William Henry Wills | |
|---|---|
 William H. Wills in 1944 | |
| Member,Federal Communications Commission | |
| In office July 23, 1945 – March 6, 1946 | |
| Preceded by | Norman S. Case |
| Succeeded by | Rosel H. Hyde |
| 65th Governor of Vermont | |
| In office January 9, 1941 – January 4, 1945 | |
| Lieutenant | Mortimer R. Proctor |
| Preceded by | George Aiken |
| Succeeded by | Mortimer R. Proctor |
| 61st Lieutenant Governor of Vermont | |
| In office January 7, 1937 – January 9, 1941 | |
| Governor | George Aiken |
| Preceded by | George Aiken |
| Succeeded by | Mortimer R. Proctor |
| Member of theVermont Senate from theBennington County district | |
| In office January 9, 1935 – January 7, 1937 Serving with Harry C. Beebe | |
| Preceded by | Frank C. Archibald, Cebra Q. Graves |
| Succeeded by | Leon M. Cole, Edward A. Tobin |
| In office January 7, 1931 – January 4, 1933 Serving with Richard M. Campbell | |
| Preceded by | William B. Edgerton, Daniel F. Gardner |
| Succeeded by | Frank C. Archibald, Cebra Q. Graves |
| Member of theVermont House of Representatives from theBennington district | |
| In office January 9, 1929 – January 7, 1931 | |
| Preceded by | Cyrus S. Estes |
| Succeeded by | Edward F. Horst |
| Personal details | |
| Born | (1882-10-26)October 26, 1882 Chicago, Illinois, U.S. |
| Died | March 6, 1946(1946-03-06) (aged 63) Brockton, Massachusetts, U.S. |
| Resting place | Park Lawn Cemetery, Bennington, Vermont, U.S. |
| Party | Republican |
| Spouse | Hazel McLeod (m. 1914-1946, his death) |
| Relations | James Henry Wills (father) Alzina Brown Wills (mother) |
| Children | 1 |
| Occupation | Insurance agent, real estate broker, politician |
William Henry Wills (October 26, 1882 – March 6, 1946) was an American politician from theU.S. state ofVermont. He was the61st lieutenant governor of Vermont from 1937 to 1941 and the65th governor of Vermont from 1941 to 1945. In 1944, Wills was a delegate to theRepublican National Convention.[1]
Wills was born inChicago, Illinois, where his family lived for the first ten years of his life. When his father, James Henry Wills, died, his mother Alzina moved toVergennes, Vermont, to live near relatives, and he lived there for eight years. At eighteen, he moved toBennington, where he worked at several occupations, including selling shoes. He was married to Hazel McLeod and they had one child.[2]
Wills started an insurance company in 1915, and was also involved in other financial services. He got into electoral politics in the 1920s, winning election to theVermont House of Representatives in 1928, representing Bennington; he won aBennington CountySenate seat in the following election (1930), and was chosenpresidentpro tempore of that body. Wills chose to run for lieutenant governor in 1932, but lost the nomination toCharles Manley Smith. Returning to the Senate in the 1934 election, Wills was again elected presidentpro tempore of the Vermont State Senate. In 1936, Wills again ran for lieutenant governor, this time winning the election to succeedGeorge Aiken (who was elected governor), and won again in 1938.[3]
Wills was elected governor in 1940, succeeding Aiken, who chose to run for theUnited States Senate. He won again in 1942, but chose not to seek a third term, citing poor health. Among the policies he successfully championed as governor were the institution of a merit system for state employees and a minimum wage for teachers.[3] He was succeeded by Lieutenant GovernorMortimer R. Proctor. By the time he left office, Wills had received honoraryLL.D. degrees fromNorwich University,Middlebury College and theUniversity of Vermont.[4] He was president of the board of trustees of theEpiscopal Diocese of Vermont. He was also on the board of a number of other charities, and was aFreemason, anElk, and anOdd Fellow.[5] He was a delegate to the1944 Republican National Convention.[6]
Wills was nominated byPresidentHarry Truman to replaceFederal Communications Commission memberNorman S. Case on June 13, 1945, for the seven-year term beginning July 1, 1945.[7] He was confirmed onunanimous consent by theSenate on July 12, a few hours after a brief hearing before the SenateInterstate Commerce Committee.[8] He took the oath of office on July 23, 1945.[4]
Wills served until his death on March 6, 1946.[9] He died while presiding over an FCC hearing inBrockton, Massachusetts.[1][3] He is interred at Park Lawn Cemetery in Bennington.[10]
| Party political offices | ||
|---|---|---|
| Preceded by | Republican nominee forLieutenant Governor of Vermont 1936, 1938 | Succeeded by |
| Republican nominee forGovernor of Vermont 1940,1942 | ||
| Political offices | ||
| Preceded by | President pro tempore of the Vermont State Senate 1931 – 1933 | Succeeded by |
| Preceded by | President pro tempore of the Vermont State Senate 1935 – 1937 | Succeeded by |
| Preceded by | Lieutenant Governor of Vermont 1937 –1941 | Succeeded by |
| Preceded by | Governor of Vermont 1941–1945 | Succeeded by |
| International | |
|---|---|
| National | |
| Other | |
