Arthur Whitney (politician)

Arthur Whitney (July 5, 1871 – November 19, 1942) was an American politician who served in both houses of the New Jersey Legislature and was the Republican nominee for Governor of New Jersey in 1925.

For other people with the same name, see Arthur Whitney.
Arthur Whitney
Member of the
New Jersey Senate
from Morris County
In office
1919–1925
Preceded byHarry W. Mutchler
Member of the
New Jersey General Assembly
In office
1917–1919
Personal details
BornJuly 5, 1871
Morris Plains, New Jersey
DiedNovember 19, 1942(1942-11-19) (aged 71)
Mendham Township, New Jersey
Political partyRepublican
SpouseFlorence (née Wyckoff)

Whitney was born in 1871 in Morris Plains, to Stephen and Josephine Whitney. He was educated at St. Paul's School in Concord, New Hampshire, before leaving to work at an iron plant in Harrisburg, Pennsylvania. In 1902 he became a partner at the New York brokerage firm of Goadby & Co. He left the firm in 1916 to enter New Jersey politics.[1]

From his base in Morris County, Whitney was elected to the New Jersey General Assembly in 1916 and was reelected the following year. He was elected to the New Jersey Senate in 1918, serving until 1925. In the Senate he was chairman of the Joint Legislative Committee on Appropriations.[2]

Whitney won the Republican nomination for Governor of New Jersey in 1925 over former Attorney General Thomas F. McCran, who had the support of Senator Walter Evans Edge and the regular Republican organization. In the general election Whitney faced Democratic candidate A. Harry Moore. Moore ran on a "wet" anti-Prohibition platform against Whitney, who had the support of the Anti-Saloon League. The Republican campaign focused on the undue influence of Democratic party boss Frank Hague in state government. Though Moore carried only three of the state's 21 counties, Hague secured a sizable plurality of nearly 104,000 votes in his home county of Hudson, thus ensuring Whitney's defeat.[3]

After his defeat in the gubernatorial race, Whitney retired to private life in Mendham Township.[4] Purchased by them in 1919, he and his wife, the former Florence Wyckoff, deeded the historic Phoenix House to Mendham Borough in 1938 for use as a borough hall and community house.[4] He died at his Mendham home in 1942 at the age of 71.[1]

References
  1. "Arthur Whitney, an Ex-Legislator", The New York Times, November 20, 1942. Accessed June 15, 2008.
  2. Scannell's New Jersey First Citizens, 1919-1920. J.J. Scannell, 1919.
  3. Biography of A. Harry Moore (PDF), New Jersey State Library.
  4. "Freeholders Award Historic Marker to Mendham Borough for Phoenix House Project", [[Morris County, New Jersey|]], October 3, 2017. Accessed August 30, 2022. "Mendham Township resident and former State Senator Arthur Whitney purchased the house from the Phoenix family in 1919 and turned over the house to the community in 1938. The house has served as the Borough Hall since that time."
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