I
am not sure how many local citizens are aware that Algona at one time could
boast that it was the home of a United States Senator. L.J. Dickinson was a local
attorney who first served as a U.S. Congressman before being elected to the
Senate in 1931.
LESTER J. DICKINSON
Son
of Civil War veteran Levi Dickinson and his wife, Willemene, Lester J. “Dick”
Dickinson was born October 29, 1873 in Derby, Iowa. He was a hard worker, milking and doing other
farm labor while growing up on the farm.
He clerked at a hardware store as a high school student before
graduating from Danbury high school. He
continued to work odd jobs while earning his way through Cornell College at Mt.
Vernon. L.J. dropped out of college after
his sophomore year to attend a business college in Des Moines where he took
stenographic training. He then returned
to Cornell and became secretary to the college president while continuing his
studies. Graduating from Cornell in
1898, Dick received his law degree from the University of Iowa the following
year.
The
26 year old brand new attorney came directly to Algona and formed a partnership
with Timothy P. Harrington. Getting their
law practice established took some time.
Their first year in business they earned less than $200 so their office
served as their sleeping quarters as well.
Dickinson enlisted in the National Guard in which he served as a Second
Lieutenant in the 52nd Infantry between 1900 and 1902.
FAMILY LIFE
The
new young lawyer must have created quite a stir among the eligible single women
in the community. Tall,
broad-shouldered, good looking and friendly, it is likely that many hearts were
atwitter when he walked into a room. He
only had eyes for one young maiden, however.
L.J. began to court Myrtle Call, the youngest daughter of Ambrose and
Nancy Call.
The
two were united in marriage on August 21, 1901, in an 8:00 p.m. ceremony at the
brightly illuminated Call home on Hall Street.
Rev. W. J. Suckow conducted the service before family and a few intimate
friends with nieces Dorothy Hutchison and Florence Cowles serving as ribbon
girls and nephew Donald Hutchison as flower bearer. Unfortunately the day was not without
incident. Levi and Willemine, parents of
the groom, were on their way to the ceremony from their home north of town in
the middle of a thunderstorm. It was raining
heavily. Their one horse carriage hit a
bus while driving west on State Street, causing a wheel to come off their
carriage. They were thrown from the
vehicle, sustaining only minor bruises and abrasions but leaving them unable to
make it to the ceremony.
The
following Tuesday, a lavish reception was held at the home of Gardner and
Florence Cowles, the bride’s sister. A
large crowd attended this gathering including many of Dickinson’s fellow
National Guard members. It was said that
the “spacious rooms were crowded by a
throng of visitors” and that “elegant
refreshments were served.”
In
1902, the young couple commenced the construction of a new home. The lot chosen was just a block north of the
Call family residence. A seven room
cottage with a stone foundation in a colonial style, it was outfitted with all
the modern improvements of the time. An
article in the August 27, 1902 edition of the Upper Des Moines-Republican
describes it as “one of the prettiest,
best planned and most comfortable and convenient of the modern houses so far
put up in our town.” The beautiful
home still stands at 308 South Hall Street.
POLITICAL CAREER
In
addition to their busy law practice, both L.J. and his partner, Tim Harrington,
were very active in local politics. A
staunch Republican, Dickinson became chairman of the county central committee
in 1901. He served as city clerk for
Algona from 1900 to 1907 and then became county attorney from 1907 through
1913. His involvement increased his
exposure and he was beginning to establish a fine political reputation across
the state. Tim Harrington successfully ran
for election in 1916 and served as a state legislator from 1917 to 1920.
 |
| Upper Des Moines Republican Feb. 13, 1918 |
In
1917, an opportunity presented itself and L.J. was ready. He declared his candidacy for Congress from
the 10th district when incumbent Frank P. Woods’ seat came up for
election. In 1918 World War I was
slowing drawing to an end. Congressman
Woods, Dickinson’s opponent in the primary, did not have a voting record of
supporting our military. He voted against
the resolution to declare that a state of war existed between Germany and the
United States; failed to support legislation to increase the standing army; and
failed to appropriate funds for naval support.
Dickinson campaigned hard on these issues and received many endorsements
from district newspapers.
The
local area showed him unwavering support at the primary. Even area Democrats cast their vote in his
favor in hope of having a local man represent them in Washington. Dickinson’s primary victory was the upset of
the election and made headlines throughout Iowa.
Next
up was his campaign against J. R. Files, the Democratic nominee for Congress. Dickinson had a great affinity for and was a
strong proponent of farming. After
tracing his roots back to 1630, he knew that he came from a long line of
farmers. In fact, he discovered that he was the first generation not to farm. His support of the agricultural sector put
him in great favor as well as his support for funding for the war.
A
local editorial published in the Kossuth County Advance on October 24, 1918,
said, “He is a man of congressional size
in all respects, and will, with his fine oratorical ability and clear-headed,
patriotic statesmanship, give the grand old Tenth a reputation in the halls of
Congress that will reflect credit on Kossuth County and its people.”
He
defeated Files in the November election to become the U.S. Congressman from the
10th district of Iowa winning in every county except Carroll and
Crawford, where he lost by only four votes.
He went on to serve six terms before running for Senate in 1930. L.J. was a dark horse candidate for the
office of vice president on the Republican ticket in 1924.
Dick
defeated two primary opponents before winning the fall election against
incumbent Daniel F. Steck by a margin of 50,000 votes. During his tenure in the U.S. Senate, Senator
Dickinson was an outspoken opponent of the New Deal. Described as a “loud, earnest orator” he had
been a keynote speaker at the 1932 Republican national convention calling for
“sane, honest, industrial and agricultural programs” and a return “to the ideas
of our New England forefathers.” At the 1936 Republican national convention,
the Senator was once again a dark-horse candidate, this time for the
presidency. It would go to Alfred Landon
who was defeated by FDR.
Dickinson’s
opposition of the New Deal worked against him in the 1936 senatorial election
and he lost in a narrow margin in a Democratic landslide across the nation,
ending his senate career after one term.
(In 2016, his seat is held by Senator Joni Ernst). He and Myrtle moved back to Iowa, living a
short time in Algona. They then settled
in the Des Moines area where their children, L. Call Dickinson and Ruth Daugherty,
lived. Following in his father’s
footsteps, Call had become a lawyer and had a successful practice. L.J. joined the same firm.
PASSING OF AN ERA
Myrtle
Call Dickinson suffered a cerebral hemorrhage in December of 1955 after which
she was bedridden until her passing on September 8, 1956. She was the last surviving member of the
Ambrose and Nancy Call children. Her
body was returned to Algona for burial at Riverview Cemetery.
The
Senator went on to survive his wife by almost 12 years, dying on June 4,
1968. He fell several weeks before
breaking his hip which, at the age of 94, proved too much for him to endure. He was buried next to his wife.
It
is said that Dickinson always maintained a connection with Algona, coming back
here to live when Congress or the Senate was not in session. He was also proud of his agricultural roots,
always trying to do what was best for farmers.
He chose not to take public appointments after he left office, opting
instead to re-enter the private sector where he went on to practice law for
many years. His legacy lives on in the
Dickinson Law Firm in Des Moines, one of the largest—if not the
largest—attorney firms in the state of Iowa.
Until
next time,
Jean
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