Benjamin Franklin Shively (March 20, 1857 – March 14, 1916) was an American politician and lawyer who served as a United States Representative (1884 to 1885 and 1887 to 1893) and Senator (1909 to 1916) from Indiana.

Benjamin Franklin Shively
Shively in 1913
United States Senator
from Indiana
In office
March 4, 1909 – March 14, 1916
Preceded byJames A. Hemenway
Succeeded byThomas Taggart
Member of the U.S. House of Representatives
from Indiana's 13th district
In office
December 1, 1884 – March 3, 1885
Preceded byWilliam H. Calkins
Succeeded byGeorge Ford
In office
March 4, 1887 – March 3, 1893
Preceded byGeorge Ford
Succeeded byCharles G. Conn
Personal details
Born(1857-03-20)March 20, 1857
Osceola, Indiana
DiedMarch 14, 1916(1916-03-14) (aged 58)
Washington, D.C.
NationalityAmerican
Political partyDemocratic
Anti-Monopoly (1884)
Alma materNorthern Indiana Normal School
University of Michigan at Ann Arbor
ProfessionAttorney

Biography

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Early life, education, and career

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Shively was born on a farm near Osceola, Indiana, to Rev. Joel Shively and Elizabeth (née Pendleton) Shively. Joel Shively was the son of Rev. George Shively, who arrived in Indiana in 1864 after living in Washington County, Pennsylvania, and Stark County, Ohio. Elizabeth Pendleton was a native of Somerset County, Pennsylvania.[1]

 
Shively c. 1880s

Benjamin Shively attended the common schools and the Northern Indiana Normal School at Valparaiso. After considering a career as a carpenter, Shively taught school from 1874 to 1880. From 1880 to 1884, Shively edited the Era, a newspaper in St. Joseph County. He was secretary of the National Anti-Monopoly Association in 1883. In 1884 he was president of the board of Indiana University and was elected as a National Anti-Monopolist to the Forty-eighth Congress to fill the vacancy caused by the resignation of William H. Calkins, serving from December 1, 1884, to March 3, 1885.[1]

Shively graduated from the Law School of the University of Michigan at Ann Arbor in 1886, was admitted to the bar, and commenced practice in South Bend, Indiana.[1]

Congressional service

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He was elected as a Democrat to the Fiftieth, Fifty-first, and Fifty-second Congresses, serving from March 4, 1887, to March 4, 1893; he was not a candidate for renomination in 1892, and resumed the practice of law in South Bend. He was an unsuccessful Democratic candidate for Governor of Indiana in 1896, and was an unsuccessful candidate for election in 1906 to the Sixtieth Congress; in 1909 he was elected to the U.S. Senate, was reelected in 1914 and served from March 4, 1909, until his death. While in the Senate he was chairman of the Committee on Pacific Railroads (Sixty-second Congress) and a member of the Committee on Pensions (Sixty-third and Sixty-fourth Congresses).[1]

Shively came to prominence in the Senate as chairman of the Committee on Foreign Relations. Shively personally advised President Woodrow Wilson on the situation in Mexico during the Mexican Revolution. Shively was a noted political ally and vocal supporter of the Wilson administration.[1]

Personal life and death

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In 1888, Shively married Laura Jenks, daughter of George A. Jenks, the former Solicitor General of the United States under President Grover Cleveland. They had thee children: George, John, and Mary.[1]

Shively was a trustee of Indiana State University in Terre Haute. He was also an Elk.[1]

Shively died in Washington, D.C., and was interred in the Brookville Cemetery, Brookville, Pennsylvania. Vice President Thomas R. Marshall and Second Lady Lois Irene Marshall attended Shively's funeral. President Wilson sent Laura Shively a letter expressing his condolences. Indiana Governor Samuel M. Ralston appointed Thomas Taggart to fill Shively's vacant Senate seat.[1]

See also

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References

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  1. ^ a b c d e f g h "Ralston Praises Work of Shively For Public". The Indianapolis News. 15 Mar 1916.
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Party political offices
Preceded by Democratic nominee for Governor of Indiana
1896
Succeeded by
First Democratic nominee for U.S. Senator from Indiana
(Class 3)

1914
Succeeded by
U.S. House of Representatives
Preceded by Member of the U.S. House of Representatives
from Indiana's 13th congressional district

1884–1885
Succeeded by
Preceded by Member of the U.S. House of Representatives
from Indiana's 13th congressional district

1887–1893
Succeeded by
U.S. Senate
Preceded by U.S. senator from Indiana
March 4, 1909 – March 14, 1916
Succeeded by