George Mason La Monte (June 4, 1863[1] – December 24, 1927) was an American businessman, philanthropist, andDemocratic politician. He was the Democratic nominee forUnited States Senate inNew Jersey in 1918 and served as chairman of the board of thePrudential Insurance Company.
La Monte was born in 1863 inDanville, Virginia, the son of George T. La Monte and Rebecca Kern. His family later settled inBound Brook, where he lived until his death. He studied atColumbia University for a year before enteringWesleyan University, where he graduated in 1884. After working as a commercial reporter for theBradstreet company, he trained at the paper company of Augustine Smith & Co. for several years.[2]
La Monte then joined his father in the formation of a company to manufacturesafety paper used as an anti-fraud measure in the printing of checks and money orders. The company, George La Monte & Son, had its main office inNew York City and its manufacturing plant inNutley, New Jersey. La Monte was president of the company for thirty-one years.[2]
In 1911 La Monte served a term in theNew Jersey General Assembly. He was a delegate to the1912 Democratic National Convention and a presidential elector forWoodrow Wilson. From 1912 to 1916 he was the New Jersey State Commissioner of Banking and Insurance.[2]
In 1918 he was the Democratic candidate for the open seat in theUnited States Senate left vacant after the death ofWilliam Hughes. (David Baird was elected to fill the remainder of Hughes' term but did not stand for reelection.) Though La Monte did not campaign actively for his candidacy, President Wilson wrote a public letter warmly endorsing him. In the general election, La Monte was defeated byWalter Evans Edge, then serving asgovernor.[2]
After the election, La Monte returned to his business and philanthropic interests. He served as president of the First National Bank of Bound Brook and was a major contributor to Bound Brook civic institutions. After several years on the board of directors of thePrudential Insurance Company, he was elected chairman of the board in 1925, serving in that position until his death.[2]
La Monte lived for many years at the Piedmont Farm in Bound Brook, where he maintained a prized herd of Guernsey cows.[3] He married Anna I. Vaill in 1887, and they had three children: George V. La Monte (vice president of his father's firm), Archibald D. La Monte, and Isabel La Monte (who married Edmond B. Hackett).
On December 24, 1927, La Monte died of heart disease at theWeylin Hotel in New York City. He was 64 years old.[2]
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| Preceded by Charles O. Hennessy | Democratic Nominee for theU.S. Senate (Class 2) fromNew Jersey 1918 | Succeeded by |