Davis H Waite
8th Governor
Governors: Bill Ritter | Bill Owens | Roy R Romer | Richard D Lamm | John D Vanderhoof | John A Love | Stephen LR McNichols | Edwin C Johnson | Daniel IJ Thornton | Walter W Johnson | William L Knous | John C Vivian | Ralph L Carr | Teller Ammons | Ray H Talbot | Edwin C Johnson | Williams H Adams | Clarence J Morley | William Sweet | Oliver H Shoup | Julius Gunter | George Carlson | Elias M Ammons | John Shafroth | Henry Buchtel | Jesse F McDonald | James H Peabody | Alva Adams | James H Peabody | James B Orman | Charles S Thomas | Alva Adams | Albert W McIntire | Davis H Waite | John L Routt | Job A Cooper | Alva Adams | Benjamin H Eaton | James B Grant | Frederick W Pitkin | John L Routt | Territorial governors: John L Routt | Edward McCook | Samuel E Elbert | Edward McCook | Alexander C Hunter | Alexander Cummings | John Evans | William Gilpin |
Biography
By Jason Brockman
The gubernatorial election of 1892 ushered in Colorado's populist experiment under the leadership of Davis Hanson Waite. Waite and his family moved to Leadville, Colorado, in 1879 to practice law. With the death of his spouse, Waite and two children moved to Aspen, Colorado. Before his governorship Waite was involved with numerous journalistic projects like the Aspen Union Era, became Pitkin County's first superintendent of schools, and ser ved as the county's Justice of the Peace . Politically, Waite was the chairman of the Pitkin County Central Committee, secretary of the Knights of Labor Assembly, and a delegate to both the St. Louis and Omaha Populist conventions.
As governor, Waite was able to influence legislation and the political mainstream with his populist vision as espoused in his famous "Bloody Bridles" speech. Waite's main battle was with those he saw as possessing a monopoly over the common man. As such W aite supported bi-metallism and was against any form of federalized banking that he saw as benefiting a monopoly entrenched aristocracy. His tireless attacks continued against the railroad monopolies that were acquiring huge federally subsidized land gran ts, and often took advantage of their industrialized labor force. Despite his actions in the Cripple Creek Strike and correspondence with Eugene V. Debs during the Pullman Strike, Waite was opposed to socialism. Waite was also instrumental in passing the legislation that gave women the right to vote in Colorado, but after his gubernatorial loss in 1894 he reversed his opinion of women's suffrage.
After his defeat Waite spent much of his time with speaking engagements that passionately supported the Omaha Populist Party Platform and continued his journalistic endeavors in periodicals like Our Nation's Crisis. On November 27, 1901, Davis Hanson Waite died in his Aspen home while peeling apples for Thanksgiving dinner.