C. Wayland Brooks | |
|---|---|
 Brooks at the1940 Republican National Convention | |
| United States Senator fromIllinois | |
| In office November 22, 1940 – January 3, 1949 | |
| Preceded by | James M. Slattery |
| Succeeded by | Paul Douglas |
| Personal details | |
| Born | Charles Wayland Brooks (1897-03-08)March 8, 1897 West Bureau,Illinois, U.S. |
| Died | January 14, 1957(1957-01-14) (aged 59) |
| Political party | Republican |
| Spouses | |
| Children | 1 |
| Military service | |
| Allegiance | United States |
| Branch/service |  United States Marine Corps |
| Years of service | 1917–1919 |
| Rank | First lieutenant |
| Battles/wars | World War I |
Charles Wayland Brooks (March 8, 1897 – January 14, 1957) was aRepublicanU.S. Senator fromIllinois from 1940 to 1949.[1]
Born inWest Bureau, Illinois, Brooks served in theMarines duringWorld War I as afirst lieutenant from 1917 to 1919. While in combat he was wounded several times.
Brooks ran forGovernor of Illinois in1936 but was defeated by incumbentDemocratHenry Horner. He was elected by a very narrow margin in 1940 to fill the senate vacancy caused by the death ofJ. Hamilton Lewis.[2] Brooks was reelected in 1942,[3] but was defeated in 1948 byDemocratPaul Douglas.
On 11 April 1945,United States forces liberated theBuchenwald Concentration Camp which was established in 1937 and caused the death of at least 56,545 people. GeneralEisenhower left rotting corpses unburied so a visiting group of US legislators could truly understand the horror of the atrocities. This group was visiting Buchenwald to inspect the camp and learn firsthand about the enormity of the NaziFinal Solution and treatment of other prisoners.
The legislators who visited includedAlben W. Barkley,Ed Izac,John M. Vorys,Dewey Short, C. Wayland Brooks, andKenneth S. Wherry along withGeneral Omar N. Bradley and journalistsJoseph Pulitzer,Norman Chandler, William I. Nichols andJulius Ochs Adler.[4][5]
Brooks returned toChicago and died at age 59 at Passavant Hospital in early 1957, after a massive heart attack.[6]
Brooks married Gertrude Ackerly in August 1920 and they had a son, Russell (b. 1924). She divorced him in April 1943 inReno, Nevada, citing cruelty.[7][8] He marriedMary Elizabeth Thomas Peavey, a widow and daughter of U.S. Senate colleagueJohn Thomas ofIdaho. They wed in May 1946,[9] and remained married to his death. Mary Brooks later became a member of theIdaho Senate.[10] and for eight years wasDirector of the United States Mint during theNixon andFord administrations. Her son,John Peavey (b. 1933), is a formerDemocratic politician in Idaho, formerly a Republican.
| Party political offices | ||
|---|---|---|
| Preceded by | Republican nominee forIllinois Treasurer 1932 | Succeeded by |
| Preceded by | Republican nominee forGovernor of Illinois 1936 | Succeeded by |
| Preceded by | Republican nominee forU.S. Senator fromIllinois (Class 2) 1940,1942,1948 | Succeeded by Joseph T. Meek |
| U.S. Senate | ||
| Preceded by | U.S. senator (Class 2) from Illinois 1940–1949 Served alongside:Scott W. Lucas | Succeeded by |
| Class 2 |  | |
|---|---|---|
| Class 3 | ||
| Rules (1870–1947) |  | |
|---|---|---|
| Rules and Administration (1947–present) | ||
| International | |
|---|---|
| National | |
| People | |
| Other | |
  | This biographical article related to the United States Marine Corps is astub. You can help Wikipedia byexpanding it. |
