Stuart, Edwin S. (Edwin Sydney), 1853-1937

Edwin S. Stuart, a prominent Philadelphia Republican politician, was born in Philadelphia on December 28, 1853. In just over a decade Stuart moved from errand boy to owner of Leary's Book Store and in 1877 Stuart moved Leary's to near 9th and Market Streets, Philadelphia.

Stuart's political career began with membership in the Young Republicans of Philadelphia in 1880. In two years Stuart ascended to the club presidency. By 1886 Stuart was elected to city council and five years later captured the office of mayor. Stuart served one term as governor of Pennsylvania (1907-1911), where he gained recognition for fighting fraud in government.

From the description of Personal papers, 1863-1937. (Temple University Libraries). WorldCat record id: 122635528

Edwin Sydney Stuart (1853-1937) was a Philadelphia businessman and politician during the late 19th and early 20th centuries. In addition to owning and operating a successful bookstore, Stuart also served as mayor of Philadelphia from 1891 to 1995 and governor of Pennsylvania from 1907 to 1911.

Edwin Sydney Stuart was born December 28, 1853 to Hugh and Anna P. Newman Stuart. He was educated from the age of six to the age of fourteen at the Southwest Grammar School in Philadelphia. After finishing his education, he began work for Leary’s bookstore, as an errand boy or a “boy-of-all-work.” His subsequent rise to salesman and then manager during the illness of W.A. Leary, culminated in his purchasing the company following the death of Leary.

Stuart became politically active in 1880, during President James A. Garfield’s campaign. He applied for membership in the Young Republicans of Philadelphia and quickly became treasurer. Two years later, in 1882, he was elected president, a position he retained until resigning in 1891, and “beloved and respected by its thousand or more members, Mr. Stuart guided the organization through many triumphs in the National and State campaigns in which it … figured,” (Encyclopaedia, page 71). He also participated in the State League of Republican Clubs, serving as president from 1884 to 1886. In 1886, he was elected to represent the Twenty-sixth Ward in the Select Council of Philadelphia (later renamed City Council), a position he held until 1891.

It was in 1891 that he was elected Mayor of Philadelphia, not only as the youngest man in Philadelphia history to hold the office but also, with the distinction of being nominated unanimously by the Republican Party. Under his tenure, “Philadelphia made greater progress in municipal improvements … than in that of any of his predecessors, and he carried through important measures of reform against the severest opposition,” (Morris, page 32). His service was not without difficulties: he was forced to fire both the city’s treasurer, John Bardsley, for mismanaging public funds which resulted in the collapse of several banks, and the Director of Public Safety. Despite these troubles, Stuart gained respect for his “no-nonsense approach,” (PMHC). Stuart was also lauded for his work with public transportation costs; service on Girard College’s Board and the Board of City Trusts; and service as member of the Electoral College of Pennsylvania. His term as mayor ended in 1895.

Following his tenure as Mayor of Philadelphia, Stuart served as president of the Union League of Philadelphia in 1906. He also met and worked with Boise Penrose which resulted in his running for governor against Democrat Lewis Emery Jr.

Stuart was elected Governor of Pennsylvania in the fall of 1906, was inaugurated on January 14, 1907 and served until 1911. While serving as governor, Stuart “helped investigate and prosecute guilty parties in the case [concerning] key officials [inflating] costs for construction of the new State Capitol and in turn … bill[ing] the state for unjustified charges,” (National Governors’ Association). During his tenure, he “applied his leadership in the campaign against tuberculosis, at the time the nation’s leading cause of death, and the improvement of the state’s common school system,” (PHMC). Stuart’s efforts as governor resulted in the State Museum of Pennsylvania, the Pennsylvania Farm Show and expansion and regulation of highways, railroads and communication lines in the state.

Following his tenure as governor, Stuart declined continued activity in politics, but remained an active citizen. In addition to running his bookstore, Stuart served as president of Philadelphia Board of City Trusts, on the board of, and later deputy governor of, the Federal Reserve Bank of Philadelphia, as president of the Union League of Philadelphia, and as a member of the Pennsylvania Society of New York. Stuart died on March 21, 1937.

Bibliography:

Encyclopaedia of Contemporary Biography of Pennsylvania, Volume III . New York: Atlantic Publishing & Engraving Co., 1898.

Morris, Charles, editor. Men of the Century, an Historical Work: Giving Portraits and Sketches of Eminent Citizens of the United States . Philadelphia: L.R. Hamersly & Co., 1896.

National Governors’ Association, (http://tinyurl.com/yfhdkuo), accessed May 20, 2011

Pennsylvania Historical and Museum Commission (http://www.portal.state.pa.us/portal/server.pt/community/1879-1951/4284/edwin_sydney_stuart/469108), accessed May 20, 2011.

From the guide to the Edwin S. Stuart papers, 1884-1937, (Temple University Libraries Special Collections Research Center)