role in Republican circles after his father's death. He was a founding member and the first president of the Young Republican Club, an organization designed to inject new life into the party. This organization promoted him as a potential candidate for lieutenant governor. In the 1892 state convention, Wolcott won the nomination despite opposition from some party leaders. Even though the Republican gubernatorial candidate, William H. Haile, lost to incumbent Democrat William Russell, Wolcott won his race. He served as the 36th Lieutenant Governor from 1893–1897, first under Russell, and then under Republican Frederic T. Greenhalge. He assumed the gubernatorial duties as Acting Governor in March 1896 as a result of the death of Greenhalge, and was later elected as the 39th Governor in November, serving from 1897 until 1900. He was reelected each year by large popular majorities. While Governor, Wolcott approved a bill authorizing the purchase by the Boston Elevated Railway the state-owned Tremont Street Subway tunnel, but required a public referendum on the proposed purchase. When it was brought to a vote, it was defeated by a 2-to-1 margin. When the Spanish–American War broke out in 1898, Wolcott immediately put the state on a war footing, securing legislative authorization for military expenditures in just 25 minutes. The state was one of the first to supply militia troops to the war effort. In 1899, Wolcott decided not to run for reelection. He was offered a variety of diplomatic posts by President William McKinley, but refused them, and embarked on a trip to Europe with his family in May 1900. After his return he campaigned for Republicans in the 1900 elections. He fell ill with typhoid fever in mid-November, and died in Boston on December 21, 1900. The trustees of Milton Academy named the largest of the campus houses after Gov. Wolcott following his death in 1900. Notes References (five volume history of Massachusetts until the early 20th century) Lawrence, William. Roger Wolcott 1847 births 1900 deaths Politicians from Boston Republican Party governors of Massachusetts Lieutenant Governors of Massachusetts Harvard Law School alumni Massachusetts General Hospital people Burials at Mount Auburn Cemetery Burials in Massachusetts Harvard College alumni 19th-century American politicians General Society of Colonial Wars