Joseph Norman Dolley

Joseph Norman Dolley (1860–1940) was the bank commissioner of State of Kansas who pushed for the passage of the first state securities laws, known as the blue-sky laws. J.N. Dolley, as he was known, was born in Boston, Massachusetts, a son of Joseph Norman and Ellen (Broderick) Dolley. On October 13, 1887, he married Mary E. McClellan, of Pennsylvania. At the time of their marriage she was a resident of Maple Hill, Kansas. They had a daughter, Esther A. Dolley.

Dolley received a common school education, and, while young, went to sea with his father. He continued as a sailor until 1885. He then moved to Kansas, where he went into business as a country merchant and proprietor of a blacksmith shop. These were the earliest business enterprises of the town of Maple Hill, where Dolley was virtually the first settler and the founder of the town.

Shortly thereafter Dolley became interested in banking. He went on to become the president of the Commercial National Bank of Alma, and vice-president of the Stockgrowers' State Bank of Maple Hill, generally known at the time as "Dolley's Bank." Dolley appeared to be achievement oriented, and in addition to his banking positions was also president of the Mid-Kansas Milling Company of Alma, the Kansas Home Mutual Life Insurance Company of Topeka, the P. C. C. Oil & Gas Company of Chanute, the Maple Hill school board, and vice-president of the Wabaunsee County Telephone Company.

The "Topeka Daily Capital" of Jan. 3, 1909, reported: "Joe Dolley hadn't been in Kansas long enough to get the seaweed out of his hair before he was in politics…. No stopping Dolley in Wabaunsee, where the farmers know him, trust him, believe in him and vote for him."

In 1902, Dolley was elected to represent his county in the lower branch of the state legislature. In 1904 he was elected to the state senate from the twenty-first district, composed of the counties of Wabaunsee, Riley and Geary. After four years in the senate he was again elected representative from Wabaunsee county, and was speaker of the Kansas House of Representatives in the 1909-1910 session. In 1910 and 1911 he was favorably mentioned by several Kansas newspapers as a candidate for governor.

During the presidential campaign of 1908, Dolley was chairman of the Republican state central committee, and with a fund of less than $20,000 carried the state for the William Howard Taft electors by a plurality of over 37,000. However, four years later, Dolley painfully informed Taft that Kansas was going to Theodore Roosevelt. (New York Times February 12, 1912.)

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