# Merritt C. Mechem

> Mediated Wiki article. Canonical URL: https://mediated.wiki/source/Merritt_C._Mechem
> Markdown URL: https://mediated.wiki/source/Merritt_C._Mechem.md
> Source: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Merritt_C._Mechem
> Source revision: 1355035470
> License: Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 International (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0/)

5th Governor of New Mexico

Merritt C. Mechem 5th Governor of New Mexico In office January 1, 1921 – January 1, 1923 Lieutenant William H. Duckworth Preceded by Octaviano Ambrosio Larrazolo Succeeded by James F. Hinkle Personal details Born (1870-10-10)October 10, 1870 Ottawa, Kansas, U.S. Died May 24, 1946(1946-05-24) (aged 75) Albuquerque, New Mexico, U.S. Party Republican Spouse Eleanor Frances O'Heir Profession Attorney Signature

**Merritt Cramer Mechem** (October 10, 1870 – May 24, 1946) was an American politician who served as territorial Supreme Court justice and the fifth [governor of New Mexico](/source/Governor_of_New_Mexico).

## Biography

### Early life

Mechem was born in [Ottawa, Kansas](/source/Ottawa%2C_Kansas), to Homer C. Mechem and Martha (Davenport) Mechem. He graduated from public school in Kansas and attended the [University of Kansas](/source/University_of_Kansas) and [Ottawa University](/source/Ottawa_University). He was admitted to the bar in 1893.[1] After practicing law in Fort Smith, Arkansas for ten years, he moved his law practice to [Tucumcari, New Mexico](/source/Tucumcari%2C_New_Mexico) at the age of thirty-two in 1903.

### Career

Mechem was appointed by [Governor Otero](/source/Miguel_Antonio_Otero_(II)) as the district attorney for [Quay](/source/Quay_County%2C_New_Mexico) and [Guadalupe](/source/Guadalupe_County%2C_New_Mexico) Counties of New Mexico, a position he held from 1905 to 1909, being reappointed by [Governor Hagerman](/source/Herbert_James_Hagerman). He also served as a member of the New Mexico Territorial Council from 1909 to 1911. In 1909 [President Taft](/source/William_Howard_Taft) appointed him a justice of the New Mexico Territorial Supreme Court where he served until 1911. Thereafter he served as a district judge for the Seventh Judicial District in [Socorro](/source/Socorro%2C_New_Mexico) until 1920, being twice re-elected.

On the twelfth of February 1910, in Santa Fe, Judge Mechem was married to Miss Eleanor Frances O’Heir,[2][1] a native of Chicago, Illinois.

In September 1917 in a famous attempt to silence the press Judge Mechem convicted the editor of the *New Mexican* of criminal contempt for publishing a story about the judge’s affidavit in a separate libel case against the newspaper. The contempt conviction was speedily reversed, but the underlying libel case was not dismissed until October 1919.[3]

In 1920 he became the Republican candidate for governor and won by the largest percentage vote of any previous New Mexico gubernatorial election. He decided not to run for a second term.

In 1923 he opened his law practice in [Albuquerque](/source/Albuquerque) which he maintained until his death. His law offices were in the First National Bank building where he later associated with another former governor, [Arthur T. Hannett](/source/Arthur_T._Hannett). He served a term as president of the state bar association, and was a ranking [Mason](/source/Freemasonry), an affiliate of the [Scottish Rite](/source/Scottish_Rite) bodies and holder of the thirty-second degree of the Scottish Rite at Santa Fe. He was also a member of the [Benevolent and Protective Order of Elks](/source/Benevolent_and_Protective_Order_of_Elks), [Sons of the American Revolution](/source/Sons_of_the_American_Revolution), the [American Bar Association](/source/American_Bar_Association), and the Albuquerque Lawyers Club. He died in 1946

## Electoral history

### Governor of New Mexico

Governor's election in New Mexico, 1920[4][5] Party Candidate Votes % Republican Merritt C. Mechem 54,426 51.26 Democratic Richard H. Hanna 50,755 47.80 Farmer–Labor W. E. McGrath 1,004 0.95 Total votes 106,185 100.0 Republican hold

## Notes

1. ^ [***a***](#cite_ref-RGR_1-0) [***b***](#cite_ref-RGR_1-1) "The Republican Candidate" *The Rio Grande Republic* September 16, 1920 page 2, Bronson Printing Company, Las Cruces, NM

1. **[^](#cite_ref-2)** ["Join Ancestry®"](https://search.ancestry.com/cgi-bin/sse.dll?indiv=1&dbid=2556&h=746681&ssrc=pt&tid=69767023&pid=192026282940&usePUB=true&requr=2550866976735232&ur=0&gsfn=&gsln=&h=746681). *ancestry.com*. Retrieved January 5, 2021.

1. **[^](#cite_ref-3)** La Farge, Oliver (1959) *Santa Fe: The Autobiography of a Southwestern Town* University of Oklahoma Press, Norman, Oklahoma, p. 229

1. **[^](#cite_ref-4)** ["NM Governor \[1920\]"](https://www.ourcampaigns.com/RaceDetail.html?RaceID=262112). *Our Campaigns*. Retrieved January 13, 2022.

1. **[^](#cite_ref-5)** Martinez, Manuel, ed. (1921). [*Official Manual, or Blue Book of the State of New Mexico: 1921/1922*](https://babel.hathitrust.org/cgi/pt?id=mdp.39015055034279&view=page&seq=192&q1=election). [Santa Fe, NM](/source/Santa_Fe%2C_NM): Santa Fe New Mexican Publishing Corporation. p. 192. Retrieved January 13, 2022.

## References

- Sobel, Robert and Raimo. John (1978) "Mechem, Merritt Cramer (1870–1946)" *Biographical Directory of the Governors of the United States 1789-1978* (in vol. 3 of four vols.) Meckler Publishing, Westport, CT, [ISBN](/source/ISBN_(identifier)) [0-930466-00-4](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Special:BookSources/0-930466-00-4)

- "Mechem, Merritt Cramer " *Current Biography Yearbook* 1946 edition. H.W. Wilson Co., New York

- "Mechem, Merritt Cramer (1870–1946)" *The National Cyclopaedia of American Biography* (Volume 33, 1947) James T. White & Co., New York

## External links

- ["New Mexico Governor Merritt Cramer Mechem" National Governors Association](http://www.nga.org/cms/home/governors/past-governors-bios/page_new_mexico/col2-content/main-content-list/title_mechem_merritt.default.html)

Party political offices Preceded by Octaviano Ambrosio Larrazolo Republican nominee for Governor of New Mexico 1920 Succeeded by C. L. Hill Political offices Preceded by Octaviano Ambrosio Larrazolo Governor of New Mexico 1921–1923 Succeeded by James F. Hinkle

v t e Governors of New Mexico U.S. Military Admin (1846–1851) Military Kearny Price Washington Munroe Civilian Bent Vigil Connelly U.S. Territory (1851–1912) Calhoun Lane Meriwether Rencher Connelly Mitchell Pile Giddings Axtell Wallace Sheldon Ross Prince Thornton Otero Hagerman Curry Mills State (since 1912) McDonald C. De Baca Lindsey Larrazolo M. Mechem Hinkle Hannett Dillon Seligman Hockenhull Tingley Miles Dempsey Mabry E. Mechem Simms E. Mechem Burroughs E. Mechem Bolack Campbell Cargo King Apodaca King Anaya Carruthers King Johnson Richardson Martinez Lujan Grisham See also Mexican governors of New Mexico, Spanish governors of New Mexico

Authority control databases International ISNI VIAF GND WorldCat National United States Israel Other SNAC

---
Adapted from the Wikipedia article [Merritt C. Mechem](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Merritt_C._Mechem) by Wikipedia contributors ([contributor history](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Merritt_C._Mechem?action=history)). Available under [Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 International](https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0/). Changes may have been made.