# Charles Edward Adams (politician) *American lawyer and Republican politician; member of the Minnesota Senate and 25th lieutenant governor of Minnesota* Charles Edward Adams (October 1, 1867 – October 6, 1936) was a Duluth lawyer and a Republican. He sat in the [[Minnesota Senate]] for 22 years and is listed as the 25th [[Lieutenant Governor of Minnesota]].[^1] He reached the lieutenant governorship through the Senate. He became the chamber's president pro tempore in 1929, and when William Ignatius Nolan was elected to the U.S. House of Representatives, that post made Adams acting lieutenant governor.[^1] This entry rests on one secondary source, a Wikipedia biography. The record does not include Senate journals, session laws or election returns for his service. It does not establish his votes, his committee work or the district he represented.[^1] ## Life and career Adams was born in Boston, Massachusetts, in 1867. His family moved to New York in 1882 and later to the Dakota Territory.[^1] He finished high school and one year of college in Fargo, North Dakota, and then enrolled at Princeton University in 1892.[^1] After one year he moved to the [[University of Minnesota]] and took his degree there in 1896. From 1893 to 1895 he played quarterback and halfback for the Minnesota Golden Gophers football team.[^1] He received a law degree from the [[University of Minnesota Law School]] in 1900.[^1] ## Career Adams served for a short time as superintendent of the Granite Falls, Minnesota, schools. He then opened a law practice in Duluth.[^1] [[St. Louis County, Minnesota]] named him its special counsel in 1911.[^1] He won his first election to the Minnesota Senate in 1914 and kept the seat for the next 22 years.[^1] In the Senate he backed the Babcock Amendment, which created Minnesota's trunk highway system. He also worked on transportation, taxation and education.[^1] The Senate made him president pro tempore in 1929. After William Ignatius Nolan was elected to the U.S. House of Representatives, that office made Adams acting lieutenant governor.[^1] ## Personal life Adams married Grace Mabel Tennant of [[Minneapolis]] in 1902. The couple had three children: a son, John, and two daughters, Elizabeth and Mary.[^1] He died on October 6, 1936, while still in office, and was buried at [[Lakewood Cemetery]] in Minneapolis.[^1] ## In the Minnesota record ### Who - Charles Edward Adams, a Duluth lawyer, Republican member of the Minnesota Senate and acting lieutenant governor.[^1] ### What - Superintendent of the Granite Falls, Minnesota, schools (briefly, before his Duluth practice).[^1] - Special counsel for St. Louis County (1911).[^1] - Member of the Minnesota Senate, first elected 1914, served 22 years.[^1] - Advocate of the Babcock Amendment, which established the Minnesota trunk highways.[^1] ### When - Born October 1, 1867; died October 6, 1936.[^1] - University of Minnesota degree, 1896; law degree, 1900.[^1] - President pro tempore of the Minnesota Senate, 1929.[^1] ### Where - Boston, Massachusetts (birth); Duluth, Minnesota (law practice); Lakewood Cemetery, Minneapolis (burial).[^1] ### How many - Years in the Minnesota Senate: 22. Children: three.[^1] ## Notes [^1]: Wikipedia contributors, *Charles Edward Adams (politician)* (revision 1365525355, retrieved October 25, 2026) — birth, education, Senate service, presidency pro tempore, acting lieutenant governorship, family and death. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Charles_Edward_Adams_(politician)