Eli Houston Murray (February 10, 1843 – November 18, 1896) was Governor of Utah Territory between 1880 and 1886. The city of Murray, Utah was named for him.
Murray had served in the Union Army during the American Civil War as colonel of the 3rd Kentucky Cavalry Regiment. He was brevetted to the rank of brigadier general when the war ended. In the next year he was appointed U.S. Marshal for Kentucky and stayed on that post for 10 years; afterwards managing a Kentucky newspaper.
Murray was appointed Governor of Utah Territory in 1880. The newly appointed anti-Mormon territorial governor openly supported the Liberal Party of Utah. Thus, the 1880 territory-wide election for a congressional delegate unexpectedly proved the closest that the Liberal Party got to sending a representative to Washington, D.C.
The Liberal candidate, Allen G. Campbell – with 1357 votes – lost resoundingly to Mormon General AuthorityGeorge Q. Cannon who had 18,567 votes. However, before Governor Murray certified the election, a protest on behalf of Campbell was filed. The protest listed a dozen claims, chiefly that Cannon, born in Liverpool, England, was an un-naturalizedalien. The protest also claimed that Cannon's practice of polygamy was incompatible with the law and a delegate's oath of office. Murray agreed and issued certification to Campbell in spite of his poor showing.
Cannon, in Washington at the time, argued that only Congress could decide on a member's qualifications. He furthermore received a certificate from sympathetic territorial election officials which stated he had received the most votes. This document convinced the House of Representatives clerk to enter Cannon's name on the roll, so Cannon began drawing delegate's salary.
Both Murray and Campbell traveled to Washington to dispute the seat. Each side battled over the position for over a year, even through the assassination and eventual death of PresidentJames Garfield. On February 25, 1882, the House of Representatives finally rejected both candidates. The House refused Cannon his seat not for his dubious citizenship, but for his practice of polygamy. The entire ordeal brought unfavorable national attention to Utah regarding the "Mormon Question" (polygamy).
houston, murray, this, article, needs, additional, citations, verification, please, help, improve, this, article, adding, citations, reliable, sources, unsourced, material, challenged, removed, find, sources, news, newspapers, books, scholar, jstor, december, . This article needs additional citations for verification Please help improve this article by adding citations to reliable sources Unsourced material may be challenged and removed Find sources Eli Houston Murray news newspapers books scholar JSTOR December 2020 Learn how and when to remove this template message Eli Houston Murray February 10 1843 November 18 1896 was Governor of Utah Territory between 1880 and 1886 The city of Murray Utah was named for him Eli Houston MurrayGovernor of Utah TerritoryIn office 1880 1886PresidentRutherford B HayesJames GarfieldChester A ArthurGrover ClevelandPreceded byGeorge W EmerySucceeded byCaleb Walton WestPersonal detailsBorn 1843 02 10 February 10 1843Cloverport KentuckyDiedOctober 18 1896 1896 10 18 aged 53 Bowling Green KentuckyResting placeArlington National CemeterySpouseEvelyn NealRelativesEva Neale MurrayProfessionU S marshal newspaper editor soldier governorMilitary serviceAllegianceUnited States of AmericaBranch serviceUnited States ArmyUnion ArmyYears of service1861 1865RankColonelBvt Brigadier GeneralCommands3rd Kentucky Cavalry RegimentBattles warsAmerican Civil WarMurray had served in the Union Army during the American Civil War as colonel of the 3rd Kentucky Cavalry Regiment He was brevetted to the rank of brigadier general when the war ended In the next year he was appointed U S Marshal for Kentucky and stayed on that post for 10 years afterwards managing a Kentucky newspaper Murray was appointed Governor of Utah Territory in 1880 The newly appointed anti Mormon territorial governor openly supported the Liberal Party of Utah Thus the 1880 territory wide election for a congressional delegate unexpectedly proved the closest that the Liberal Party got to sending a representative to Washington D C The Liberal candidate Allen G Campbell with 1357 votes lost resoundingly to Mormon General Authority George Q Cannon who had 18 567 votes However before Governor Murray certified the election a protest on behalf of Campbell was filed The protest listed a dozen claims chiefly that Cannon born in Liverpool England was an un naturalized alien The protest also claimed that Cannon s practice of polygamy was incompatible with the law and a delegate s oath of office Murray agreed and issued certification to Campbell in spite of his poor showing Cannon in Washington at the time argued that only Congress could decide on a member s qualifications He furthermore received a certificate from sympathetic territorial election officials which stated he had received the most votes This document convinced the House of Representatives clerk to enter Cannon s name on the roll so Cannon began drawing delegate s salary Both Murray and Campbell traveled to Washington to dispute the seat Each side battled over the position for over a year even through the assassination and eventual death of President James Garfield On February 25 1882 the House of Representatives finally rejected both candidates The House refused Cannon his seat not for his dubious citizenship but for his practice of polygamy The entire ordeal brought unfavorable national attention to Utah regarding the Mormon Question polygamy Murray and his wife Eva Neale Murray 1852 1938 are buried at Arlington National Cemetery 1 References Edit Burial Detail Murray Eva N ANC ExplorerExternal links Edit Biography portalBiography of Murray at a Utah government website Eli Houston Murray at Find a Grave Eli Huston Murray Brigadier General United States Army ArlingtonCemetery net August 5 2023 An unofficial website unreliable source Political officesPreceded byGeorge W Emery Governor of Utah Territory1880 1886 Succeeded byCaleb Walton West Retrieved from https en wikipedia org w index php title Eli Houston Murray amp oldid 1169540733, wikipedia, wiki, book, books, library,
