John C. B. Ehringhaus
58th governor of North Carolina
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John Christoph Blucher Ehringhaus (February 5, 1882 – July 31, 1949) was an American politician who served as the 58th governor of North Carolina, serving from 1933 to 1937.
John C. B. Ehringhaus | |
|---|---|
| |
| 58th Governor of North Carolina | |
| In office January 5, 1933 – January 7, 1937 | |
| Lieutenant | Alexander H. Graham |
| Preceded by | Oliver Max Gardner |
| Succeeded by | Clyde R. Hoey |
| Member of the North Carolina House of Representatives from Pasquotank County[1][2] | |
| In office 1905–1909 | |
| Preceded by | W.M. Hinton[3] |
| Succeeded by | Seth M. Morgan[4] |
| Personal details | |
| Born | John Christoph Blucher Ehringhaus February 5, 1882 |
| Died | July 31, 1949 (aged 67) Raleigh, North Carolina, U.S. |
| Party | Democratic |
| Spouse | Matilda Haughton |
| Children | 3 |
| University of North Carolina, Chapel Hill (AB, LLB) | |
| Profession | Lawyer, politician, farmer |
Biography
He was born on February 5, 1882, in Elizabeth City, North Carolina. He was a descendent of German immigrant Johann Christoph Ehringhaus, who arrived in North Carolina in the early nineteenth-century and opened a bank in Elizabeth City.[5] The Ehringhaus family remained involved in banking and law in Elizabeth City for generations.[5]
Ehringhaus attended the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, he was a member of the Philanthropic society of the Dialectic and Philanthropic Societies from 1898 to 1902.[6]
Ehringhaus was a member of the Benevolent and Protective Order of Elks (BPOE), Elizabeth City Lodge #856. He served as District Deputy Grand Exalted Ruler for the North Carolina East District of the BPOE, 1909-1910.
Governor O. Max Gardner coaxed Ehringhaus, a former state legislator and attorney, out of political retirement as his hand-picked successor. He narrowly defeated Lieutenant Governor Richard T. Fountain in a Democratic primary runoff. Fountain claimed Ehringhaus was the tool of business interests.[7]
Serving the state during the Great Depression, Ehringhaus encouraged the North Carolina General Assembly to create a state agency that would help rural areas of the state receive electricity services in order to revive the lagging economy.[8] He also cut state spending, successfully pushed for a three-cent sales tax, extended the school year and kept the schools open and solvent.[9] A New Deal[10] Democrat who supported progressive labor legislation, Ehringhaus also presided over a boiler inspection act during his time as governor.[11]
He appointed former North Carolinian first lady Cora Lily Woodard Aycock as the President of the North Carolina Railroad.[12]
He died on July 31, 1949.
Legacy
Asked how to say his name, he told The Literary Digest "My name is pronounced as if spelled ear'en-house."[13]
A dormitory at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, Ehringhaus' alma mater (class of 1902) is named in his honor,[14] and the Dialectic and Philanthropic Societies, of which Ehringhaus was a member, maintains a portrait in his honor.
The second longest bridge in the state of North Carolina, a 3.5-mile stretch over the Albemarle Sound, is named in honor of this former governor.[15]
Ehringhaus' grave is located in the historic Episcopal Cemetery in his hometown of Elizabeth City in Northeastern North Carolina, and the city's main thoroughfare, Ehringhaus Street, is named in his honor.