Longtime Morristown resident, lawyer, state senator, and member of several charitable boards, Stephen Bradford Wiley (1929-2015) was born in Morristown to Joseph Burton and Katherine (Pellett) Wiley in 1929. Katherine and Joseph raised Stephen with his sister Margaret Anderson and brothers Jackson and Andrew in Morristown where they attended local schools. Wiley graduated from Princeton University with a BA in Politcal Science in 1951 and earned his law degree from Columbia University in 1954, before serving in the Army from 1954 to 1956. Following his term in the Army, Wiley was appointed Assistant Morris County Prosecuter before being tapped for Deputy Attorney General. In 1960 he was then appointed Chief Counsel to Governor Robert Meyner, with whom he later opened a law firm with prior to Wiley's election to the State Senate representing Morris County in 1973.
The son of a school superintendant, reforming education policy defined significant aspects of Wiley's political career. In the 1970s he led efforts to maintain a unified Morristown School District at a time when Morris Township was considering forming its own high school; the regional school district currently serves Morristown, Morris Township, and (for high school) Morris Plains. Moreover, as State Senator (1973-1977) he was an architect of the 1976 state income tax law that was designed to alleviate property taxes and bridge the funding gap between affluent and impoverished school districts; a controversial law that cost Wiley his senate seat in conservative Morris County.
Stephen built success in the private sector where he started the law firm of Wiley, Malehorn, Sirota and Raynes, and later founded the First Morris Bank and Trust, as well as Morris Cablevision. Wiley's 1985 campaign for New Jersey Governor against incumbant Thomas Kean launched with the platform of creating an economy for the 21st century, enacting education and public policy reform, and taking back responsibility of clean up efforts for the state's toxic waste sites from languishing federal efforts. The campaign gained enthusiastic support among many residents, several prominent politicans, organizations, and the press; however, it did not generate sufficient momentum to win the Democratic nomination. Wiley returned his focus towards private business, family, and community, particularly the Morris Township area where Stephen lived with his wife Judith Alexander Wiley, an accomplished artist and mother to their three children: Jonathan, Katherine, and Benjamin.
A tireless Morristown booster, Wiley led efforts to restore the Community Theatre (now the Mayo Performing Arts Center, or MPAC), which was decrepit in the 1980s but currently draws 200,000 visitors to some 200 shows each year, contributing an estimated $15 million to the area's economy. He was also instrumental in creating an endowment for the Morristown Green that supports ongoing maintenance and renovations, as well as fundraising to expand the Morristown and Morris Township Library in 2006.
Stephen retired with wife Judith to their summer home in South Hero, VT where he enjoyed wood working, sailing and fishing, and entertaining family and friends. In later years he developed an afinity for writing poetry and published three books, "Hero Island", "Mockingbird Come Home", and "Lattitudes". Stephen B. Wiley died October 8, 2015 in Shelburne, VT, and was survived by his wife of 62 years, Judith Alexander Wiley; his three children, Jonathan Wiley, Katharine Wiley Laud, and Benjamin Wiley, as well as five grandchildren; and his brother Joseph Burton Wiley II.
- Friends of Stephen B. Wiley Gubernatorial Campaign Scrapbook, 1984-1985
- Obituary of Stephen Wiley, Star Ledger, 10/11/2015
- Remembering Steve Wiley: Morristown's Man for All Seasons, MorristownGreen.com, 10/12/2015 (http://morristowngreen.com/2015/10/12/remembering-steve-wiley-morristowns-man-for-all-seasons/)
The scrapbook documents Stephen Wiley's campaign to secure the Democratic nomination for Governor of New Jersey, which began with him anouncing his candidacy to reporters who had assembled on the floor of the state senate on November 13, 1984, and ended with his loss in the primary election the folowing year. Photographs, newspaper clippings, bumper stickers and buttons, campaign flyers, and other ephemera reflect a spirited and organized campaign, and the materials focus on Wiley's platform issues, fundraising events and rallies, and ensuing media coverage. Among the photographs are images of Vice-Presidential Candidate Geraldine Ferraro at Mondale-Ferraro Headquarters in Woodbridge, as well as candid shots of Stephen Wiley taken during a television ad shoot, while campaigning on the street, as well as formal publicity shots.
The scrapbook exists in the same order as it was delievered in; some clippings have been reattached where the adhesive had failed and the item includes a number of three dimensional objects, therefore extra care should be taken while handling. A second box contains duplicate photographs and prints that were not used in the scrapbook; these are generally organized chronologically.
This collection is open for research under the conditions set forth in the North Jersey History and Genealogy Center archives access policy. All archival material should be handled with care and kept in its original order; notes may only be taken in pencil or with a computer, and food and drink are prohibited in the Reading Room. Records may be copied for scholarly or personal research using the edge scanner or a digital camera without flash; however, researchers must obtain copyright permission prior to publishing material from the collection.
The Friends of Stephen B. Wiley Gubernatorial Campaign Scrapbook was donated by the Friends on August 11, 2009.
Finding Aid to the Friends of Stephen B. Wiley Gubernatorial Campaign Scrapbook, 1984-1985. North Jersey History and Genealogy Center, Morristown and Morris Township Library.
Processed, described, and encoded by Jeffrey V. Moy, Archivist, July 2017.