Andrew James Peters
Encyclopedia
Andrew James Peters was an American
politician
. He was born on April 3, 1872 in Jamaica Plain, a section of Boston
. His family had been in Massachusetts since the first Andrew Peters arrived there in 1657. Peters attended Harvard University
and Harvard Law School
. He served two terms (1904, 1905) in the Massachusetts State Legislature. In 1906 he was elected to Congress where he would serve from 1907 to 1914. In 1914 he was appointed to be Assistant Secretary of the Treasury under William Gibbs McAdoo
in the first administration of President Woodrow Wilson
. He served there until 1918 when he began his term as Mayor of Boston.
Peters' term as Mayor is remembered for his handling of the Boston Police Strike
in 1919. Instead of calling out the state militia to maintain public safety (as he could) Peters tried to force the Republican Governor Calvin Coolidge
to do it. For several days Coolidge tried to get Peters to act, and then finally had to act on his own. The result was criticized by labor union leader Samuel Gompers
and Coolidge delivered a public rebuke of Gompers regarding the lack of right by labor unions to act against safety. Ironically Coolidge's actions made him a national figure, and led to his nomination to the Vice Presidency in 1920, his election, and his subsequent succession to the Presidency upon the death of Warren Harding. The reputation of Peters suffered because he failed to act.
Peters was considered for the governorship later in the 1920s but was not nominated.
Peters' reputation also suffered because of his relationship with a young relative of his wife. He had married Martha Phillips in 1910, and together bore six children. Mrs. Peters cousin, Mrs. Helen Faithfull, had a young daughter named Starr Wyman, later Starr Faithfull, who attracted Peters' attention. Eventually he had an affair with Starr, and paid money to her mother and stepfather to keep the story quiet. Starr died under mysterious circumstances on Long Island, New York in 1931. The story came out damaging Peters' reputation (despite his denials of it).
The circumstances of Peters' relationship with Starr Faithfull eventually became part of the material used by John O'Hara
in his novel Butterfield 8
. Peters also plays a key role in Dennis Lehane
's novel The Given Day
.
Peters died of pneumonia
on 26 June 1938.
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
politician
Politician
A politician, political leader, or political figure is an individual who is involved in influencing public policy and decision making...
. He was born on April 3, 1872 in Jamaica Plain, a section of Boston
Boston
Boston is the capital of and largest city in Massachusetts, and is one of the oldest cities in the United States. The largest city in New England, Boston is regarded as the unofficial "Capital of New England" for its economic and cultural impact on the entire New England region. The city proper had...
. His family had been in Massachusetts since the first Andrew Peters arrived there in 1657. Peters attended Harvard University
Harvard University
Harvard University is a private Ivy League university located in Cambridge, Massachusetts, United States, established in 1636 by the Massachusetts legislature. Harvard is the oldest institution of higher learning in the United States and the first corporation chartered in the country...
and Harvard Law School
Harvard Law School
Harvard Law School is one of the professional graduate schools of Harvard University. Located in Cambridge, Massachusetts, it is the oldest continually-operating law school in the United States and is home to the largest academic law library in the world. The school is routinely ranked by the U.S...
. He served two terms (1904, 1905) in the Massachusetts State Legislature. In 1906 he was elected to Congress where he would serve from 1907 to 1914. In 1914 he was appointed to be Assistant Secretary of the Treasury under William Gibbs McAdoo
William Gibbs McAdoo
William Gibbs McAdoo, Jr. was an American lawyer and political leader who served as a U.S. Senator, United States Secretary of the Treasury and director of the United States Railroad Administration...
in the first administration of President Woodrow Wilson
Woodrow Wilson
Thomas Woodrow Wilson was the 28th President of the United States, from 1913 to 1921. A leader of the Progressive Movement, he served as President of Princeton University from 1902 to 1910, and then as the Governor of New Jersey from 1911 to 1913...
. He served there until 1918 when he began his term as Mayor of Boston.
Peters' term as Mayor is remembered for his handling of the Boston Police Strike
Boston Police Strike
In the Boston Police Strike, the Boston police rank and file went out on strike on September 9, 1919 in order to achieve recognition for their trade union and improvements in wages and working conditions...
in 1919. Instead of calling out the state militia to maintain public safety (as he could) Peters tried to force the Republican Governor Calvin Coolidge
Calvin Coolidge
John Calvin Coolidge, Jr. was the 30th President of the United States . A Republican lawyer from Vermont, Coolidge worked his way up the ladder of Massachusetts state politics, eventually becoming governor of that state...
to do it. For several days Coolidge tried to get Peters to act, and then finally had to act on his own. The result was criticized by labor union leader Samuel Gompers
Samuel Gompers
Samuel Gompers was an English-born American cigar maker who became a labor union leader and a key figure in American labor history. Gompers founded the American Federation of Labor , and served as that organization's president from 1886 to 1894 and from 1895 until his death in 1924...
and Coolidge delivered a public rebuke of Gompers regarding the lack of right by labor unions to act against safety. Ironically Coolidge's actions made him a national figure, and led to his nomination to the Vice Presidency in 1920, his election, and his subsequent succession to the Presidency upon the death of Warren Harding. The reputation of Peters suffered because he failed to act.
Peters was considered for the governorship later in the 1920s but was not nominated.
Peters' reputation also suffered because of his relationship with a young relative of his wife. He had married Martha Phillips in 1910, and together bore six children. Mrs. Peters cousin, Mrs. Helen Faithfull, had a young daughter named Starr Wyman, later Starr Faithfull, who attracted Peters' attention. Eventually he had an affair with Starr, and paid money to her mother and stepfather to keep the story quiet. Starr died under mysterious circumstances on Long Island, New York in 1931. The story came out damaging Peters' reputation (despite his denials of it).
The circumstances of Peters' relationship with Starr Faithfull eventually became part of the material used by John O'Hara
John O'Hara
John Henry O'Hara was an American writer. He initially became known for his short stories and later became a best-selling novelist whose works include Appointment in Samarra and BUtterfield 8. He was particularly known for an uncannily accurate ear for dialogue...
in his novel Butterfield 8
BUtterfield 8
BUtterfield 8 is a 1960 Metrocolor drama film directed by Daniel Mann, starring Elizabeth Taylor and Laurence Harvey. Taylor, then 28 years old, won an Academy Award for her performance...
. Peters also plays a key role in Dennis Lehane
Dennis Lehane
Dennis Lehane is an American author. He has written several award-winning novels, including A Drink Before the War and the New York Times bestseller Mystic River, which was later made into an Academy Award-winning film. Another novel, Gone, Baby, Gone, was also adapted into an Academy...
's novel The Given Day
The Given Day
The Given Day is a novel by Dennis Lehane published in September 2008; it is about the early twentieth-century period and set in Boston, Massachusetts, where its actions include the 1919 police strike, and Tulsa, Oklahoma, where the thriving Greenwood District was known as the "Black Wall Street"...
.
Peters died of pneumonia
Pneumonia
Pneumonia is an inflammatory condition of the lung—especially affecting the microscopic air sacs —associated with fever, chest symptoms, and a lack of air space on a chest X-ray. Pneumonia is typically caused by an infection but there are a number of other causes...
on 26 June 1938.