 | This articleneeds additional citations forverification. Please helpimprove this article byadding citations to reliable sources. Unsourced material may be challenged and removed. Find sources: "Andrew J. Peters" – news ·newspapers ·books ·scholar ·JSTOR(February 2021) (Learn how and when to remove this message) |
Andrew J. Peters | |
|---|---|
 Peters circa 1918[1] | |
| Mayor of Boston | |
| In office February 4, 1918[2] – February 6, 1922[3] | |
| Preceded by | James Michael Curley |
| Succeeded by | James Michael Curley |
| Member of theU.S. House of Representatives fromMassachusetts's11th district | |
| In office March 4, 1907 – August 15, 1914 | |
| Preceded by | John A. Sullivan |
| Succeeded by | George H. Tinkham |
| Member of theMassachusetts State Senate | |
| In office 1904–1905 | |
| Personal details | |
| Born | Andrew James Peters April 3, 1872 |
| Died | June 26, 1938(1938-06-26) (aged 66) |
| Party | Democratic |
| Spouse | Martha Peters |
| Alma mater | Harvard Law School |
| Occupation | Lawyer |
| Signature |  |
Andrew James Peters (April 3, 1872 – June 26, 1938) was an American politician who served as theMayor of Boston and as a member of theUnited States House of Representatives. He is today best remembered for being a suspect in thedeath of Starr Faithfull.
Peters was born on April 3, 1872, inWest Roxbury, Massachusetts.[4] His family had been in Massachusetts since the first Andrew Peters arrived there in 1657. He attendedHarvard University earning an A.B. in 1895 and a LL.B. fromHarvard Law School in 1898.[5]
Peters served two terms in theMassachusetts State Senate (1904, 1905). In 1906, he was elected to the U.S. House of Representatives, where he served from 1907 to 1914.[6]
In 1914, Peters was appointed to beAssistant Secretary of the Treasury underWilliam Gibbs McAdoo in the first administration of PresidentWoodrow Wilson. He served there until 1918, when he began his term as Mayor of Boston, having defeated incumbentJames Michael Curley in the1917 mayoral election. He handled theBoston police strike in 1919.
Peters was considered forGovernor of Massachusetts later in the 1920s, but was not nominated. He served as treasurer of a Massachusetts state campaign againstmoney-hoarding organized at the request of PresidentHerbert Hoover in 1932,[7] and was named to the Massachusetts Advisory Committee of theHome Owners' Loan Corporation in 1933.[8]
Peters married Martha Phillips in 1910 and they had six children.[4]
Peters' cousin-in-law, Helen Faithfull, had a young daughter named Starr Wyman, laterStarr Faithfull, who attracted his attention in 1917. A student of theRogers Hall School in Lowell, Massachusetts, she spent summers with the Peters. He began to sexually abuse her when she was age 11,[8] dosing her withether, reading to her fromHavelock Ellis's books about sex, and taking her to hotels.[9] She drowned under mysterious circumstances offLong Island in 1931. When her diaries were found, the story came out,[10] and her stepfather produced evidence that Peters paid him and Helen to keep quiet.[11][9] Through a family friend and attorney, Peters denied "improper relations" with her.[12] He is reported to have had anervous breakdown as a result of the scandal.[11] This story became part of the material used byJohn O'Hara in his novelBUtterfield 8. Peters is a key character inDennis Lehane's novelThe Given Day.
Peters died of pneumonia in Boston on June 26, 1938.[13]
| U.S. House of Representatives | ||
|---|---|---|
| Preceded by | Member of the U.S. House of Representatives fromMassachusetts's 11th congressional district March 4, 1907 – August 15, 1914 | Succeeded by |
| Political offices | ||
| Preceded by | Mayor ofBoston, Massachusetts 1918–1922 | Succeeded by |
