Austin Peay - Governor

Governor

In 1918, Peay returned to politics to seek the Democratic Party's nomination for governor, hoping to replace the incumbent, Tom Rye, who was not seeking reelection. His opponent, Albert H. Roberts, had the support of Nashville Banner publisher E.B. Stahlman and Memphis political boss E. H. Crump, and defeated Peay in the primary by 12,000 votes.

In 1922, Peay again sought his party's nomination for governor. Crump and Stahlman supported aging former governor Benton McMillin for the nomination, though Peay had the support of Stahlman's rival, Nashville Tennessean editor Luke Lea, and Memphis grocery store magnate Clarence Saunders. Following a hard-fought campaign, Peay defeated McMillin for the nomination, 63,940 votes to 59,922. Facing charismatic Republican incumbent Alfred A. Taylor in the general election, Peay canvassed the state, relying on forceful two-hour lectures at campaign stops, as opposed to Taylor's vaudeville-like stump appearances. On election day, he defeated Taylor 141,002 votes to 102,586.

By the time Peay took office, Tennessee was struggling with a $3 million state debt and an outdated tax code that relied heavily on property taxes. The state had just 244 miles (393 km) of paved roads and few bridges, and its education system was ranked last in several categories. State government functions were scattered across sixty-four departments, many of which the governor had little control over.

Following his inauguration in early 1923, Peay convinced the legislature to pass the Administrative Reorganization Act, which enabled him to make many of his later reforms. The measure consolidated the state's sixty-four departments into eight centralized departments: Finance and Taxation (now the Tennessee Department of Revenue), Agriculture, Highways and Public Works (now the Tennessee Department of Transportation), Education, Health, Institutions (now the Tennessee Department of Correction), Labor (now the Tennessee Department of Labor and Workforce Development), and Insurance and Banking (now the Tennessee Department of Financial Institutions). Each new department was headed by a commissioner, who answered to the governor, and whom the governor had the power to hire and fire. The measure also gave the governor control over the state budget.

To update the state's antiquated tax code, Peay signed measures lowering property taxes while placing new taxes on corporate profits. He gained a reputation as a budget watchdog, following a strict policy of paying for projects with available funding as opposed to bond issues. By his third term, the state's $3 million debt had become a $1.2 million surplus.

To expand the state's highway system, Peay installed professional engineer James G. Creveling as his Highways and Public Works commissioner. He implemented a 2% tax on gasoline and automobile registration fees to finance new road construction. By the time of Peay's death in 1927, Tennessee's highways had expanded from just 244 miles (393 km) to over 4,000 miles (6,400 km), including one highway connecting Memphis and Bristol at opposite ends of the state. Seventeen new bridges were also constructed.

By the 1924 governor's race, Clarence Saunders, Peay's key supporter from 1922, was struggling financially, and was unable to help Peay's reelection effort. Peay obtained the support of Crump, however, by offering to locate the University of Tennessee's new medical school in Memphis. Stahlman refused to support the same candidate as his rival, Lea, however, and turned to fringe candidate John R. Neal. After easily defeating Neal in the primary, Peay defeated the Republican candidate, Thomas Peck, 152,000 votes to 121,238, in the general election.

At the beginning of his second term, Peay turned to education reform by enacting the Education Act of 1925. He expanded the school year to eight months (funded by a new tax on tobacco products), established licensing requirements and salary schedules for teachers, and increased funding for the University of Tennessee. During his tenure, the state's school system began shifting away from one-room rural schoolhouses to larger, more centralized schools. The state also authorized the establishment of a normal school (modern Austin Peay State University) in Clarksville and an agricultural institute (modern University of Tennessee at Martin) in Martin.

Peay dedicated Reelfoot Lake in Obion County (which had come under public control in 1914 following a lengthy and violent dispute) as a hunting and fishing reserve in 1925. This reserve was the basis for the modern Reelfoot Lake State Park. Peay created the Tennessee State Parks and Forestry Commission that same year, and convinced the legislature to appropriate $1.5 million for the purchase of land in what would eventually become the Great Smoky Mountains National Park.

In March 1925, Peay signed the Butler Act, banning the teaching of the Theory of Evolution in the state's schools. Peay stressed that he signed the law to protest the decline of religion in public schools, and did not believe it would be enforced. This law was challenged that summer by Dayton teacher John T. Scopes and the American Civil Liberties Union in what became known as the Scopes Trial. This trial brought national media attention (and scrutiny) to the state.

By the time the governor's race of 1926 began, Peay's reforms had angered numerous members of his own party. Crump, Nashville political boss Hilary Howse, and even his old benefactor, Saunders, had all turned against him, and had thrown their support behind Hill McAlister, who promised to undo Peay's reforms and decentralize the government. Responding to the rising opposition, Peay simply stated, "Crump can't beat me." Though he lost Shelby and Davidson counties, Peay picked up support in East Tennessee, and stunned Crump and his allies by defeating McAlister by 7,000 votes for the party's nomination. In the general election, he easily defeated Republican candidate Walter White.

Shortly after the beginning of his third term, Peay began suffering from a heart ailment. He continued working, however, vetoing a bill that would have given state legislators bonuses. When the legislature overrode his veto, he sued the legislature as a private citizen to prevent the measure from being enacted. His health continued to decline, and he died from a cerebral hemorrhage on the afternoon of October 2, 1927. He was buried in Greenwood Cemetery in his hometown of Clarksville.