Richard Yates, Jr.

Richard Yates, Jr. ( born December 12, 1860 in Jacksonville, Illinois, † April 11, 1936 in Springfield, Illinois ) was an American politician and from 1901 to 1905 the 22nd Governor of Illinois. He also represented this State as a delegate in Congress.

Early years and political rise

Richard Yates Jr. was the son of Richard Yates Sr., who was governor of Illinois during the Civil War. By 1880, Yates attended the Illinois College. He then studied at the University of Michigan law. After successful examination and his admission to the bar in 1884, he practiced in Jacksonville. Between 1878 and 1883 he was a newspaper publisher and brought out two local newspapers. In 1885, Yates was for the next five years attorney for the city of Jacksonville. Between 1894 and 1897 he was a judge in Morgan County, and from 1897 to 1900, he served as head of the Federal Tax Office in Springfield. In 1900 he was nominated by the Republican Party as a candidate for the upcoming gubernatorial election.

Governor of Illinois

After successful election Yates took up his new post on January 14, 1901. In his four-year tenure, he had to deal with race riots in 1902 in Saline County. To restore order and protect the black population, therefore, the National Guard was used. A bill to legalize horse racing in Illinois was stopped by the governor with its veto. On May 15, 1903 a law against child labor was adopted in Illinois. Illinois was the first U.S. state who introduced the 8-hour day and the 48 hour work week for child labor. It was for that time a step forward. In December 1903 were killed in Chicago in a fire in a theater 571 people. As a result, the safety conditions were improved by law not only in Illinois, but throughout the United States.

Further CV

In 1904, Yates applied unsuccessfully to re- nomination of his party for the office of governor. Therefore, he had to resign from his post on January 9, 1905. He remained politically active in the following years. Both in 1908 and in 1912 he applied unsuccessfully for a return to the governorship. From 1914 to 1917 he was a member of the state Versorgungssausschusses (public utilities commission ). Then he spent two years as Deputy Attorney General of Illinois. Between 1919 and 1933 he represented his state in the U.S. House of Representatives. After leaving Congress, he retired to Springfield, where he wrote his memoirs, and finally died. He was married to Helen Wadsworth, with whom he had two children.