James Bradley Orman

James Bradley Orman

James Bradley Orman (November 4, 1849, to July 21, 1919) was an American politician and railroad builder. He served as governor of Colorado from 1901 to 1903. He was a Democrat.

Orman was born in Muscatine, Iowa and grew up on his family's farm there. In 1869, he moved to Colorado at the age of 20, along with his brother William. The brothers soon started a construction company which, though it did a variety of projects, was most famous for building railroads, particularly in Colorado and Kansas.

James Orman moved to Pueblo, Colorado in 1874, and soon entered politics. He was elected to several terms in the Colorado state legislature and the Pueblo city council, and he served as mayor of Pueblo from 1897 to 1898. In 1883 the state democratic party nominated him to the United States Senate, but the state legislature, which chose senators at that time, elected Thomas M. Bowen over James Orman by three votes.

Orman became the democratic nominee for governor in 1900. Though Colorado was generally a Republican state, the Republican Party was divided over the free silver controversy, and the United States Populist Party, though in decline, was still a prominent third party in Colorado. When the Silver Republicans and populists endorsed Orman, he was elected easily.

The greatest problem during his administration was a dispute between miners and a mining company. On May 1, 1901, 350 miners led by Vincent Saint John, and organized by the Western Federation of Miners, walked away from their jobs at the Smuggler-Union mine in Telluride. Their walkout was a protest of a new method of payment, called "contracting", or "fathoms", which could sometimes result in a miner doing thirty days worth of digging, and getting paid nothing for the work. But the contract system was worse than that; if the miner received no pay due to failing to perform according to the contract, then he owed money to the company for tools and powder.The Corpse On Boomerang Road, Telluride's War On Labor 1899-1908, MaryJoy Martin, 2004, page 31 and 41.

A shooting war was triggered when one of the strikers, believed to have been unarmed, had been shot through the throat by a deputized mine guard. In spite of intense pressure from others, Lieutenant Governor David C. Coates helped to persuade Governor Orman not to send the Colorado National Guard. Coates volunteered to mediate, and he was dispatched by the governor to be part of a commission sent to Telluride to investigate the issues that caused the walkout. Vincent St. John and mine operator Arthur L. Collins finally met across the table, and the commission was able to effect a settlement between the miners and the company, resulting in more than a year of labor peace in San Miguel County's silver mines.The Corpse On Boomerang Road, Telluride's War On Labor 1899-1908, MaryJoy Martin, 2004, pages 65-67, 78-79, and 85-87.

Orman served one two-year term, as most Colorado governors did at that time.

After his term as governor he moved back to Pueblo and retired from politics, but was active in business. Following his death, he was buried in Pueblo.

Orman was married to Nellie Martin from 1877 until her death in 1917. They had two children, Frederick and Edna.

External links

* [http://colorado.gov/dpa/doit/archives/govs/orman.html#biog James B. Orman ] at colorado.gov

Notes


Wikimedia Foundation. 2010.

Игры ⚽ Нужен реферат?

Look at other dictionaries:

  • James Bradley Orman — James Orman James Bradley Orman (* 4. November 1849 in Muscatine, Muscatine County, Iowa; † 21. Juli 1919) war ein US amerikanischer Politiker (Demokratische Partei) und von 1901 bis 1903 der 12. Gouverneur des …   Deutsch Wikipedia

  • James Bradley (disambiguation) — James Bradley may refer to:*James Bradley (1693 ndash;1762), English astronomer * Lt.James Howard Bradley (1844 ndash;1877), American soldier (7th Infantry) *James Bradley, Australian author *Jim Bradley (born 1945), Canadian politician *Jim… …   Wikipedia

  • James Orman — James Bradley Orman (* 4. November 1849 in Muscatine, Muscatine County, Iowa; † 21. Juli 1919) war ein US amerikanischer Politiker (Demokratische Partei) und von 1901 bis 1903 der 12. Gouverneur des Bundesstaates Colorado. Inhaltsverzeichnis …   Deutsch Wikipedia

  • Orman — may refer to: Surname: Aldona Orman (born 1968), a Polish actress Alen Orman (born 1978), an association football player for Austria Harry Orman Robinson, an American football coach Jack Orman, an American television writer, producer and director …   Wikipedia

  • Charles S. Thomas — This article is about the governor of Colorado. For other uses, see Charles Thomas (disambiguation). Charles Spalding Thomas 11th Governor of the State of Colorado In office 1899–1901 Preceded by Al …   Wikipedia

  • List of people from Iowa — This is a list of notable people who were born in or closely associated with the state of Iowa. People not born in Iowa are marked with §. Contents: Top · 0–9 · A B C D E F G H I J K L M N O P Q R S T U V W X …   Wikipedia

  • Governor of Colorado — Incumbent John Hickenlooper since January 11, 2011 …   Wikipedia

  • Haggott — Warren Armstrong Haggott (* 18. Mai 1864 bei Sidney, Ohio; † 29. April 1958 in Denver, Colorado) war ein US amerikanischer Politiker (Republikanische Partei). Er vertrat den Bundesstaat Colorado im US Repräsentantenhaus und war dessen… …   Deutsch Wikipedia

  • Liste Des Gouverneurs Du Colorado — Liste des gouverneurs de l État du Colorado : Territoire du Colorado William Gilpin Premier gouverneur (officiel) du territoire du Colorado. Nom Début du mandat Fin du m …   Wikipédia en Français

  • Liste des gouverneurs du Colorado — Gouverneur du Colorado (en) Governor of Colorado Titulaire actuel John Hickenlooper depuis le 11 janvier 2011 …   Wikipédia en Français

Share the article and excerpts

Direct link
Do a right-click on the link above
and select “Copy Link”