Description
Henry C. Stuart served as the governor of Virginia from 1914 until 1918. A wealthy cattleman from Southwest Virginia known for his encyclopedic mind, his extensive knowledge of agriculture, and his moderately progressive impulses against industrialization and demon rum, Stuart also helped write the landmark Constitution of 1902, a number of which, among other provisions, removed voting rights from African Americans and illiterate whites. He was one of the first commissioners to serve on the State Corporation Commission and, like most other Virginia Democrats of his day, worked to disenfranchise African Americans, regulate railroads and other corporations, reform the states tax and legal codes, and prohibit the construction of highways financed by state highway bonds.
