John Long Routt

Infobox Governor
name = John Long Route

---

order = 1st & 7th
office = Governor of the State of Colorado
term_start = 1876
term_end = 1879
1891 – 1893
lieutenant = Lafayette Head (1877-1879)
William Story (1891-1893)
predecessor = Job Adams Cooper (1891)
successor = Frederick W. Pitkin (1879)
David H. Waite (1893)
birth_date = birth date|1826|4|25|mf=y
birth_place = Eddyville, Kentucky
death_date = death date and age|1907|8|13|1826|4|25
death_place = Denver, Colorado
party = Republican
spouse =
profession =
religion =

John Long Routt (April 25, 1826 - August 13, 1907) was a U.S. Republican political figure. Born in Eddyville, Kentucky, he served as the first governor of Colorado between 1876 and 1879, and again from 1891 to 1893. He also served as Mayor of Denver, Colorado from 1883 to 1885. He died in Denver, Colorado.

Early years

John Long Routt, shortly after his birth, moved to Bloomington, Illinois, where he completed his public school education. Routt became a carpenter, which was his profession through most of his life in Illinois. While living there, he was elected as Sheriff of McLean County, Illinois, his first elected position. Routt's blossoming public service career was abruptly interrupted by service in the American Civil War, during which acted as a captain in the 94th Illinois Volunteer Infantry.

Colorado's last territorial governor

U.S. President Ulysses S. Grant appointed John Routt as the Governor of the Territory of Colorado on March 29, 1875. Statehood had long been Colorado's primary interest. Thomas Patterson and Jerome Chaffee, in House Bill 435, initially provided for the creation of the Colorado state government. Routt's time as Territorial Governor was largely spent deliberating the contents of the Colorado state constitution.

Colorado's first state governor

After Colorado was established as a state, the increasingly popular Routt easily won the gubernatorial election without making a single speech in public. As the first governor, Routt tackled the major issues Colorado was facing at the time, including violence in and around the city of Creede, Colorado, as well as problems dealing with county valuations.

Routt was also very popular among the female citizenry of the state because of his strong support for women's suffrage. At one point, he arranged a speaking tour for popular women's suffragist Susan B. Anthony and personally escorted her around the state. When women in Colorado first became able to vote in 1893, his wife, Eliza, became the first woman to register to vote in Colorado history.

Later life

Following his first two terms as Governor of Colorado, Routt entered the private sector, but re-entered public service again to serve as the Mayor of Denver, Colorado from 1883 to 1885. After unsuccessfully running for the United States Senate, Routt ran successfully for the governorship again in 1891, and served as Colorado's seventh Governor until 1897. His third term was marked by a high level of disagreement within the Republicans in Colorado's state government.

Routt was buried in Denver's Riverside Cemetery.cite news|url=http://www.rockymountainnews.com/drmn/spotlight_columnists/article/0,2777,DRMN_23962_5081589,00.html|work=Rocky Mountain News|title=Pioneer Cemetery Fading|date=2006-10-15|accessdate=2007-11-28|last=Noel|first=Tom]
Routt County, Colorado is named in his honor.

ee also

*History of Colorado
*Law and Government of Colorado
*List of Governors of Colorado
*State of Colorado
*Territory of Colorado

Notes

External links

* [http://www.colorado.gov/dpa/doit/archives/offic/gov.html The Governors of Colorado @ Colorado.gov]
** [http://www.colorado.gov/dpa/doit/archives/govs/routt.html Biography of John Long Routt @ Colorado.gov]