Raymond E. Baldwin | |
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| Associate Justice of theConnecticut Supreme Court of Errors | |
| In office 1949–1959 | |
| United States Senator fromConnecticut | |
| In office December 27, 1946 – December 16, 1949 | |
| Preceded by | Thomas C. Hart |
| Succeeded by | William Benton |
| 72nd & 74th Governor of Connecticut | |
| In office January 6, 1943 – December 27, 1946 | |
| Lieutenant | William L. Hadden Wilbert Snow |
| Preceded by | Robert A. Hurley |
| Succeeded by | Wilbert Snow |
| In office January 4, 1939 – January 8, 1941 | |
| Lieutenant | James L. McConaughy |
| Preceded by | Wilbur Lucius Cross |
| Succeeded by | Robert A. Hurley |
| Majority Leader of theConnecticut House of Representatives | |
| In office 1933 | |
| Member of theConnecticut House of Representatives | |
| In office 1931-1933 | |
| Personal details | |
| Born | Raymond Earl Baldwin (1893-08-31)August 31, 1893 Rye, New York, U.S. |
| Died | October 4, 1986(1986-10-04) (aged 93) Fairfield, Connecticut, U.S. |
| Political party | Republican |
| Spouse | |
| Children | 3 |
| Education | Wesleyan University Yale Law School (LL.B.) |
| Profession | lawyer, politician, judge |
| Military service | |
| Branch/service |  United States Navy |
| Years of service | 1918–1919 |
| Rank |  Lieutenant (junior grade) |
| Battles/wars | World War I |
Raymond Earl Baldwin (August 31, 1893 – October 4, 1986) was an American politician who served as aUnited States senator from Connecticut and also as the72nd and 74th Governor of Connecticut. A conservative Republican, he was elected governor of Connecticut in 1938 during a Republican landslide promising a balanced budget, government aid to private business, and lower taxes. He sharply cut the state budget, producing a million dollars surplus. He was defeated for reelection in 1940, but was elected governor again in 1942 and 1944. He supervised a complex system of civil defense and statewide services on the homefront during the war. He planned an elaborate program to deal with the postwar reconversion of Connecticut's many warplane and munitions plants. He was elected to the Senate in the Republican landslide of 1946. As a spokesman for the small businesses of America, he compiled a conservative record in favor of less regulation, except for more regulation of labor unions through theTaft–Hartley Act. As chairman of a subcommittee of the Armed Services committee, Baldwin engaged in a long-running dispute with Wisconsin SenatorJoseph McCarthy. McCarthy alleged that Baldwin was whitewashing an episode in which Army prosecutors in 1944 gained the death penalty for German soldiers accused of massacring Americans at theMalmedy Massacre. Exhausted by the highly publicized controversy, Baldwin resigned from the Senate in December 1949 to become a state judge.[1]
Baldwin was born in 1893 inRye, New York, the son of Sarah Emily (Tyler) and Lucian Earl Baldwin. He moved toMiddletown, Connecticut, and attended public schools. He graduated fromWesleyan University inMiddletown in 1916, and enteredYale University. However, upon thedeclaration of war, he enlisted in theUnited States Navy. He was assigned to officers' training school and wascommissioned anensign in February 1918, and promoted tolieutenant (j.g.) in September 1918. He resigned from the Navy in August 1919 and returned toYale Law School, graduating in 1921. He was admitted to thebar in 1921 and practiced in New Haven andBridgeport. He married Edith Lindholm on June 29, 1922, and they had three sons.[2]
Baldwin wasprosecutor of theStratford Town Court from 1927 to 1930, and was judge of that court from 1931 to 1933. He was a member of theConnecticut House of Representatives from 1931 to 1933, serving asmajority leader in 1933. He resumed the practice of law from 1933 to 1938, and was town chairman of Stratford from 1935 to 1937.
Baldwin was Governor of Connecticut in 1939 and 1940, and the first governor to use the Governor's Mansion located on Prospect Avenue in Hartford.[3] He was an unsuccessful candidate for reelection to the office in 1940. An early supporter ofWendell Willkie, he saw to it that the Connecticut delegation at the 1940 Republican Convention, would back Willkie which was crucial to beat frontrunnersThomas Dewey,Robert A. Taft, andArthur Vandenberg. Willkie had unofficially promised Baldwin the spot as his running mate, but party leaders pressured Willkie to nameCharles McNary instead, and Baldwin graciously stepped aside from contention. He was also a delegate in 1944 and 1948.[4]
Again elected Governor in 1942 and 1944, Baldwin served until his resignation on December 27, 1946. During his tenure, he eliminated the state deficit without raising taxes; initiated a job-training program; created an inter-racial commission, and reformed the minor court system. Also instituted were a Connecticut Veterans Advisory and Reemployment Commission; and a labor management council.[5] He was elected United States Senator as aRepublican on November 5, 1946, to fill the vacancy in the term ending January 3, 1947, caused by the death ofFrancis T. Maloney. At the same time he was elected for the term commencing January 3, 1947, and served from December 27, 1946, until his resignation on December 16, 1949.[6]
In 1949, Baldwin succeededArthur F. Ells, his own appointee, as anassociate justice of the Connecticut SupremeCourt of Errors (now theSupreme Court of Connecticut); he was appointed chief justice in 1959 and served until his retirement in 1963. He was chairman of the Connecticut Constitutional Convention in 1965.
Baldwin died in Fairfield, Connecticut, on October 4, 1986, and is interred atIndian Hill Cemetery, Middletown, Connecticut.
A member of the Connecticut State Library Committee and its successor, the State Library Board, from 1957 to 1982; Baldwin served as its chair for many years. In tribute to his service, the board renamed the State Library's museum the Raymond E. Baldwin Museum of Connecticut History in 1983. TheRaymond E. Baldwin Bridge that carries theConnecticut Turnpike (I-95) across theConnecticut River is also named for him. The Middlesex Judicial District courthouse in Middletown, as well as the Baldwin Center, a senior citizens center in Stratford, are named in his honor.
| Political offices | ||
|---|---|---|
| Preceded by | Governor of Connecticut 1939–1941 | Succeeded by |
| Preceded by Robert A. Hurley | Governor of Connecticut 1943–1946 | Succeeded by |
| U.S. Senate | ||
| Preceded by | U.S. senator (Class 1) from Connecticut December 27, 1946 – December 16, 1949 Served alongside:Brien McMahon | Succeeded by |
| Party political offices | ||
| Preceded by Arthur M. Brown | Republican nominee forGovernor of Connecticut 1938,1940,1942,1944 | Succeeded by |
| Preceded by | Republican nominee forUnited States Senator from Connecticut (Class 1) 1946 | Succeeded by |
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| Class 3 | ||
| International | |
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| National | |
| People | |
| Other | |
