Ken Curtis | |
|---|---|
 | |
| United States Ambassador to Canada | |
| In office October 5, 1979 – January 20, 1981 | |
| President | Jimmy Carter |
| Preceded by | Thomas O. Enders |
| Succeeded by | Paul H. Robinson Jr. |
| Chair of theDemocratic National Committee | |
| In office January 21, 1977 – January 27, 1978 | |
| Preceded by | Robert S. Strauss |
| Succeeded by | John White |
| 68thGovernor of Maine | |
| In office January 5, 1967 – January 2, 1975 | |
| Preceded by | John H. Reed |
| Succeeded by | James B. Longley |
| 41stSecretary of State of Maine | |
| In office 1965–1966 | |
| Governor | John H. Reed |
| Preceded by | Paul A. MacDonald |
| Succeeded by | Joseph T. Edgar |
| Personal details | |
| Born | Kenneth Merwin Curtis (1931-02-08)February 8, 1931 (age 94) Leeds, Maine, U.S. |
| Political party | Democratic |
| Spouse | Polly Brown |
| Children | 2 |
| Education | Maine Maritime Academy (BS) University of Maine, Portland (LLB) |
Kenneth Merwin Curtis (born February 8, 1931) is an American attorney, politician, and diplomat fromMaine. He was theSecretary of State of Maine from 1965 to 1966, the 68thGovernor of Maine from 1967 to 1975, and theUnited States Ambassador to Canada from 1979 to 1981. Curtis is a member of theDemocratic Party and was laterOf counsel at the Curtis Thaxter law firm inPortland, Maine, which he founded in 1975. Since the death ofGeorge Nigh in July 2025, Curtis is the earliest serving living former American governor, and is the last living former American governor who assumed office in the 1960s.
Curtis was born in Curtis Corner,Leeds, Maine to Archie, a fifth-generation farmer of the family land there, and Harriet (Turner) Curtis. He attendedCony High School in Augusta and graduated in 1949.[1] He then attendedMaine Maritime Academy and received aBachelor of Science in 1952.[2]
Curtis served in theUnited States Naval Reserve from 1953 to 1955[3] and was alieutenant commander in theKorean War before leaving the Navy to pursue a law degree. He was admitted to the Maine Bar in 1958[1] and received aLL.B. fromPortland University School of Law in 1959[4][3] and aLL.D. fromBates College in 1981.
Curtis's political career began in 1956 when he worked forJames Oliver's Democratic campaign forMaine's 1st congressional district. Oliver lost to Robert Hale in 1956 but won in 1958 with Curtis serving as campaign manager.[1] Curtis worked as Oliver's assistant from 1959 to 1961.[3]
In 1963, Curtis was appointed Maine Coordinator for the Area Redevelopment Administration byPresident of the United StatesJohn F. Kennedy and served in that position until 1964[3][4] when he campaigned for the 1st district seat but narrowly lost toStanley R. Tupper.[3][1]
Curtis served as theMaine Secretary of State from 1965 to 1966.[4]
In1966, Curtis defeatedCarlton Day Reed Jr., the Maine Senate President and former Speaker of the House, andDana Childs, the incumbent Speaker of the House, in a primary election to challenge incumbent Republican GovernorJohn Reed. In the November election, with campaign help fromRobert F. Kennedy, Curtis defeated Reed by 20,234 votes.[5]
In February 1970, Curtis announced hisre-election bid,[6] defeating Plato Truman in the Democratic primary and facedMaine Attorney GeneralJames Erwin in the general election. Initially the underdog, Curtis managed to gain momentum following a strong debate performance.[7]
The campaign had boiled down basically to an issue of economy in state government, Erwin asserted that a ten percent cut could be made in the state budget without hurting services. Curtis said that any reduction such as that proposed by Erwin would drastically cut the essential services provided by state government. Curtis would end up being narrowly reelected, defeating Erwin by 890 votes.[8]
Curtis was the 68thGovernor of Maine, and the youngest governor in theUnited States at the time.[6]
In 1968, Curtis merged the University of Maine at Orono with five teachers' colleges throughout the state, creating theUniversity of Maine System.[5] In 1969, Curtis and the Republican legislature enacted Maine's first income tax, which as of 2021 still provides the bulk of the state's revenue. The administration also enacted several notable environmental protection measures, such as the Site Location of Development Act, and created the Department of Environmental Protection.[5]
Curtis chaired the New England Governors’ conference from 1969 to 1970[4][3][9] and was Chairman of the Environmental Task Force of theNational Governors Association in the early 1970s.[9]
In January 1970, Curtis strongly pledged support for an oil refinery atMachiasport, Maine. Environmentalists, as well as theMaine Times – a recently established newspaper – opposed this proposal.
Curtis proposed gun control legislation, which would deny ownership to convicted felons, drug addicts, and those in mental institutions. This was quite controversial and irritated gun owners throughout the state of Maine.
Curtis was the first Maine governor to serve two four-year terms. (or 8 full years).[5] In November 1971 Curtis made an 11th‐hour appeal urging voters to reject a referendum aimed at repealing the state's two‐year‐old income tax.[10] In 1972, he reorganized the Maine state government to cabinet system, replacing 150 independent agencies with 16 departments.[5] The heads of these departments would be appointed by each currently-serving governor, whereas previously they had remained in their positions after being appointed by former governors.[11]
in June 1973 Curtis signed a bill that eliminated the state's criminal penalties for knowingly being present where marijuana is kept. Conviction under the law is punishable by a fine of up to $1,000, or imprisonment of up to 11 months, or both.[12]
in December 1973 Curtis asked Maine residents in a televised address to voluntarily reduce their consumption of gasoline, heating oil and kerosene.[1]
According to the Maine Historical Society, Curtis was "one of a few sitting governors to climb Mt. Katahdin and canoe the Allagash River."[13] Curtis askedJames B. Longley to lead a state government commission called The Maine Management and Cost Survey Commission, which was intended to make government more efficient, and cut costs. After some initial reluctance, Longley accepted the position and pursued the job with vigor.
Longley made several recommendations that were projected to save the state in excess of $24 million. One of his major proposals included restructuring the Maine university system, which he felt was grossly inefficient.
In 1975, Curtis founded the Curtis Thaxter law firm with several colleagues,[14] and he served as chairman of theDemocratic National Committee from 1977 to 1978.[4][9]
Curtis served as theUnited States Ambassador to Canada from 1979 to 1981.[4] His tenure coincided with theIran hostage crisis and theCanadian Caper, and Curtis handled communication regarding the status of six American diplomats being sheltered by Canadian embassy staff in Tehran and eventually rescued by the CIA.[11]
Curtis served as the 11th president of Maine Maritime Academy from 1986 to 1994.[4][9][15]
Curtis met Pauline "Polly" Brown[16] while they both worked atSears in downtown Portland. They were married in 1956.[5]
The Curtises had two children, Susan (born 1959) and Angela (born 1961), both of whom were born withcystic fibrosis. On Tuesday, July 20, 1970, Susan died at Central Maine General Hospital in Lewiston ofrespiratory failure.[17] She was 11 years old. Since Ken Curtis was serving his first term as governor, the family received numerous monetary donations in Susan's name, and friends and political supporters encouraged the Curtises to start anonprofit organization with the funds. After researching specific needs throughout Maine, the newly-formed Susan L. Curtis Foundation opened Camp Susan Curtis inStoneham, Maine in 1974 to serve economically disadvantaged Maine children.[18]
The Curtises' second daughter, Angela Curtis Hall, who was also born with cystic fibrosis, died in 1996. She was 34.[19]
The Curtises semi-retired to Florida from 1997 to 2017[5] and then returned to Maine. As of January 2021, they live in Scarborough. Curtis was laterOf Counsel at Curtis Thaxter, thePortland law firm he founded in 1975.[9]
| Boards | Honorary Degrees |
|---|---|
| Board of Directors, KeyCorp[9][2] Board of Directors, Bowater Incorporated[9][2] Board of Directors, New England Telephone Co.[9] Alberta Northeast Gas Ltd. Advisory Board[9][2] Board of Trustees, Susan L. Curtis Foundation[2] Council of Former American Ambassadors[2] Board of Visitors, University of Maine School of Law[2] | University of Maine University of New Brunswick Bowdoin College Colby College Bates College University of New Hampshire Mount Allison University Saint Joseph's College of Maine St. Francis College Unity College[2] |
https://www.nytimes.com/1973/06/14/archives/maine-governor-signs-bill-eliminating-marijuana-law.html
| Political offices | ||
|---|---|---|
| Preceded by | Secretary of State of Maine 1965–1966 | Succeeded by |
| Preceded by | Governor of Maine 1967–1975 | Succeeded by |
| Party political offices | ||
| Preceded by Maynard Dolloff | Democratic nominee forGovernor of Maine 1966,1970 | Succeeded by |
| Preceded by | Chair of theDemocratic National Committee 1977–1978 | Succeeded by |
| Diplomatic posts | ||
| Preceded by | United States Ambassador to Canada 1979–1981 | Succeeded by |
| Honorary titles | ||
| Preceded by | Earliest Serving Governor Still Living 2025–present | Current holder |
| U.S. order of precedence (ceremonial) | ||
| Preceded byas Former U.S. Senator | Order of precedence of the United States Within Maine | Succeeded byas Former Governor |
| Preceded byas Former Governor | Order of precedence of the United States Outside Maine | |
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| International | |
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| National | |
| Other | |
