John Chandler Gurney
Encyclopedia
John Chandler "Chan" Gurney (May 21, 1896 March 9, 1985) was a U.S. Senator
from South Dakota
.
Born in Yankton, South Dakota
, Gurney attended the public schools. During World War I
, he served as a sergeant
in Company A, Thirty-Fourth Engineers, United States Army
, with service overseas from 1918 to 1919. He also engaged in his family's seed and nursery business (Gurney's Seed and Nursery Company
) from 1914 to 1926, and was the operator of a radio station
(WNAX
) at Yankton from 1926 to 1932. He then moved to Sioux Falls, South Dakota
, and engaged in the wholesale gasoline and oil business from 1932 to 1936.
In 1936, Gurney ran unsuccessfully for election to the United States Senate
, but he was elected as a Republican
in 1938. He was reelected in 1944 and served in all from January 3, 1939 to January 3, 1951. He was chairman of the U.S. Senate Committee on Armed Services. He sought to be re-elected in 1950, but was defeated in the Republican primary by Francis Case.
After his time in Congress, Gurney was appointed a member of the Civil Aeronautics Board in 1951, became chairman in 1954, and served until 1964. He retired to Yankton, where he died and was buried in Yankton Cemetery.
United States Senate
The United States Senate is the upper house of the bicameral legislature of the United States, and together with the United States House of Representatives comprises the United States Congress. The composition and powers of the Senate are established in Article One of the U.S. Constitution. Each...
from South Dakota
South Dakota
South Dakota is a state located in the Midwestern region of the United States. It is named after the Lakota and Dakota Sioux American Indian tribes. Once a part of Dakota Territory, South Dakota became a state on November 2, 1889. The state has an area of and an estimated population of just over...
.
Born in Yankton, South Dakota
Yankton, South Dakota
Yankton is a city in, and the county seat of, Yankton County, South Dakota, United States. The population was 14,454 at the 2010 census. Yankton was the original capital of Dakota Territory. It is named for the Yankton tribe of Nakota Native Americans...
, Gurney attended the public schools. During World War I
World War I
World War I , which was predominantly called the World War or the Great War from its occurrence until 1939, and the First World War or World War I thereafter, was a major war centred in Europe that began on 28 July 1914 and lasted until 11 November 1918...
, he served as a sergeant
Sergeant
Sergeant is a rank used in some form by most militaries, police forces, and other uniformed organizations around the world. Its origins are the Latin serviens, "one who serves", through the French term Sergent....
in Company A, Thirty-Fourth Engineers, United States Army
United States Army
The United States Army is the main branch of the United States Armed Forces responsible for land-based military operations. It is the largest and oldest established branch of the U.S. military, and is one of seven U.S. uniformed services...
, with service overseas from 1918 to 1919. He also engaged in his family's seed and nursery business (Gurney's Seed and Nursery Company
Gurney's Seed and Nursery Company
Gurney’s Seed and Nursery Co. is a mail-order seed and garden plant company based in Greendale, Indiana. Founded in 1866, Gurney’s specializes in vegetable and flower seeds, gardening supplies and nursery stock, including trees, shrubs, perennials, fruit trees and berries, fertilizers and plant foods...
) from 1914 to 1926, and was the operator of a radio station
Radio station
Radio broadcasting is a one-way wireless transmission over radio waves intended to reach a wide audience. Stations can be linked in radio networks to broadcast a common radio format, either in broadcast syndication or simulcast or both...
(WNAX
WNAX (AM)
WNAX is a radio station broadcasting a News/Talk format. It is licensed to Yankton, South Dakota. Due to the flat landscape of the Upper Great Plains and its location near the bottom end of the AM band, the station's 5,000-watt signal covers large portions of South Dakota, Nebraska, Iowa,...
) at Yankton from 1926 to 1932. He then moved to Sioux Falls, South Dakota
Sioux Falls, South Dakota
Sioux Falls is the largest city in the U.S. state of South Dakota. Sioux Falls is the county seat of Minnehaha County, and also extends into Lincoln County to the south...
, and engaged in the wholesale gasoline and oil business from 1932 to 1936.
In 1936, Gurney ran unsuccessfully for election to the United States Senate
United States Senate
The United States Senate is the upper house of the bicameral legislature of the United States, and together with the United States House of Representatives comprises the United States Congress. The composition and powers of the Senate are established in Article One of the U.S. Constitution. Each...
, but he was elected as a Republican
Republican Party (United States)
The Republican Party is one of the two major contemporary political parties in the United States, along with the Democratic Party. Founded by anti-slavery expansion activists in 1854, it is often called the GOP . The party's platform generally reflects American conservatism in the U.S...
in 1938. He was reelected in 1944 and served in all from January 3, 1939 to January 3, 1951. He was chairman of the U.S. Senate Committee on Armed Services. He sought to be re-elected in 1950, but was defeated in the Republican primary by Francis Case.
After his time in Congress, Gurney was appointed a member of the Civil Aeronautics Board in 1951, became chairman in 1954, and served until 1964. He retired to Yankton, where he died and was buried in Yankton Cemetery.
Sources
- Pressler, Larry. "John Chandler Gurney." In U.S. Senators from the Prairie, pp. 114-23. Vermillion, SD: Dakota Press, 1982.