William Ellery Sweet

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William E. Sweet
William Sweet.gif
23rd Governor of Colorado
In office
January 9, 1923 – January 13, 1925
LieutenantRobert Fay Rockwell
Preceded byOliver Shoup
Succeeded byClarence Morley
Personal details
Born(1869-01-27)January 27, 1869
Chicago, Illinois
DiedMay 9, 1942(1942-05-09) (aged 73)
Denver, Colorado
Political partyDemocratic
Spouse(s)Joyeuse L. Fullerton-Sweet
ProfessionGovernor

William Ellery Sweet (January 27, 1869 – May 9, 1942) was an American banker and politician who served as the 23rd Governor of Colorado from 1923 to 1925.

Early life and career[]

William was born in Chicago, Illinois, on January 27, 1869, to Channing and Emeroy Sweet. His family moved to Colorado Springs, Colorado, in 1872 when William was two. He attended school there, and graduated from high school in 1887. After high school, he went to college in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, at Swarthmore College. He graduated from Swarthmore in 1890, after three years attending, and earned his Bachelor Degree. He also excelled playing quarterback for the college football team and was a member of Phi Kappa Psi fraternity.[1]

On October 19, 1892, Sweet married Joyeuse L. Fullerton in Philadelphia. After their marriage, William moved to Denver. He decided to start up an investment banking firm, which led the Sweet family to become wealthy, and even let William to retire in 1922. He donated much of his money to charities, including the Denver YMCA.

It wasn't until 1922 that he became active in politics. He joined the Democratic Party, and he gained most of his support from the farm and labor groups. He was a strong advocate against the Ku Klux Klan, which he believed was why he lost the following election to Clarence Morley, because they were a major influence on Colorado politics at the time.

Sweet made two unsuccessful attempts to run for the U.S. Senate in 1926 and 1936.

In the final years of his life, William was a proud supporter of the Progressive Party, and even supported Herbert Hoover's bid for President.

He died on May 9, 1942, in his Denver home.[citation needed] He had a Georgian Revival style mansion in what is now the Humboldt Street Historic District.[2]

References[]

Party political offices
Preceded by
James M. Collins
Democratic nominee for Governor of Colorado
1922, 1924
Succeeded by
Billy Adams
Preceded by
Morrison Shafroth
Democratic nominee for U.S. Senator from Colorado
(Class 3)

1926
Succeeded by
Walter Walker
Political offices
Preceded by
Oliver Shoup
Governor of Colorado
1923–1925
Succeeded by
Clarence Morley

References[]

  1. ^ Grand Catalogue of the Phi Kappa Psi Fraternity (13th Ed.). Publishing Concepts, Inc. 1991. pp. 394, 567.
  2. ^ Thomas J. Noel (May 1, 2016). Denver Landmarks and Historic Districts. University Press of Colorado. p. PT246. ISBN 978-1-60732-422-5.
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