Morgan Gardner Bulkeley

1837 – 1922

Morgan Gardner Bulkeley

Morgan G. Bulkeley was president of Aetna Life Insurance. During his 43-year tenure, he grew Aetna into one of the nation’s most successful financial institutions. Its assets rose from $25 to $200 million and the number of employees increased from 29 to 1,500.

Bulkeley was also a prominent Republican politician. He served as Hartford mayor from 1879 to 1887. He was Connecticut’s Governor from 1889 to 1893 and U. S. Senator from 1905 to 1911.

Election of 1888

During the election of 1888, Democratic candidate Luzon B. Morris received the most votes. But neither Morris nor Bulkeley obtained more than fifty percent of the vote as required. The Republican Legislature decided the governorship in favor of Bulkeley.

Two years later, there again was no clear-cut gubernatorial winner. With the General Assembly equally split, a winner was not declared.
Bulkeley, who had not been renominated by his party, responded to the situation by refusing to relinquish the Governor’s office. He saw it as his duty to remain until a successor was named.

Crowbar Governor

To encourage Bulkeley to resign, the State Comptroller chained and padlocked the Governor’s office. Bulkeley used a crowbar to gain access. This earned him the nickname “Crowbar Governor.”

The election question was taken to the state supreme court where Bulkeley was legally declared governor. He served a second two-year-term.

National Baseball Association President

In 1874 and 1875, Bulkeley served as president of the Hartford Dark Blues, a baseball team of the National Baseball Association. In 1876, he was elected as the National League’s first president. He was elected posthumously to the Baseball Hall of Fame in 1937.

Location:
Section 1, Lot 17

References:

Baseball Hall of Fame. Accessed at http://baseballhall.org/hof/bulkeley-morgan

Hartford Courant. “Ex-Sen Morgan G. Bulkeley Dies Following Brief Illness.” November 7, 1922

Wikipedia.  Morgan Bulkeley. Accessed at  http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Morgan_Bulkeley


Photo Credit:

Morgan Gardner Bulkeley, public domain