Charles W. Bryan | |
|---|---|
_LOC_npcc.11808_(cropped).jpg) Bryan in 1924 | |
| 20th and 23rdGovernor of Nebraska | |
| In office January 8, 1931 – January 3, 1935 | |
| Lieutenant | Theodore Metcalfe Walter H. Jurgensen |
| Preceded by | Arthur J. Weaver |
| Succeeded by | Roy Cochran |
| In office January 3, 1923 – January 8, 1925 | |
| Lieutenant | Fred Johnson |
| Preceded by | Samuel McKelvie |
| Succeeded by | Adam McMullen |
| 23rd and 30thMayor of Lincoln | |
| In office 1935–1937 | |
| Preceded by | Fenton Fleming |
| Succeeded by | Oren S. Copeland |
| In office 1915–1917 | |
| Preceded by | Frank Zehrung |
| Succeeded by | John Miller |
| Personal details | |
| Born | Charles Wayland Bryan (1867-02-10)February 10, 1867 Salem, Illinois, U.S. |
| Died | March 4, 1945(1945-03-04) (aged 78) Lincoln, Nebraska, U.S. |
| Resting place | Wyuka Cemetery |
| Political party | Democratic |
| Spouse | Elizabeth Brokaw |
| Children | 3 |
| Parent(s) | Silas Bryan Mariah Elizabeth Jennings |
| Relatives | William Jennings Bryan (brother) William Sherman Jennings (cousin) |
| Education | Illinois College University of Chicago |
Charles Wayland Bryan (February 10, 1867 – March 4, 1945) was an American businessman and politician who served as the 20th and 23rdGovernor of Nebraska, andMayor ofLincoln, Nebraska, and was the Democratic nominee for Vice President in1924. He was the younger brother ofWilliam Jennings Bryan.
Charles Wayland Bryan was born inSalem, Illinois on February 10, 1867, toSilas Lillard Bryan and Mariah Elizabeth (Jennings) Bryan.[1] Silas Bryan had been born in 1822 and had established a legal practice in Salem in 1851. He married Mariah, a former student of his atMcKendree College, in 1852.[2] OfScots-Irish and English ancestry,[a] Silas Bryan was an avidJacksonian Democrat. He won election as a state circuit judge and in 1866 moved his family to a 520-acre (210.4 ha) farm north of Salem, living in a ten-room house that was the envy ofMarion County.[4] Silas served in various local positions and sought election to Congress in 1872, but was narrowly defeated by the Republican candidate.[5] An admirer ofAndrew Jackson andStephen A. Douglas, Silas passed on his Democratic affiliation to his son, William, who would remain a life-long Democrat.[6] Charles' cousin,William Sherman Jennings,[7] was also a prominent Democrat.
Charles was one of nine children of Silas and Mariah, the first three of their children died during infancy. He had four of whom lived to adulthood.[8] Silas was aBaptist and Mariah was aMethodist.
Bryan attended both theUniversity of Chicago andIllinois College in Jacksonville. He married Elizabeth Louise Brokaw and they had three children. Bryan worked as a tobacco broker and insurance salesman, farmed, and raised purebred livestock.
Bryan moved to Lincoln, Nebraska in 1889, and became business manager and political secretary for his brother, William Jennings Bryan. From 1901 to 1923, he was publisher and associate editor of his brother's newspaper,The Commoner. Elected to the Lincoln City Commission in 1915 and 1921, he also served as mayor ofLincoln, Nebraska from 1915 to 1917 (again from 1935 to 1937).[9] During his first term as mayor, several progressive reforms were carried out.[10][11][12]
Bryan first ran for governor in 1916,[13] though he lost in the primary toKeith Neville.[14] Bryan was elected theGovernor of Nebraska in 1922, and served from 1923 to 1925. He was the Democraticvice presidential candidate in1924, picked largely because of his name to serve as running mate to conservative easternerJohn W. Davis. The ticket was overwhelmingly defeated byRepublican incumbentCalvin Coolidge and his running mateCharles G. Dawes.
He was the unsuccessful Democratic nominee for Governor in1926 and1928. He won the1930 and1932 gubernatorial elections, serving as Governor again from 1931 to 1935. During his tenure, the state's economy flourished, state spending was limited, and taxes were reduced.[15] He unsuccessfully ran as a Democratic candidate for the U.S. Senate in1934, and was elected to another term as Mayor of Lincoln in 1935. He unsuccessfully ran for Governor in1938 as an independent candidate, ran for the U.S. House in 1940, and was the Democratic nominee for Governor in1942.
_at_Wyuka_Cemetery%2c_Lincoln%2c_NE.jpg)
Bryan died on March 4, 1945, in Lincoln, Nebraska, and is interred there atWyuka Cemetery.
| Political offices | ||
|---|---|---|
| Preceded by | Mayor of Lincoln 1915–1917 | Succeeded by John Miller |
| Preceded by | Governor of Nebraska 1923–1925 | Succeeded by |
| Preceded by | Governor of Nebraska 1931–1935 | Succeeded by |
| Preceded by Fenton Fleming | Mayor of Lincoln 1935–1937 | Succeeded by |
| Party political offices | ||
| Preceded by | Democratic nominee forGovernor of Nebraska 1922,1924(withdrew) | Succeeded by |
| Preceded by Harry C. Parmenter | Progressive nominee forGovernor of Nebraska 1924(withdrew) | Succeeded by |
| Preceded by | Democraticnominee forVice President of the United States 1924 | Succeeded by |
| Preceded by | Democratic nominee forGovernor of Nebraska 1926,1928,1930,1932 | Succeeded by |
| Preceded by | Democratic nominee forGovernor of Nebraska 1942 | Succeeded by George Olsen |
| Territorial(1854–1867) |  | |
|---|---|---|
| State(since 1867) | ||
Italics indicate acting governors | ||
