Edward M. Shepard | |
|---|---|
 Shepard, 1910 | |
| Personal details | |
| Born | (1850-07-23)July 23, 1850 |
| Died | July 28, 1911(1911-07-28) (aged 61) |
| Political party | Democratic |
| Relatives | Lorenzo B. Shepard(Father) |
| Education | Oberlin College City College of New York |
Edward Morse Shepard (July 23, 1850 – July 28, 1911) was an American lawyer and politician fromNew York.
Edward M. Shepard was the son ofLorenzo B. Shepard (1821–1856) and Lucy (Morse) Shepard (1821–1890). After the early death of his father,Abram S. Hewitt became his guardian, and the family removed toBrooklyn. There Shepard attended Public School Nr. 13. Afterwards he attendedOberlin College Preparatory School for one year (1860–61), and graduated fromCity College of New York in 1869. He then studied law withJohn Edward Parsons, was admitted to the bar in 1875, and formed a partnership with Albert Stickney. In 1890, he became a partner in the firm of Parsons, Shepard and Ogden.
From 1883 to 1885, he was Chairman of the Brooklyn Civil Service Board. In 1884, he was appointed a State Forestry Commissioner. He became a Democratic leader in Brooklyn, but disagreed with the corrupt local bossHugh McLaughlin. In 1894, the state convention seated McLaughlin delegates in place of those led by Shepard.
Shepard's "Democratic Reform" faction then nominatedEverett P. Wheeler for Governor, in competition with "regular Democrat"David B. Hill. Inthe election, won by RepublicanLevi P. Morton, Wheeler got only 2% of the vote.
Shepard was a delegate to theNational Convention of the "Gold Democrats" inIndianapolis, which nominated thePalmer/Buckner ticket for the1896 United States presidential election. In1897, Shepard supportedSeth Low, who ran on theCitizens Union ticket forMayor of New York City at the first election under the Consolidation Charter. Shepard said thatTammany Hall was the "most burning and disgraceful blot upon the municipal history of this country."
In1900, Shepard supportedWilliam Jennings Bryan for president.
In 1901, despite Shepard's reformist record, Tammany bossRichard Croker had him nominated as the regular Democratic candidate for Mayor. He was defeated by Seth Low, nominated by a fusion of Anti-Tammany Democrats, Republicans, and the Citizens Union.
Mark Twain, an avid supporter of Seth Low, said of Edward M. Shepard: "A Tammany banana is a strange thing. One end of it, or one part, here or there, is perfectly white. The rest of it is rotten. Now, I have the greatest respect for Mr. Shepard personally, but nine-tenths of the rest of the bananas on that ticket are rotten. Mr. Shepard is the white part of the banana. The best we can do is throw the whole banana from us, for it is unfit. It will make us sick. "[1]
In 1909, he started a movement to unite the quarreling factions of New York Democrats. This led to success in1910 elections.John Alden Dix became the first DemocraticGovernor of New York sinceRoswell P. Flower had left office in 1894, and the Democrats had majorities in both houses of theNew York State Legislature (for the first time since 1893). Shepard had been considered the frontrunner for the gubernatorial nomination, but Tammany bossCharles Francis Murphy preferred Dix.
At the onset of 1911, the Democrats having a majority in the Legislature, it was generally believed that Shepard would beelected US Senator from New York to succeed RepublicanChauncey M. Depew. But boss Murphy put upWilliam F. Sheehan for the nomination, and the longest deadlock in the history of New York ensued. Shepard was favored by the "Insurgent" Democrats, led by State SenatorFranklin D. Roosevelt. He received 15 votes (out of 200) on the 32nd ballot, but after the 34th ballot, withdrew on 25 February, He urged Sheehan to do the same for the sake of party unity. But Sheehan remained in the field, and after 74 days of deadlock,James A. O'Gorman was elected as a compromise candidate on April 1.
Just a few months later, on July 28, 1911, Shepard died ofpneumonia at his summer residence "Erlowest" (now The Inn at Erlowest), onLake George's "Millionaire's Row." He had never married.
Shepard was a graduate of CCNY, and chairman of the Board of Trustees from 1904 to 1911. At this time, CCNY was building its new "North Campus". Shepard took particular interest in the 2,400-seat Great Hall of the Main Building, supervising its decoration and furnishing.The Main Building was named Shepard Hall after him.[2]
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