Joseph S. Bartley (October 28, 1858 – September 18, 1926) was the ninth State Treasurer of Nebraska, serving from 1893 to 1897, after which he was convicted of embezzlement and sentenced to 20 years in prison.
Early life and career Bartley was born in Dearborn County, IndianaSouvenir of the Nebraska Legislature 1895–96: Containing ... Brief Biographical Sketch of Each Person; Also ... Sketches of the State Officers ... and Other Officials; by John M. Wolfe; p. 31 (Omaha Publishing Company, 1891 where he was raised on a farm and educated in a public school. He subsequently moved to Kankakee, Illinois, and in 1880, to a homestead in Holt County, Nebraska. In 1884, he moved to Atkinson. When he was 26, he founded the Exchange Bank of Atkinson, and in 1886, he was elected its president.Changes of President and Cashier, in The Bankers Magazine (April 1886); volume 40; p. 794; archived at the Washington University in St. Louis
Bartley first ventured into politics in 1888, when he sought the Republican nomination for treasurer in the contest to complete Charles H. Willard's second term. Although he came third in that race, he acquired such a reputation in the process that, when he tried again in August 1892, he won the nomination by acclamation.The Potent Power of Politics – It Raised Joseph S. Bartley to a High Official Station, Then Sent Him to Prison, And After a Lapse of Five Years Finally Set Him Free., in the Lincoln Courier, January 11, 1902; p. 1; archived at the University of Nebraska–Lincoln; "(W)hen the roll was called on nominations for state treasurer, Joseph S. Bartley, of Holt County, was named before it was half finished. It was, in fact, never completed, the call being suspended and the nomination made by acclamation." He was elected treasurer in November. On August 22, 1894, he received the Republican nomination for his second term as Treasurer,Republicans in a Wrangle: Trouble in the Conventions in Nebraska and Tennessee, in The New York Times, August 23, 1894; p. 5; and was re-elected.
Downfall Bartley's second term in office ended on January 7, 1897.Some Facts About Defalcation, in the Omaha Daily Bee, February 22, 1903; p. 2; retrieved via Chronicling America It was subsequently discovered that he was unable to transfer the state's treasury funds to his successor.Half A Million Missing: Retiring Treasurer of Nebraska Placed Under Arrest., in the Abbeville Press and Banner, March 17, 1897; p. 3; retrieved via Chronicling America In February 1897, the Nebraska Legislature "appointed a joint committee to make recommendations concerning defalcations and embezzlement" by Bartley.History of Hamilton and Clay Counties, Nebraska (vol. 1); editors: George L. Burr (Hamilton County) and O. O. Buck (Clay County); compiler: Dale P. Stough; (Chicago: S. J. Clarke Publishing Company, 1891) On February 28, he was arrested, and released on $50,000 bond.Ex-Treasurer Bartley's Bond; in The New York Times; March 1, 1897; p. 2; On March 17, Bartley was arrested again, and released on $200,000 bond.
As these two arrests had taken place in different counties — the first in Douglas County, on charges of having embezzled a $181,000 general fund, and the second in Lancaster County, on charges of having embezzled $535,000 which included the $181,000 — Nebraska Attorney General Constantine Joseph Smyth was concerned that Bartley's lawyers might argue that this was in violation of prohibitions on double jeopardy; as such, Smyth had the second charge against Bartley "dismissed without prejudice to a new action".One Case Dismissed, in The Nebraska Independent, June 3, 1897; p. 3; via the University of Nebraska–Lincoln On April 30, 1897, Bartley was arrested for a third time;Bartley Arrested – Nebraska's Treasurer Charged With Embezzling $201,000, in the Semi-Weekly Register (Brookings, South Dakota), May 1, 1897; retrieved via Chronicling America on May 8, the Nebraska State Banking Board seized Bartley's bank, the Exchange Bank of Atkinson.Nebraska Bank Seized: State Officials in Possession of Ex-Treasurer Bartley's Institution at Atkinson., The New York Times, May 8, 1897; p. 1;
Bartley's trial began on June 8, 1897, with an announcement of an attempt at jury tampering: Omaha resident Josiah S. Wright had offered one juror $75 (the equivalent of $2862 in 2024 money) to acquit Bartley, on behalf of an individual who Wright could not identify. Wright pleaded guilty and was sentenced to two years in prison.Tried to Bribe a Juror, in the Lincoln Semi-Weekly State Journal, June 11, 1897, p. 6; retrieved via Newspaper Archive The prosecution finished its arguments four days later.Bartley Case in Nebraska: State Closes Its Testimony –Conviction of Wright for Trying to Bribe the Jury., in The New York Times, June 13m 1897; p. 11; On June 23, Bartley was found guilty.Found Guilty of Embezzlement, in the Greenville Times, June 26, 1897, p.4; retrieved via Chronicling America On June 26, he was sentenced to twenty years in prison and a fine of $303,768.90 (the equivalent of $11.6M in 2024 money), and was "remanded to jail pending a hearing of a motion for a new trial."Notes and Comment, in The Advocate (Topeka, Kansas), June 30, 1897; p. 12; retrieved via Chronicling America His attorneys requested that he be released on bail pending appeal; however, he was unable to raise the $125,000 requested.Bartley Pardoned By The Governor, in the Stanton Register, January 10, 1902; p. 6; retrieved via Newspapers.com
Aftermath
On July 7, 1897, Bartley began his sentence at the Nebraska State Penitentiary. The warden declined to immediately assign him with labor as he was suffering from granulated eyelid.Joe Bartley in States Prison, in the Nebraska Independent, July 7, 1897, p.4; retrieved via Chronicling America In November, Bartley attempted to have himself declared legally dead, on the grounds that he was now a convicted criminal, so that he could not be a co-defendant in a state lawsuit attempting to recover money from his associates.Nebraska's Treasury Loss: The Thieving Treasurer Claims to be Legally Dead., in The New York Times, December 1, 1897, p. 10; In June 1898, the Supreme Court of Nebraska upheld Bartley's conviction. In December 1898, the State of Nebraska filed a suit against the Omaha National Bank, in an effort to regain the nearly $203,000 (nearly $7.8M in 2024 money) that Bartley had paid to the bank in January 1897.Bank Case On For Hearing, in the Omaha Daily Bee, December 24, 1898, p.5; retrieved via Chronicling America
Nebraska also filed a suit against those of Bartley's associates who had paid his bond. In February 1898, a jury found in favor of the defendants, and the case was dismissed. In December 1898, the Supreme Court of Nebraska overturned the dismissal and ordered a new trial. The second trial took place in July 1899, and the jury found in favor of the state. In December 1899, the Supreme Court of Nebraska overturned this verdict as well, and ordered a third trial. That trial took place in July 1901, with a verdict in favor of the state.History of Litigation, in the Omaha Daily Bee, February 22, 1903, p.2 via Chronicling America
On the evening of Saturday, July 13, 1901, new Nebraska governor Ezra P. Savage ordered Bartley released on parole; the only people notified were Bartley's attorney and the prison warden.Out on Parole – Gov. Savage, of Nebraska, Is Lenient to Ex-State Treasurer Bartley, Convicted of Embezzlement, in the Warren Sheaf July 18, 1901, p.2; retrieved via Chronicling America Savage's decision was so unpopular that the Republican state convention — Savage's own party — passed a resolution condemning it and requesting that it be canceled, by a vote of 998 to 165. On August 27, Savage made a public statement explaining his reasons for having granted Bartley parole, including that he expected Bartley would assist in efforts to recover the missing money, and that if Bartley did not, the parole would expire after 60 days;Nebraska Republican Convention: Wrought Up Over Parole of Ex-Treasurer Bartley; Governor Criticized, in the Cheyenne Daily Leader, August 28, 1901; p. 1; retrieved via Newspaper Archive nonetheless, Savage revoked Bartley's parole the next day. Bartley protested that he should be allowed to remain free until September 13, but Savage emphasized that the resolution called for Bartley's immediate re-incarceration.In Prison Garb Again, in the North Bend Eagle; p.2, September 5, 1901; retrieved January 17, 2024, via the North Bend, Nebraska Public Library
On December 31, 1901, at 7 pm, Savage issued Bartley a full pardon, stating that his actions had prevented multiple bank failures and that he had been punished enough; by 9 pm, Bartley had been released. He had spent four years and six months in prison, "in addition to a year in the Douglas County jail while his appeal to the [Nebraska] Supreme Court was pending."His New Year Gift A Pardon, in The San Francisco Call, Volume XCI, Number 32, 1 January 1902, p. 4 In addition to his statement, Savage also cited "petitions containing the names of more than 4,000 of the state's most prominent citizens, asking for Bartley's freedom;"Joe Bartley Is Pardoned, in the Valentine Democrat, January 9, 1902, p.3; via the University of Nebraska–Lincoln by January 10, 1902, there were reports that signatures on the petitions had been forged or misappropriated.The Norfolk News; in the Norfolk Weekly News-Journal, January 10, 1902, p.6; via the University of Nebraska–Lincoln
In June 1902, the Supreme Court of Nebraska overturned the July 1901 verdict against Bartley's associates, and ordered a fourth trial. The fourth trial led to a verdict in favor of the defendants, which again led to the dismissal of the case; in December 1905, the Supreme Court of Nebraska upheld the dismissal, and Nebraska Attorney General Norris Brown announced that the decision was "final".Bondsmen Released – Nebraska Loses $646,318 That Its State Treasurer Embezzled, in The Vilas County News, December 11, 1905, p. 1; retrieved via Chronicling America In June 1906, a related attempt to recover $500,000 was quashed on the grounds that "the bill of exceptions in the case was not properly certified".State Loses Half Million, in the Culver Citizen, June 28, 1906, p.2; archived at the Culver Historical Society
Bartley subsequently returned to banking. In 1903, a journalist from the Omaha Daily Bee attempted to interview him; when asked about allegations he was supporting himself on interest payments from loans taken with the embezzled money, Bartley stated "That is my business and I refuse to talk about it."Keeps Lips Sealed: Ex-State Treasurer Bartley Gives a Curt Answer to an Interviewer., in the Omaha Daily Bee, February 22, 1903, p. 1; via Chronicling America At some point before 1910, Bartley left Nebraska, and eventually settled in Colorado, where he died at Denver on September 18, 1926.Joseph S. Bartley Dies at His Home in Denver , in The Frontier (O'Neill, Nebraska), September 30, 1926; retrieved via Newspapers.com
Political legacy