William Larrabee was a Republican

Republican Party of Iowa

The Republican Party of Iowa is the affiliate of the United States Republican Party in Iowa. The State Central Committee is led by Chairman Matt Strawn and Co-Chairman Bill Schickel...

 politician from Iowa

Iowa

Iowa is a state located in the Midwestern United States, an area often referred to as the "American Heartland". It derives its name from the Ioway people, one of the many American Indian tribes that occupied the state at the time of European exploration. Iowa was a part of the French colony of New...

. He served as the 13th Governor of Iowa from 1886 until 1890.

Early life

Larrabee was born in Ledyard, Connecticut

Ledyard, Connecticut

As of the census of 2000, there were 14,687 people, 5,286 households, and 4,101 families residing in the town. The population density was 385.1 people per square mile . There were 5,486 housing units at an average density of 143.8 per square mile...

, into a family of French

France

The French Republic , The French Republic , The French Republic , (commonly known as France , is a unitary semi-presidential republic in Western Europe with several overseas territories and islands located on other continents and in the Indian, Pacific, and Atlantic oceans. Metropolitan France...

 Huguenot

Huguenot

The Huguenots were members of the Protestant Reformed Church of France during the 16th and 17th centuries. Since the 17th century, people who formerly would have been called Huguenots have instead simply been called French Protestants, a title suggested by their German co-religionists, the...

 extraction. His father, Adam Larrabee (1787–1869), was a West Point

United States Military Academy

The United States Military Academy at West Point is a four-year coeducational federal service academy located at West Point, New York. The academy sits on scenic high ground overlooking the Hudson River, north of New York City...

 graduate and an accomplished soldier, who served with distinction in the War of 1812

War of 1812

The War of 1812 was a military conflict fought between the forces of the United States of America and those of the British Empire. The Americans declared war in 1812 for several reasons, including trade restrictions because of Britain's ongoing war with France, impressment of American merchant...

. His mother was Hannah (née Lester).

Larrabee was the seventh of nine children, and grew up on his father's Connecticut

Connecticut

Connecticut is a state in the New England region of the northeastern United States. It is bordered by Rhode Island to the east, Massachusetts to the north, and the state of New York to the west and the south .Connecticut is named for the Connecticut River, the major U.S. river that approximately...

 farm. He was educated in local schools until the age of 19. At around age 15 Larrabee lost the eyesight in his right eye after a gun

Gun

A gun is a muzzle or breech-loaded projectile-firing weapon. There are various definitions depending on the nation and branch of service. A "gun" may be distinguished from other firearms in being a crew-served weapon such as a howitzer or mortar, as opposed to a small arm like a rifle or pistol,...

 he was holding accidentally discharged. As a result, he was unfit for many careers available to young men of his class in New England

New England

New England is a region in the northeastern corner of the United States consisting of the six states of Maine, New Hampshire, Vermont, Massachusetts, Rhode Island, and Connecticut...

. Larrabee chose to become a teacher. In 1853, at age 21, he moved to Iowa following an older sister in search of opportunity.

In Iowa, Larrabee taught school for a few years, but soon after his arrival established himself as a successful miller, banker, and farmer in Clermont

Clermont, Iowa

Clermont is a city in Fayette County, Iowa, United States. The population was 716 at the 2000 census. Clermont is home to Montauk, the mansion of former Iowa governor William Larrabee, along with much historic architecture...

. He attempted to enlist at the outbreak of 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...

, but was rejected on account of his disability. Larrabee prospered in business and eventually became of one of the biggest landowners in the state.

Political career

Larrabee entered politics in 1867, having bypassed local politics. He was elected to the Iowa Senate

Iowa Senate

The Iowa Senate is the upper house of the Iowa General Assembly. There are 50 members of the Senate, representing 50 single-member districts across the state with populations of approximately 59,500 per constituency. Each Senate district is composed of two House districts...

 as a Republican, after helping organize the newly created party in Iowa. Larrabee was reelected many times, sometimes without even nominal Democratic

Iowa Democratic Party

The Iowa Democratic Party is the local branch of the Democratic Party in the state of Iowa.-Current elected officials:Iowa Democrats are in control of the Iowa Senate, one of the state's United States Senate seats, and three out of the state's five United States House of Representatives seats. ...

 opposition. While a legislator, Larrabee served on several committees, and eventually came to chair the influential Ways and Means committee.

He was elected as Governor in 1885 succeeding Buren R. Sherman

Buren R. Sherman

Buren Robinson Sherman was the 12th Governor of Iowa, serving from 1882 to 1886.-Biography:Sherman was born in Phelps, Ontario County, New York on May 28, 1836....

, and served two two-year terms, from January 14, 1886 until February 27, 1890.

The byline of his first campaign was "a schoolhouse on every hill and no saloons in the valley." In the general election he faced Democrat Charles Whiting

Charles Whiting

Charles Whiting , was a British writer and military historian and with some 350 books of fiction and non-fiction to his credit, under his own name and a variety of pseudonyms including Duncan Harding, John Kerrigan, Klaus Konrad and Leo Kessler.Born in the Bootham area of York, England, he was a...

, who attempted to portray Larrabee as an unredeemed capitalist and owners of many locals' debts. The election was relatively close, but Larrabee won with 175,504 votes to Whiting's 168,502.

After serving two terms as governor, Larrabee retired to Montauk, his family mansion in Clermont. He served in several minor public roles after retiring. At the end of his life he supported Theodore Roosevelt

Theodore Roosevelt

Theodore "Teddy" Roosevelt was the 26th President of the United States . He is noted for his exuberant personality, range of interests and achievements, and his leadership of the Progressive Movement, as well as his "cowboy" persona and robust masculinity...

 and the Bull Moose

Progressive Party (United States, 1912)

The Progressive Party of 1912 was an American political party. It was formed after a split in the Republican Party between President William Howard Taft and former President Theodore Roosevelt....

 faction of the Republican party.

Personal life

Larrabee married Anna Matilda Appleman on September 12, 1861. The Larrabees had seven children: Charles, Augusta, Julia, Anna, William Jr., Frederic and Helen. Julia married Don Lathrop Love

Don Lathrop Love

Don Lathrop Love was mayor of Lincoln, Nebraska in two non-consecutive terms, 1909–11 and 1929-31. He was born in Janesville, Wisconsin, on March 7, 1863, and died in Lincoln on September 12, 1940....

, future Republican mayor of Lincoln, Nebraska

Lincoln, Nebraska

The City of Lincoln is the capital and the second-most populous city of the US state of Nebraska. Lincoln is also the county seat of Lancaster County and the home of the University of Nebraska. Lincoln's 2010 Census population was 258,379....

.

Larrabee had a large library and was fond of reading. He also experimented with fruit growing and liked to travel, at one point spending several months in Europe

Europe

Europe is, by convention, one of the world's seven continents. Comprising the westernmost peninsula of Eurasia, Europe is generally 'divided' from Asia to its east by the watershed divides of the Ural and Caucasus Mountains, the Ural River, the Caspian and Black Seas, and the waterways connecting...

 and Palestine

Palestine

Palestine is a conventional name, among others, used to describe the geographic region between the Mediterranean Sea and the Jordan River, and various adjoining lands....

 in 1873.

Larrabee was a Methodist

Methodism

Methodism is a movement of Protestant Christianity represented by a number of denominations and organizations, claiming a total of approximately seventy million adherents worldwide. The movement traces its roots to John Wesley's evangelistic revival movement within Anglicanism. His younger brother...

.

Larrabee died on November 16, 1912, and was buried at God's Acre Cemetery in Clermont alongside his wife.

Sources