Governor of Delaware
Buck was elected Governor of Delaware in 1928, defeating Democrat Charles M. Wharton. During this term the New York Stock Market crashed, signaling the beginning of the Great Depression. Fortunately, about the same time, Alfred I. du Pont had begun an effort to provide financial relief to those in the most need. Having failed to get such relief enacted by the Delaware General Assembly, on November 1, 1929 du Pont began mailing out personal checks of $16 to some 800 people. After spending some $350,000 of his own money, du Pont, appointed by Buck as Chairman of the Old Age Welfare Commission, persuaded the General Assembly to take over the program in late 1930. As the economic situation continued to worsen, Buck called the General Assembly into session in November 1932 and also persuaded them to pass a $2 million emergency relief measure.
Buck was elected to a second term as Governor in 1932, defeating Landreth L. Layton, the Democratic candidate, thereby becoming the first Governor to be reelected under the Delaware Constitution of 1897. In doing so he was one of only two Republican Governors elected that year, while Delaware was one of only five states voting to reelect U.S. President Herbert Hoover. In June 1932, Delaware became the seventh state to ratify the 21st Amendment to the United States Constitution, allowing the sale of alcoholic beverages. Governor Buck appointed State Tax Commissioner Pierre S. du Pont to head up a new State Liquor Commission to manage and tax the new products.
Buck continued to seek relief for the distressed state and in October 1933 called the General Assembly back into session to consider borrowing money from the Federal government. Once it was clear the General Assembly would never reach agreement on this measure, Buck took the unprecedented step of adjourning their session. Shortly thereafter teachers and state employees began taking reductions in their pay. In 1935 Buck had the State Highway Department assigned responsibility for the roads in the state that had formerly been maintained by the counties.
| Delaware General Assembly |
|||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Year | Assembly | Senate Majority | President |
House Majority | Speaker | ||||||
| 1929–1930 | 105th | Republican | William A. Simonton | Republican | Charles W. Messick | ||||||
| 1931–1932 | 106th | Republican | William A. Simonton | Republican | Bud Coy | ||||||
| 1933–1934 | 107th | Republican | William A. Simonton | Democratic | Julian T. Robinson | ||||||
| 1935–1936 | 108th | Republican | Levi G. Maloney | Republican | Harry V. Lyons | ||||||
Read more about this topic: C. Douglass Buck
Famous quotes containing the words governor of and/or governor:
“[John] Brough’s majority is “glorious to behold.” It is worth a big victory in the field. It is decisive as to the disposition of the people to prosecute the war to the end. My regiment and brigade were both unanimous for Brough [the Union party candidate for governor of Ohio].”
—Rutherford Birchard Hayes (1822–1893)
“It is better to have the power of self-protection than to depend on any man, whether he be the Governor in his chair of State, or the hunted outlaw wandering through the night, hungry and cold and with murder in his heart.”
—Lillie Devereux Blake (1835–1913)