John Ellis Martineau
Encyclopedia
John Ellis Martineau was the 28th Governor of Arkansas
, U.S.
, from 1927 to 1928.
John Ellis Martineau was born in Clay County, Missouri. He graduated from the University of Arkansas
in 1896 and obtained his law degree there in 1899. After graduation he served as a school administrator.
From 1902 to 1905 he served as a member of the Arkansas House of Representatives. He was appointed chancellor of the First Chancery Court in 1907 and served in that capacity until 1927.
While serving in that court he issued a writ of habeas corpus
for defendants in the criminal prosecutions arising out of the Elaine Race Riot
. Although the Arkansas Supreme Court later vacated that order, it allowed the defendants enough time to avoid execution and to seek habeas corpus relief in federal court. Their guilty verdicts were eventually reversed by the United States Supreme Court in its groundbreaking decision in Moore v. Dempsey
.
Martineau was elected Governor of Arkansas in the 1926 election. Martineau was the first governor of Arkansas to broadcast his inaugural address on radio. The Martineau administration established a Confederate
pensions board and authorized state aid to cities for highway construction through the Martineau Road Plan. In 1927, Martineau was forced to deal with a major crisis when the Mississippi River
broke free of its banks and covered 13% of the state during the Great Mississippi Flood of 1927
. Martineau was named president of the Tri-State Flood Commission. In the May of 1927, Martineau called out the National Guard
in response to the lynching
of an African-American prisoner by a mob of 2,000 to 5,000 people in Little Rock
. The crime gained national notoriety.
Martineau never finished his term as governor, for on 2 March 1928, President Calvin Coolidge
appointed Martineau federal judge for the United States District Court for the Eastern District of Arkansas
. The appointment, recommended by then Secretary Herbert Hoover
, stood in sharp contrast to the partisanship usually evident in the selection of a federal judge. Martineau served in this position until his death in Little Rock, Arkansas
.
Martineau earned the reputation of fairness, integrity, and as a progressive politician. His role in state politics and effective management of crisis situations further secured his reputation as one of Arkansas best governors and brought him national attention.
Martineau was a member of the secret society
, Knights of Pythias
and the fraternal organization of the Freemasons
Martineau died in 1937 from Influenza
and is buried at the Roselawn Memorial Park Cemetery in Little Rock.
Arkansas
Arkansas is a state located in the southern region of the United States. Its name is an Algonquian name of the Quapaw Indians. Arkansas shares borders with six states , and its eastern border is largely defined by the Mississippi River...
, U.S.
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
, from 1927 to 1928.
John Ellis Martineau was born in Clay County, Missouri. He graduated from the University of Arkansas
University of Arkansas
The University of Arkansas is a public, co-educational, land-grant, space-grant, research university. It is classified by the Carnegie Foundation as a research university with very high research activity. It is the flagship campus of the University of Arkansas System and is located in...
in 1896 and obtained his law degree there in 1899. After graduation he served as a school administrator.
From 1902 to 1905 he served as a member of the Arkansas House of Representatives. He was appointed chancellor of the First Chancery Court in 1907 and served in that capacity until 1927.
While serving in that court he issued a writ of habeas corpus
Habeas corpus
is a writ, or legal action, through which a prisoner can be released from unlawful detention. The remedy can be sought by the prisoner or by another person coming to his aid. Habeas corpus originated in the English legal system, but it is now available in many nations...
for defendants in the criminal prosecutions arising out of the Elaine Race Riot
Elaine Race Riot
The Elaine Race Riot, also called the Elaine Massacre, occurred September 30, 1919 in the town of Elaine in Phillips County, Arkansas, in the Arkansas Delta, where sharecropping by African American farmers was prevalent on plantations of white landowners.Approximately 100 African American farmers,...
. Although the Arkansas Supreme Court later vacated that order, it allowed the defendants enough time to avoid execution and to seek habeas corpus relief in federal court. Their guilty verdicts were eventually reversed by the United States Supreme Court in its groundbreaking decision in Moore v. Dempsey
Moore v. Dempsey
Moore et al. v. Dempsey, , was a United States Supreme Court case in which the Court ruled 6-2 that the defendants' mob-dominated trials deprived them of due process guaranteed by the Due Process Clause of the Fourteenth Amendment and reversed the district court's decision declining the...
.
Martineau was elected Governor of Arkansas in the 1926 election. Martineau was the first governor of Arkansas to broadcast his inaugural address on radio. The Martineau administration established a Confederate
Confederate States of America
The Confederate States of America was a government set up from 1861 to 1865 by 11 Southern slave states of the United States of America that had declared their secession from the U.S...
pensions board and authorized state aid to cities for highway construction through the Martineau Road Plan. In 1927, Martineau was forced to deal with a major crisis when the Mississippi River
Mississippi River
The Mississippi River is the largest river system in North America. Flowing entirely in the United States, this river rises in western Minnesota and meanders slowly southwards for to the Mississippi River Delta at the Gulf of Mexico. With its many tributaries, the Mississippi's watershed drains...
broke free of its banks and covered 13% of the state during the Great Mississippi Flood of 1927
Great Mississippi Flood of 1927
The Great Mississippi Flood of 1927 was the most destructive river flood in the history of the United States.-Events:The flood began when heavy rains pounded the central basin of the Mississippi in the summer of 1926. By September, the Mississippi's tributaries in Kansas and Iowa were swollen to...
. Martineau was named president of the Tri-State Flood Commission. In the May of 1927, Martineau called out the National Guard
United States National Guard
The National Guard of the United States is a reserve military force composed of state National Guard militia members or units under federally recognized active or inactive armed force service for the United States. Militia members are citizen soldiers, meaning they work part time for the National...
in response to the lynching
Lynching
Lynching is an extrajudicial execution carried out by a mob, often by hanging, but also by burning at the stake or shooting, in order to punish an alleged transgressor, or to intimidate, control, or otherwise manipulate a population of people. It is related to other means of social control that...
of an African-American prisoner by a mob of 2,000 to 5,000 people in Little Rock
Little Rock, Arkansas
Little Rock is the capital and the largest city of the U.S. state of Arkansas. The Metropolitan Statistical Area had a population of 699,757 people in the 2010 census...
. The crime gained national notoriety.
Martineau never finished his term as governor, for on 2 March 1928, President 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...
appointed Martineau federal judge for the United States District Court for the Eastern District of Arkansas
United States District Court for the Eastern District of Arkansas
The United States District Court for the Eastern District of Arkansas is the United States District Court whose jurisdiction comprises the following counties: Arkansas, Chicot, Clay, Cleburne, Cleveland, Conway, Craighead, Conway, Crittenden, Cross, Dallas, Dehsa, Drew, Faulkner, Fulton, Grant,...
. The appointment, recommended by then Secretary Herbert Hoover
Herbert Hoover
Herbert Clark Hoover was the 31st President of the United States . Hoover was originally a professional mining engineer and author. As the United States Secretary of Commerce in the 1920s under Presidents Warren Harding and Calvin Coolidge, he promoted partnerships between government and business...
, stood in sharp contrast to the partisanship usually evident in the selection of a federal judge. Martineau served in this position until his death in Little Rock, Arkansas
Little Rock, Arkansas
Little Rock is the capital and the largest city of the U.S. state of Arkansas. The Metropolitan Statistical Area had a population of 699,757 people in the 2010 census...
.
Martineau earned the reputation of fairness, integrity, and as a progressive politician. His role in state politics and effective management of crisis situations further secured his reputation as one of Arkansas best governors and brought him national attention.
Martineau was a member of the secret society
Secret society
A secret society is a club or organization whose activities and inner functioning are concealed from non-members. The society may or may not attempt to conceal its existence. The term usually excludes covert groups, such as intelligence agencies or guerrilla insurgencies, which hide their...
, Knights of Pythias
Knights of Pythias
The Knights of Pythias is a fraternal organization and secret society founded at Washington, DC, on 19 February 1864.The Knights of Pythias was the first fraternal organization to receive a charter under an act of the United States Congress. It was founded by Justus H. Rathbone, who had been...
and the fraternal organization of the Freemasons
Martineau died in 1937 from Influenza
Influenza
Influenza, commonly referred to as the flu, is an infectious disease caused by RNA viruses of the family Orthomyxoviridae , that affects birds and mammals...
and is buried at the Roselawn Memorial Park Cemetery in Little Rock.
External links
- Encyclopedia of Arkansas History & Culture entry: John Ellis Martineau