Editing Frank B. Willis

{{Short description|American politician (1871-1928)}}
{{for|the lieutenant governor of Idaho|F. B. Willis}}
{{Use mdy dates|date=April 2018}}
{{Infobox officeholder
|name                =Frank B. Willis
|image               =Frank B Willis 2.jpg
|order               =47th
|office              =Governor of Ohio
|term_start          =January 11, 1915
|term_end            =January 8, 1917
|lieutenant          =[[John Holmes Arnold]]
|predecessor         =James M. Cox
|successor           =[[James M. Cox]]
|order2              =[[United States Senator]]<br/>from [[Ohio]]
|term_start2         =January 14, 1921
|term_end2           =March 30, 1928
|predecessor2        =[[Warren G. Harding]]
|successor2          =[[Cyrus Locher]]
|state3=[[Ohio]]
|district3=[[Ohio's 8th congressional district|8th]]
|term_start3=March 4, 1911
|term_end3=January 9, 1915
|preceded3=[[Ralph D. Cole]]
|succeeded3=[[John A. Key]]
|state_house4=Ohio
|district4=[[Hardin County, Ohio|Hardin County]]
|term_start4=January 1, 1900
|term_end4=January 3, 1905
|preceded4=N. R. Piper
|succeeded4=J. B. Pumphrey
|birth_name = Frank Bartlett Willis
|birth_date          ={{birth date|1871|12|28}}
|birth_place         =[[Lewis Center, Ohio]]
|death_date          ={{death date and age|1928|3|30|1871|12|28}}
|death_place         =[[Delaware, Ohio]]
|nationality         =
|party               =[[Republican Party (United States)|Republican]]
|restingplace=Oak Grove Cemetery, Delaware, Ohio
|spouse=Allie Dustin
|children = 1
|education = [[Ohio Northern University]] ([[Bachelor of Arts|BA]])
|footnotes           =
}}
'''Frank Bartlett Willis''' (December 28, 1871 – March 30, 1928) was an American politician and lawyer. He was a [[United States Republican Party|Republican]] from [[Ohio]]. He served as the 47th [[governor of Ohio]] from 1915 to 1917, then served as a [[List of United States Senators from Ohio|U.S. Senator]] from Ohio from 1921 until his death in 1928.

==Biography==
Born on a farm near the hamlet of [[Lewis Center, Ohio]], Willis was the son of a [[American Civil War|Civil War]] veteran, Vermont-born J.B. Willis and his wife Lavinia A. (Buell). Willis graduated from [[Ohio Northern University]] in 1894. After teaching at Ohio Northern for twelve years, Willis was admitted to the [[bar (law)|bar]] and began practicing law. He served in the [[Ohio House of Representatives]] from 1900 to 1904 while teaching at [[Ohio Northern University, Pettit College of Law|Ohio Northern school of law]], and was subsequently elected to the [[United States House of Representatives|U.S. House of Representatives]] in 1910, serving from 1911 to 1915. Elected to the governorship in 1914, he served one two-year term from 1915 to 1917, but was not re-elected, being defeated by [[James M. Cox]], whom he had defeated in 1914. Cox also defeated Willis in 1918.

After placing [[Warren Harding]]'s name in nomination at the 1920 Republican National Convention, Willis was elected to the [[United States Senate|U.S. Senate]] in 1920, replacing Harding, who then resigned his Senate seat to take the presidency, allowing Willis to take his seat early. During his Senate tenure, Willis served as Chairman of the Senate Committee on Territories and Insular Possessions, which had jurisdiction over territories including [[Alaska]], [[Hawaii]], the [[Philippines]], and [[Puerto Rico]], from 1923 to 1928.

Willis wanted to be Ohio's [[favorite son]] candidate for the presidency in 1928.<ref name=pp19280112>{{cite news |url=https://news.google.com/newspapers?nid=1144&dat=19280112&id=HMsaAAAAIBAJ&pg=1498,440704&hl=en |title=How 'Favorite Son' Politics Works |date=January 12, 1928 |newspaper=[[The Pittsburgh Press]] |via=Google News Archive Search}}</ref> He died in office that year at Gray Chapel, [[Ohio Wesleyan University]], in [[Delaware, Ohio]], during a Republican Party event for his candidacy organized by the Delaware County Willis-for-President Club. He was buried at Oak Grove Cemetery.

==Legacy==
Willis's official papers were donated to and are open for research at the [[Ohio History Center]].

Frank B. Willis Education Center (formerly Intermediate School and High School) of [[Delaware City School District (Delaware County, Ohio)|Delaware City Schools]] is named in his honor.
 
Willis was married to Allie Dustin, and they had one daughter named Helen.<ref name=repmen1903>{{ cite book |title=Representative men of Ohio, 1900–1903 |  first1=James K. |last1=Mercer |first2=Edward K. |last2=Rife |page=[https://archive.org/details/representativeme00merc/page/n353 168] |year=1903 |publisher=James K. Mercer |location=Columbus |url=https://archive.org/details/representativeme00merc}}</ref>

==See also==
*[[List of United States Congress members who died in office (1900–49)]]

==References==
{{reflist}}

==External links==
*{{Commons category-inline|Frank B. Willis}}
*{{CongBio|W000561}}

{{navboxes
|title=Offices and distinctions
|list=
{{S-start}}
{{S-par|us-hs}}
{{US House succession box
| state = Ohio
| district = 8
| before=[[Ralph D. Cole]]
| after= [[John A. Key]]
| years=1911–1915 }}
{{S-off}}
{{Succession box
|title= [[List of Governors of Ohio|Governor of Ohio]]
|before= James M. Cox
|after= [[James M. Cox]]
|years= 1915–1917|}}
{{S-par|us-sen}}
{{Succession box
|title= [[List of United States Senators from Ohio|United States Senator (Class 3) from Ohio]]
|before= [[Warren G. Harding]]
|after= [[Cyrus Locher]]
|years= 1921–1928|}}
{{s-ppo}}
{{s-bef|before=[[Robert B. Brown]]}}
{{s-ttl|title=[[Republican Party (United States)|Republican Party]] [[Ohio gubernatorial elections|nominee]] for [[Governor of Ohio]]|years=[[1914 Ohio gubernatorial election|1914]], [[1916 Ohio gubernatorial election|1916]], [[1918 Ohio gubernatorial election|1918]]}}
{{s-aft|after=[[Harry L. Davis]]}}
{{s-bef|before=[[Warren G. Harding]]}}
{{s-ttl|title=[[Republican Party (United States)|Republican]] nominee for [[List of United States Senators from Ohio|U.S. Senator]] from [[Ohio]]<br />([[Classes of United States Senators|Class 3]])|years=[[1920 United States Senate election in Ohio|1920]], [[1926 United States Senate election in Ohio|1926]]}}
{{s-aft|after=[[Theodore E. Burton]]}}
{{S-end}}
}}

{{Navboxes
| title = Articles and topics related to Frank B. Willis
| list1 =
{{Governors of Ohio}}
{{USSenOH}}
{{OhioRepresentatives08}}
{{United States presidential election, 1928}}
}}
{{Authority control}}

{{DEFAULTSORT:Willis, Frank B.}}
[[Category:1871 births]]
[[Category:1928 deaths]]
[[Category:Republican Party governors of Ohio]]
[[Category:Republican Party members of the Ohio House of Representatives]]
[[Category:Candidates in the 1916 United States presidential election]]
[[Category:Candidates in the 1928 United States presidential election]]
[[Category:20th-century American lawyers]]
[[Category:Ohio Northern University alumni]]
[[Category:People from Lewis Center, Ohio]]
[[Category:Burials at Oak Grove Cemetery, Delaware, Ohio]]
[[Category:Republican Party United States senators from Ohio]]
[[Category:People from Hardin County, Ohio]]
[[Category:Ohio lawyers]]
[[Category:Ohio Northern University faculty]]
[[Category:Republican Party members of the United States House of Representatives from Ohio]]
[[Category:20th-century United States senators]]
[[Category:20th-century members of the United States House of Representatives]]
[[Category:20th-century members of the Ohio General Assembly]]