
Lee Cruce (8 July 1863-16 January 1933) was the Democratic Governor of Oklahoma from 9 January 1911 to 11 January 1915, succeeding Charles N. Haskell and preceding Robert L. Williams.
Biography[]
Lee Cruce was born in Marion, Kentucky in 1863, and he became a lawyer in Ardmore, Indian Territory in 1891 and became a local alderman in 1901. Cruce became a powerful banker, and he served as Oklahoma's second post-statehood governor from 1911 to 1915, establishing the Oklahoma Department of Highways and the Oklahoma State Capitol. He enforced prohibitions on alcohol and gaming, even deploying the state militia to stop horse racing. He went on to work in the private sector after leaving office, dying in Los Angeles in 1933.