Earliest serving United States governor
Encyclopedia
This page contains a list of the individuals, who, at the time of their deaths, were the earliest serving governor of any U.S.
state who was still living. The current earliest serving U.S. governor is George M. Leader
.
America's fascination with the last surviving governor from a certain era has probably most recently highlighted by the death of Governor/Senator Strom Thurmond
who was remembered as the last of 10 South Carolina governors from Edgefield, South Carolina
who were (at some time in life) segregationists. Thurmond's death was seen as the final closing of an era.
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
state who was still living. The current earliest serving U.S. governor is George M. Leader
George M. Leader
George Michael Leader served as the 36th Governor of Pennsylvania from January 18, 1955 until January 20, 1959. He is a member of the Democratic Party, and a native of York County, Pennsylvania. Currently he is the only person from that county ever to be elected governor of the state.-Early...
.
America's fascination with the last surviving governor from a certain era has probably most recently highlighted by the death of Governor/Senator Strom Thurmond
Strom Thurmond
James Strom Thurmond was an American politician who served as a United States Senator. He also ran for the Presidency of the United States in 1948 as the segregationist States Rights Democratic Party candidate, receiving 2.4% of the popular vote and 39 electoral votes...
who was remembered as the last of 10 South Carolina governors from Edgefield, South Carolina
Edgefield, South Carolina
Edgefield is a town in Edgefield County, South Carolina, United States. The population was 4,449 at the 2000 census. It is the county seat of Edgefield County.Edgefield is part of the Augusta, Georgia metropolitan area.-Geography:...
who were (at some time in life) segregationists. Thurmond's death was seen as the final closing of an era.
- 1797–1838 — Isaac TichenorIsaac TichenorIsaac Tichenor was the third and fifth Governor of Vermont and also served as a jurist and a United States Senator.Tichenor was born in Newark, New Jersey...
— Vermont - 1838–1844 — Morgan LewisMorgan Lewis (governor)Morgan Lewis was an American lawyer, politician and military commander.Of Welsh descent, he was the son of Francis Lewis, a signer of the Declaration of Independence. He graduated from Princeton in 1773 and began to study law on the advice of his father...
— New York - 1844–1853 — William H. CabellWilliam H. CabellWilliam H. Cabell was a Virginia politician and Democratic-Republican. He served as Member of the Assembly, as Governor of Virginia, and as judge...
— Virginia - 1853–1853 — Mahlon DickersonMahlon DickersonMahlon Dickerson was an American judge and politician. He was elected Governor of New Jersey as well as United States Senator from that state. He was twice appointed Secretary of the Navy - under Presidents Andrew Jackson and Martin van Buren...
— New Jersey - 1853–1854 — Nehemiah R. KnightNehemiah R. KnightNehemiah Rice Knight was a United States Senator from Rhode Island. Born in Cranston, he attended the common schools. In 1802 he was a member of the Rhode Island House of Representatives; he moved to Providence and was clerk of the Court of Common Pleas from 1805 to 1811 and clerk of the circuit...
— Rhode Island - 1854–1863 — John BranchJohn BranchJohn Branch, Jr. served as U.S. Senator, Secretary of the Navy, the 19th Governor of the state of North Carolina, and was the sixth and last territorial governor of Florida....
— North Carolina - 1863–1865 — Thomas Bennett, Jr.Thomas Bennett, Jr.Thomas Bennett, Jr. was the 48th Governor of South Carolina from 1820 to 1822.-Early life and career:Born in Charleston, Bennett was educated at the College of Charleston. In a partnership with his father, Bennett ran a lumber and rice milling operation...
— South Carolina - 1865–1871 — William C. GibbsWilliam C. GibbsWilliam Channing Gibbs was the tenth Governor of Rhode Island from 1821 to 1824.-Early life:Gibbs was born in Newport, Rhode Island, the son of George Gibbs and Mary Channing. He served in the state militia, rising to the rank of Major general.He was married to Mary Kane, with whom he had ten...
— Rhode Island - 1871–1874 — Enos T. ThroopEnos T. ThroopEnos Thompson Throop was an American lawyer, politician and diplomat who was the tenth Governor of New York from 1829 to 1832.-Early life and career:...
— New York - 1874–1888 — Wyndham RobertsonWyndham RobertsonWyndham Robertson was the Acting Governor of the U.S. state of Virginia from 1836 to 1837. He also served twice in the Virginia House of Delegates, the second time during the American Civil War....
— Virginia - 1888–1894 — David DunnDavid Dunn (Governor)David Dunn was an American Democratic politician and lawyer. He served as the 18th Governor of Maine in 1844.- Biography :David Dunn was born in Cornish, Maine on January 17, 1811....
— Maine - 1894–1896 — Alpheus FelchAlpheus FelchAlpheus Felch was the fifth Governor of Michigan and U.S. Senator from Michigan.-Early life:Felch was born in Limerick, Maine. He was left an orphan at the age of three and lived with his grandfather Abijah Felch, a veteran of the American Revolutionary War...
— Michigan - 1896–1898 — Peter H. BellPeter Hansborough BellPeter Hansborough Bell was an American military officer and politician who served as the third Governor of Texas and represented the state for two terms in the United States House of Representatives.-Background:Bell was born March 11, 1810 in Culpeper County, Virginia...
— Texas - 1898–1905 — George S. BoutwellGeorge S. BoutwellGeorge Sewall Boutwell was an American statesman who served as Secretary of the Treasury under President Ulysses S...
— Massachusetts - 1905–1915 — William Sprague IVWilliam Sprague (1830-1915)William Sprague IV was the 27th Governor of the U.S. state of Rhode Island from 1860–1863, and U.S. Senator from 1863-1875. He participated in the First Battle of Bull Run during the American Civil War.-Early years:...
— Rhode Island - 1915–1933 — Adelbert AmesAdelbert AmesAdelbert Ames was an American sailor, soldier, and politician. He served with distinction as a Union Army general during the American Civil War. As a Radical Republican and a Carpetbagger, he was military governor, Senator and civilian governor in Reconstruction-era Mississippi...
— Mississippi - 1933–1938 — Joseph W. FiferJoseph W. FiferJoseph Wilson Fifer was the 19th Governor of Illinois, serving from 1889 to 1893. He also served as a member of the Illinois Senate, 1881–83.“Private Joe” Fifer was born at Staunton, Virginia on October 28, 1840...
— Illinois - 1938–1939 — Roswell K. ColcordRoswell K. ColcordRoswell Keyes Colcord was an American politician. He served as the 7th Governor of the U.S. state of Nevada from 1891 to 1895. He was a member of the Republican Party.-Biography:...
— Nevada - 1939–1943 — John E. OsborneJohn Eugene OsborneJohn Eugene Osborne was an American physician, farmer, banker and Democratic politician. He was the third Governor of Wyoming after the Wyoming Territory attained statehood in 1890....
— Wyoming - 1943–1944 — Frederick B. FancherFrederick B. FancherFrederick Bartlett Fancher was an American politician who was the seventh Governor of North Dakota from 1899 to 1901.-External links:* from the .* at Findagrave.com...
— North Dakota - 1944–1946 — John L. BatesJohn L. BatesJohn Lewis Bates was born in North Easton, Massachusetts to Rev. Lewis Benton Bates, a Methodist minister, and Louisa D. Bates. He attended public school in New Bedford, Chelsea, Taunton, and eventually the Boston Latin School. He then attended the Methodist-affiliated Boston University, earning...
— Massachusetts - 1946–1958 — Fenimore ChattertonFenimore ChattertonFenimore Chatterton was an American businessman, politician, and lawyer. He was the sixth Governor of Wyoming from April 28, 1903 until January 2, 1905....
— Wyoming - 1958–1960 — George L. SheldonGeorge L. SheldonGeorge Lawson Sheldon was the 14th Governor of Nebraska from 1907 until 1909. He was a Republican from the progressive wing of that party, identified nationally with Theodore Roosevelt.-Early years:...
— Nebraska - 1960–1964 — John G. Townsend, Jr.John G. Townsend, Jr.John Gillis Townsend, Jr. was an American businessman and politician from Selbyville, in Sussex County, Delaware. He was a member of the Republican Party, who served as Governor and two terms as U. S. Senator from Delaware....
— Delaware - 1964–1968 — William H. McMasterWilliam H. McMasterWilliam Henry McMaster was the tenth Governor of South Dakota, serving from 1921 until 1925, and also a United States Senator from that state. He died at the age of 91 in 1968. He was a member of the Republican Party....
— South Dakota - 1968–1984 — George Alexander ParksGeorge Alexander ParksGeorge Alexander Parks was an American engineer who worked in Alaska Territory for most of his career. Following an unexpected nomination from President Calvin Coolidge, he became the territory's first resident governor...
— Alaska - 1984–1987 — Alf LandonAlf LandonAlfred Mossman "Alf" Landon was an American Republican politician, who served as the 26th Governor of Kansas from 1933–1937. He was best known for being the Republican Party's nominee for President of the United States, defeated in a landslide by Franklin D...
— Kansas - 1987–1991 — A. B. "Happy" Chandler IHappy ChandlerAlbert Benjamin "Happy" Chandler, Sr. was a politician from the US state of Kentucky. He represented the state in the U.S. Senate and served as its 44th and 49th governor. Aside from his political positions, he also served as the second Commissioner of Major League Baseball from 1945 to 1951 and...
— Kentucky - 1991–2001 — Harold E. Stassen — Minnesota
- 2001–2002 — Charles PolettiCharles PolettiCharles Poletti was an American lawyer and politician. He was the 46th Governor of New York in 1942, and was the first Italian-American governor in the United States.-Early life and education:...
— New York - 2002–2003 — J. Strom ThurmondStrom ThurmondJames Strom Thurmond was an American politician who served as a United States Senator. He also ran for the Presidency of the United States in 1948 as the segregationist States Rights Democratic Party candidate, receiving 2.4% of the popular vote and 39 electoral votes...
— South Carolina - 2003–2003 — Sid McMathSid McMathSidney Sanders McMath was a decorated U.S. Marine, attorney and the 34th Governor of Arkansas who, in defiance of his state's political establishment, championed rapid rural electrification, massive highway and school construction, the building of the University of Arkansas for Medical Sciences,...
— Arkansas — 1st served January 11, 1949 - 2003–2005 — Elbert N. CarvelElbert N. CarvelElbert Nostrand "Bert" Carvel was an American businessman and politician from Laurel, in Sussex County, Delaware...
— Delaware — 1st served January 18, 1949 - 2005–present — George M. LeaderGeorge M. LeaderGeorge Michael Leader served as the 36th Governor of Pennsylvania from January 18, 1955 until January 20, 1959. He is a member of the Democratic Party, and a native of York County, Pennsylvania. Currently he is the only person from that county ever to be elected governor of the state.-Early...
— Pennsylvania
Current Living Earliest Serving U.S. Governors
- George M. LeaderGeorge M. LeaderGeorge Michael Leader served as the 36th Governor of Pennsylvania from January 18, 1955 until January 20, 1959. He is a member of the Democratic Party, and a native of York County, Pennsylvania. Currently he is the only person from that county ever to be elected governor of the state.-Early...
— Pennsylvania — January 18, 1955 - Michael Anthony StepovichMichael Anthony StepovichMichael Anthony "Mike" Stepovich is an American lawyer who, from 1957 to 1958, served as the last Governor of Alaska Territory. Following his education and military service during World War II, Stepovich established a law practice in his home town of Fairbanks, Alaska and began his political...
— Alaska — June 8, 1957 - John David MerwinJohn David MerwinJohn David Merwin is a former politician of the United States Virgin Islands who served in that territory's Legislature, as Government Secretary , and as the first native born Governor...
— Virgin Islands — September 25, 1958 - John Malcolm PattersonJohn Malcolm PattersonJohn Malcolm Patterson is an American politician who was the 44th Governor of Alabama, from 1959 to 1963. Previously he served as State Attorney General ....
— Alabama — January 19, 1959 - Ernest HollingsErnest HollingsErnest Frederick "Fritz" Hollings served as a Democratic United States Senator from South Carolina from 1966 to 2005, as well as the 106th Governor of South Carolina and Lt. Governor . He served 38 years and 55 days in the Senate, which makes him the 8th-longest-serving Senator in history...
— South Carolina — January 20, 1959 - John H. ReedJohn H. ReedJohn Hathaway Reed was the 67th Governor of Maine. He was once an Aroostook County potato farmer. Reed is a Republican, who took office following the death of Governor Clinton Clauson....
— Maine — December 30, 1959 - David P. BucksonDavid P. BucksonDavid Penrose Buckson is an American lawyer and politician from Camden, in Kent County, Delaware. He is a veteran of World War II and a member of the Republican Party, who served as the 15th Lieutenant Governor of Delaware, the 68th Governor of Delaware and the 37th Attorney General of...
— Delaware — December 30, 1960 - William L. GuyWilliam L. GuyWilliam Lewis Guy was the governor of the U.S. state of North Dakota from 1961 to 1973. At , he is the oldest of the six living current or past governors of North Dakota.-Biography:...
— North Dakota — January 4, 1961 - F. Ray Keyser, Jr.F. Ray Keyser, Jr.Frank Ray Keyser is a former American politician from Vermont, serving as the 72nd Governor of Vermont from 1961 to 1963....
— Vermont — January 5, 1961 - John Anderson, Jr.John Anderson, Jr.John Anderson Jr. was the 36th Governor of Kansas from 1961 until 1965.John Anderson, Jr., was born May 8, 1917 near Olathe, Kansas to John and Ora Bookout Anderson. He graduated from Olathe High School in 1935. From there he went on to Kansas State College of Agriculture and Applied Science,...
— Kansas — January 9, 1961 - Tim M. BabcockTim M. BabcockTim Milford Babcock was the 16th Governor of the U.S. state of Montana. He was born in Littlefork, Minnesota.Babcock served in the Montana legislature prior to being elected lieutenant governor in 1960. He became governor in 1962 upon the death of Governor Donald Nutter. Babcock served until 1969,...
— Montana — January 26, 1962 - George NighGeorge NighGeorge Patterson Nigh , is a popular civic leader in the U.S. state of Oklahoma. Nigh served as the 17th and the 22nd Governor of Oklahoma. He was the first Oklahoma Governor to be re-elected and the first to win all 77 counties in the state...
— Oklahoma — January 6, 1963 - Philip Hoff — Vermont — January 10, 1963
- Tie:
- Carl SandersCarl SandersCarl Edward Sanders Sr. is an American politician who served as the 74th Governor of the state of Georgia from 1963 to 1967.Sanders was born in Augusta, Georgia and attended the University of Georgia on a football scholarship...
— Georgia — January 15, 1963 - William ScrantonWilliam ScrantonWilliam Warren Scranton is a former U.S. Republican Party politician. Scranton served as the 38th Governor of Pennsylvania from 1963 to 1967. From 1976 to 1977, he served as United States Ambassador to the United Nations.-Early life:...
— Pennsylvania — January 15, 1963
- Carl Sanders
See also
- Oldest living United States president
- List of oldest surviving members of the House of Representatives
- Dean of the United States House of RepresentativesDean of the United States House of RepresentativesThe Dean of the United States House of Representatives is the longest continuously serving member of the House. The present Dean is John Dingell, a Democrat of Michigan....
- Dean of the United States SenateDean of the United States SenateThe Dean of the United States Senate is an informal term used to refer to the Senator with the longest continuous service. The current Dean is Daniel Inouye of Hawaii...
- Longest living United States Senator
- Earliest serving United States SenatorEarliest serving United States SenatorThis page contains a list of the earliest serving United States Senators among those currently living and a list of the individuals who, at the time of their deaths, had served at the earliest date in the...
- Oldest living United States governor
- List of members of the United States Congress by longevity of service