Lorenzo Dow Lewelling was the 12th Governor of Kansas

Governor of Kansas

The Governor of the State of Kansas is the head of state for the State of Kansas, United States. Under the Kansas Constitution, the Governor is also the head of government, serving as the chief executive of the Kansas executive branch, of the government of Kansas. The Governor is the...

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Early life

Lewelling was born to William Lewelling, an abolitionist who died soon after making an empassioned speech in Indiana. Lewelling was raised by his widowed mother and struggled to gain an education.

Civil War

Following the Civil War

American Civil War

The American Civil War was a civil war fought in the United States of America. In response to the election of Abraham Lincoln as President of the United States, 11 southern slave states declared their secession from the United States and formed the Confederate States of America ; the other 25...

, Lewelling became a teacher at Whittier College in Salem, Iowa

Salem, Iowa

Salem is a city in Henry County, Iowa, United States. The population was 464 at the 2000 census.-Geography:Salem is located at .According to the United States Census Bureau, the city has a total area of , all of it land....

. He was known as an excellent lecturer and frequently gave public recitals of poetry.

Professional career

Lewelling was superintendent of the girls department of the state reform school in Iowa before moving to Wichita, Kansas

Wichita, Kansas

Wichita is the largest city in the U.S. state of Kansas.As of the 2010 census, the city population was 382,368. Located in south-central Kansas on the Arkansas River, Wichita is the county seat of Sedgwick County and the principal city of the Wichita metropolitan area...

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Governor of Kansas

Lewelling presided over a state that was largely in the control of the Populists

Populist Party (United States)

The People's Party, also known as the "Populists", was a short-lived political party in the United States established in 1891. It was most important in 1892-96, then rapidly faded away...

. However, the Legislature

Kansas Legislature

The Kansas Legislature is the state legislature of the U.S. state of Kansas. It is a bicameral assembly, composed of the lower Kansas House of Representatives, composed of 125 Representatives, and the upper Kansas Senate, with 40 Senators...

 was divided into two sections, one claimed by the Populists and one claimed by the Republicans

Republican Party (United States)

The Republican Party is one of the two major contemporary political parties in the United States, along with the Democratic Party. Founded by anti-slavery expansion activists in 1854, it is often called the GOP . The party's platform generally reflects American conservatism in the U.S...

. Lewelling, of course, only recognized the Populist-controlled House

Kansas House of Representatives

The Kansas House of Representatives is the lower house of the Kansas Legislature, the legislative body of the U.S. State of Kansas. Composed of 125 state representatives from districts with roughly equal populations of at least 19,000, its members are responsible for crafting and voting on...

. Despite the fact that both groups met in the same chamber at different times, conflict was certain to occur. This led to the "Legislative War", until the Kansas Supreme Court

Kansas Supreme Court

The Kansas Supreme Court is the highest judicial authority in the state of Kansas. Composed of seven justices, led by Chief Justice Lawton Nuss, the Court supervises the legal profession, administers over the judicial branch, and serves as the state court of last resort in the appeals...

 decided in favor of the Republican-controlled House.

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