Harry L. Davis

Harry Lyman Davis (January 25, 1878 – May 21, 1950) was an American politician of the Republican Party. He served as the 38th and 44th mayor of Cleveland, Ohio and as the 49th Governor of Ohio.

Life and career

Davis was born in Cleveland, Ohio in the Newburgh area to Evan and Barbara Jones Davis. At age thirteen, he left school to work in the steel mills, studying at home and night school. He became a solicitor for the Cleveland Telephone Co. at age twenty-one and later founded the Davis Rate Adjustment Co., selling telephone securities and the Harry L. Davis Co., selling insurance.

In 1909, Davis was elected Republican city treasurer. David defeated his opponent Peter Witt in the 1915 Cleveland mayoral election. As the city's new mayor, Davis established the Mayor's Advisory War Committee in 1917 to aid the American effort in World War I. His work gained national recognition. Mayor Davis also had to deal with the communist May Day Riots of 1919 and the bombing of his home by communist agitators; the Red Scare presented a new set of dilemmas. Davis responded to the outrages by campaigning for the expulsion of all "Bolsheviks" from America. Since 1919 was an election year, Davis resigned from the mayorship and went on to successfully campaign for governor of Ohio.