Asa Schoonmaker "Ace" Bloomer (August 15, 1891 – February 21, 1963) was an American politician and lawyer who served as Speaker of the Vermont House of Representatives and President Pro Tem of the Vermont Senate.
Early life Bloomer was born in Proctor, Vermont, on August 15, 1891. He graduated from the University of Vermont in 1913 and received a law degree from Yale Law School in 1916, afterwards practicing law in Rutland County.Vermont Legislative Directory, published by Vermont Secretary of State, 1947, page 414
World War I He enlisted in the Army for World War I and received a commission as a Second Lieutenant of Aviation. Bloomer served in Nebraska, Ohio, and Texas before being discharged in December, 1918.U.S. Adjutant General Military Records, 1631-1976, record for Asa Schoonmacker Bloomer, accessed via Ancestry.com, March 24, 2012World War I Draft Registration Cards, 1917-1918, record for Asa S. Bloomer, accessed via Ancestry.com, March 24, 2012
Rutland County State's Attorney A Republican, Bloomer was Rutland County State's Attorney from 1935 to 1937. During his term he garnered nationwide headlines when he indicted Governor Charles M. Smith. Smith had been President of Rutland's Marble Bank and was accused with other bank officers of defrauding depositors. (In May 1932 Smith learned that his bank's bookkeeper had embezzled $251,000. Smith let the bookkeeper resign, did not disclose the theft, and charged the loss against the bank's surplus. In July 1935, the bookkeeper was named Rutland's Assistant City Treasurer and planned a candidacy for Treasurer. His political opponents then leaked word of the theft to the press. In December 1935 Bloomer charged Smith and other bank officers with abetting the theft for failing to inform account holders and authorities. The bookkeeper was convicted, and the bank Treasurer received a suspended sentence and paid a $400 fine. Charges against some other officers were dismissed. Smith was acquitted at trial)Newspaper article, Governor Named in Connection With Bank Thefts, by Associated Press, Reno Gazette, November 30, 1936Newspaper article, Gov. Smith is Acquitted, by Associated Press, Lowell Sun, December 2, 1936
Bloomer also brought charges against a Proctor, Vermont selectman for neglect of duty after the town sided with management and refused to provide emergency aid to the children of striking workers at the Vermont Marble Company.The Star That Set: The Vermont Republican Party, 1854-1974, by Samuel B. Hand, 2003, page 155
Vermont House of Representatives In 1936 Bloomer ran successfully for the Vermont House of Representatives and served four terms, 1937 to 1945. In his final term (1943 to 1945) Bloomer served as Speaker of the House.Speakers Ballot Votes, 1915 to 2003, published by Vermont House of Representatives, 2003Vermont Legislative Directory and State Manual, published by Vermont Secretary of State, 1959, page 793
Bloomer ran unsuccessfully for the Republican nomination to be Lieutenant Governor in 1944, losing to Lee E. Emerson, who went on to win the general election., published by Vermont Secretary of State, Archives and Records Administration, 2006, page 1
Vermont Senate Bloomer ran successfully for the Vermont Senate in 1946, and he was re-elected eight times, serving from 1947 to his death. He was President Pro Tem of the Senate in 1949, 1955, and 1959 until his death.Newspaper article, Bloomer Was State's Best Known Solon, by Associated Press, published in Bennington Banner, February 22, 1963List of Vermont Senate Presidents Pro Tempore, published by Vermont State Senate, 2012
Death and burial Bloomer died at Montpelier's Heaton Hospital on February 21, 1963, after suffering a heart attack at the Vermont State House. He was buried in Rutland's Evergreen Cemetery.Vermont Death Records, 1909-2008, record for Asa Schoonmaker Bloomer, accessed via Ancestry.com, March 24, 2012, Boston Globe, February 22, 1963
Family Asa Bloomer's sons, Robert A. Bloomer (1921–1999) and John H. Bloomer Sr. (1930–1995), both served in the Vermont Senate. Robert was Senate President from 1975 to 1985 and John served as President of the Senate from 1993 to 1995.Newspaper article, John Bloomer; Vermont Legislator, 64, New York Times, January 11, 1995Obituary, Ex-Vermont State Senator Robert Bloomer, New York Newsday, December 8, 1999.
Judith Bloomer Crowley ( Wener; born 1936), the wife of John H. Bloomer Sr. and mother of John H. Bloomer Jr., served in the Vermont Senate from 1995 to 1997, and in the Vermont House from 2001 to 2005.Journal of the Vermont Senate, published by Vermont Senate, February 9, 1995.
John H. Bloomer Jr. (born 1960) served in the Vermont Senate from 1997 to 2005. In 2011, he was appointed Secretary of the Senate.Newspaper article, John Bloomer returns to the Senate in a new role , by Nancy Remsen, Burlington Free Press, January 4, 2011.
Legacy The state office building in the city of Rutland was named for Asa S. Bloomer in 1999.Vermont Statutes Annotated, published by Equity Publishing Corporation, 1999, page 111
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