taft.[7] As the convention approached Dolliver indicated that he preferred to remain in the Senate.[8] In response to further pressure (and suggestions of support from the Roosevelt White House), he softened his position by indicating that he would not refuse the position if offered it.[9] However, the Convention instead choseJames S. Sherman.
During Dolliver's service in the Senate, Iowa Republicans were divided between a conservative old guard that had dominated state politics since the Civil War, and a new progressive wing led byAlbert B. Cummins, a lawyer and (after 1902) Governor of Iowa. The flash point for this division was Cummins' effort in 1908 to join Dolliver in the Senate by challenging legendary SenatorWilliam B. Allison in the Republican primary. Dolliver had a national reputation as aprogressive.[7] However, he supported Allison,[10] who ultimately prevailed in the primary but died shortly thereafter, and was succeeded by Cummins. Dolliver soon reconciled with Cummins,[11] and became increasingly aligned with Cummins in his party's progressive wing.
Dolliver died in office on October 15, 1910.[12] He was interred inOakland Cemetery in Fort Dodge, Iowa.
The small town ofDolliver, Iowa,[13] established on a new railroad line in 1899, andDolliver Memorial State Park south of Fort Dodge, were named in honor of him.
His nephew,James I. Dolliver, represented a similar area in Iowa in the U.S. House from 1945 to 1957.
United States Congress."Dolliver, Jonathan Prentiss (id: D000404)".Biographical Directory of the United States Congress.
| U.S. House of Representatives | ||
|---|---|---|
| Preceded by | Member of the U.S. House of Representatives fromIowa's 10th congressional district 1889–1900 | Succeeded by |
| U.S. Senate | ||
| Preceded by | U.S. senator from Iowa 1900–1910 | Succeeded by |
| Class 2 |  | |
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| Class 3 | ||
| Agriculture (1829–1857; 1863–1881) | | |
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| Agriculture and Forestry (1884–1977) | ||
| Agriculture, Nutrition, and Forestry (1977–) | ||
| Education/Education and Labor (1869–1947) | | |
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| Labor and Public Welfare (1947–1977) | ||
| Labor and Human Resources (1977–1999) | ||
| Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions (1999–present) | ||
| International | |
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| National | |
| People | |
| Other | |
