American politician
Frank Henry Cooney (December 31, 1872 – December 15, 1935) was a Canadian-American politician and businessman who served as the ninth governor of Montana from 1933 to 1935.
Early life.
Cooney was born in Norwood, Ontario, Canada, and received a limited education in Catholic schools. He dropped out of school at the age of fourteen and worked as a delivery boy in a grocery store and for a short time, he tried working with his father in the nursery business.
Career.
Cooney moved to Butte, Montana in July, 1891, and found employment in a grocery store. He then found a position in the wholesale department of the Davidson Grocery Company.
In 1894, Cooney and his brother, Howard C. Cooney, started the firm of Cooney Brothers. Later it was incorporated under the name of Cooney Brokerage company, a success from the beginning. The company continued to expand with the additions of livestock and agricultural holdings. He was public administrator for Silver Bow County, Montana from 1898 to 1900.
Elected lieutenant governor in 1932, Cooney served until March 13, 1933, when he assumed the duties of Governor John Edward Erickson, who resigned so that Cooney could appoint him to Thomas J. Walsh's senate seat after Walsh's untimely death. Cooney is credited for reforming the state liquor laws and establishing a water conservation program.
Personal life.
He married Emma May Poindexter Cooney on December 27, 1899, and the couple had six children, Francis H, John Phillip, Mary Margaret, Walter Poindexter, and twins, Tyler Thompson and Virginia Elizabeth.
Cooney died of heart failure on December 15, 1935, and was succeeded by Lieutenant Governor Elmer Holt. He is interred at Saint Mary Cemetery in Missoula. His grandson, Mike Cooney, is a politician who served as the 36th lieutenant governor of Montana.
References.
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