William E. Glasscock (1862-1925)

William E. Glasscock was born in 1862 in Monongalia County, near Arnettsville. He attended West Virginia University (WVU) before teaching at local schools for four years. In 1887, he was elected Superintendent of Public Schools in Monongalia County and served this role for four years. Glasscock then served as County Clerk and acquired a law degree from WVU in 1903. Through his service as an attorney for Senator Stephen B. Elkins, Glasscock made many connections in the Republican Party. Thanks to recommendations from Republican lawmakers, the lawyer was appointed Collector of Internal Revenue for the District of West Virginia. Glasscock held this position from 1905 until 1908, when he resigned to run for governor in West Virginia. Glasscock defeated his opponent, Louis Bennett, becoming the thirteenth governor of West Virginia.

As governor, Glasscock focused primarily on issues of public services, workers rights, and political reform. Under his leadership, medical examinations became a requirement for all West Virginia public school students and a tuberculosis sanitarium was created. A public service commission, the Department of Agriculture, and the Department of Public Roads were also established during Glasscock's term. Glasscock advocated for workers by taxing natural gas companies, creating new mine safety laws, and enacting worker's compensation laws. Another major interest of the governor was ameliorating the political system. He pushed for free and fair elections, opposed lobbying practices, and sponsored anti-trust legislation.

Though Glasscock developed a strong following for his progressive policies, his term as governor was also marred by several events that attracted national attention. In 1911, the Democratically controlled West Virginia House of Delegates was poised to name not one, but two new United States Senators. This was because senators were chosen by state legislatures until the Seventeenth Amendment was passed in 1913, which made federal senator positions elected posts. Several Republican house members hid in Glasscock's office to prevent a quorum from being present in a legislative session. Without a quorum to allow a vote, no new senators could be chosen. When the sergeant-at-arms attempted to capture the insubordinate lawmakers, they boarded a train to Cincinnati and escaped. The incident became a national talking point and underscored political party power struggles and the inefficiency of the West Virginia legislature.

The other series of incidents that negatively impacted Glasscock's image occurred in the last year of his governorship. Kanawha Valley coal companies refused to negotiate with striking workers and responded to the labor force by heavily arming mine guards. The striking workers followed suit and bloody skirmishes began. Glasscock declared martial law in summer 1912 and moved 1,200 militia members into Kanawha Valley. The militia successfully confiscated weapons and eased tensions, but only temporarily. Over the next year, Glasscock was forced to declare martial law twice more. He was criticized for heavy-handed and unconstitutional responses, though the West Virginia Supreme Court later ruled that Glasscock's actions were legal.

After Glasscock's term ended in 1913, he returned to Morgantown to continue practicing law. However, governorship had taken a severe toll on his mental and physical health. Glasscock never fully recovered and died in 1925. The politician's progressive but forceful ideas about public service is captured in a quote from his inauguration speech; "Government is the machinery invoked and devised by man for his benefit and protection."1 Glasscock saw great potential for the people of West Virginia and was willing to accomplish his vision using whatever means were available to him.

1. Glasscock, William E. Inaugural Address of Governor William E. Glasscock, West Virginia Department of Arts, History and Culture. March 4th 1909. Accessed September 9th 2020. http://www.wvculture.org/history/government/governors/glasscockia.html.

Gov. William E. Glasscock, National Governors Association. Accessed September 9th 2020. https://www.nga.org/governor/william-e-glasscock/.

Little, Glade. William Ellsworth Glasscock, The West Virginia Encyclopedia. May 16th 2016. Accessed September 9th 2020. https://www.wvencyclopedia.org/articles/2119.

West Virginia State Archives. William Ellsworth Glasscock, West Virginia Department of Arts, Culture and History. Accessed September 9th 2020. http://www.wvculture.org/history/government/governors/glasscoc.html.