Thomas M. Storke facts for kids
Quick facts for kids
Thomas M. Storke
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| United States Senator from California |
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| In office November 9, 1938 – January 3, 1939 |
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| Appointed by | Frank Merriam |
| Preceded by | William Gibbs McAdoo |
| Succeeded by | Sheridan Downey |
| Personal details | |
| Born | November 23, 1876 Santa Barbara, California, U.S. |
| Died | October 12, 1971 (aged 94) Santa Barbara, California, U.S. |
| Resting place | Santa Barbara Cemetery, Montecito, California, U.S. |
| Political party | Democratic |
| Spouses | Elsie Smith (1880-1916), m. 1904 Marion Elizabeth Day (1892-1981), m. 1920 |
| Children | 5 |
| Relatives | Charles A. Storke (father) Yda Hillis Addis (step mother) |
| Alma mater | Stanford University |
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Thomas More Storke (November 23, 1876 – October 12, 1971) was an American journalist, politician, postmaster, and publisher. He was awarded with the famous Pulitzer Prize for Journalism in 1962. Storke also served as an interim United States Senator, appointed to serve between the resignation of William Gibbs McAdoo in November 1938 and the January 1939 swearing-in of Sheridan Downey, who had been elected to succeed McAdoo.
Early life and journalism career
Born in Santa Barbara, Storke was an only child who grew up bilingual in Spanish and English and was born to eminent local citizen and politician Charles A. Storke and Martha Storke. Through his mother he was descended from the Ortega and Olivera families. As a child he attended public schools and moved on to Stanford University one year early with a degree in Economics. Storke graduated in 1898 at age 22.
In 1900, Storke borrowed $2,000 and went on to buy the Santa Barbara Daily Independent, the least favored newspaper in town. In 1909 he sold the outlet to get into the oil business and later purchased the Santa Barbara Daily News in 1913. The spring prior, he was appointed as the Santa Barbara postmaster. Storke readopted the Daily Independent and combined that with the Daily News to birth the Santa Barbara Daily News & Independent. Years later, Storke bought The Morning Press, Santa Barbara's third paper. He later combined the two making The News-Press. After 23 years, it was sold for near 10 million dollars to the publisher of The Philadelphia Bulletin.
Contributions
Storke used his political clout to help obtain the present UCSB campus, over 900 coastal acres (3.6 km2) and a former military installation, from the US Government under the college land grant program.
Part of Storke's lasting legacy is Storke Tower, a 190-foot structure in the center of the UCSB campus, being the tallest tower in the county as well as the only five-octave chromatic bell system.
Beneath Storke Tower is the Storke Communication Plaza, which houses the offices of the campus Daily Nexus newspaper and the studios of community radio station KCSB-FM.
