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Henry Bellmon
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23rd Governor of Oklahoma
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| In office January 12, 1987 – January 14, 1991 |
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| Lieutenant | Robert S. Kerr III |
| Preceded by | George Nigh |
| Succeeded by | David Walters |
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| In office January 3, 1969 – January 3, 1981 |
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| Preceded by | A. S. Mike Monroney |
| Succeeded by | Don Nickles |
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18th Governor of Oklahoma
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| In office January 13, 1963 – January 9, 1967 |
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| Lieutenant | Leo Winters |
| Preceded by | George Nigh |
| Succeeded by | Dewey F. Bartlett |
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| Born | September 3, 1921 Tonkawa, Oklahoma |
| Died | September 29, 2009 (aged 88) Enid, Oklahoma |
| Political party | Republican |
| Spouse(s) | Shirley Osborn (1947–2001) Eloise Bollenbach (2002–2009) |
| Alma mater | Oklahoma A & M |
| Occupation | Farmer |
| Profession | Politician |
| Military service | |
| Allegiance | United States |
| Service/branch | United States Marine Corps |
| Battles/wars | World War II Battle of Iwo Jima |
| Awards | Silver Star Legion of Merit |
Henry Louis Bellmon (September 3, 1921 – September 29, 2009) was an American Republican politician from Oklahoma. He was a member of the Oklahoma Legislature, twice the Governor of Oklahoma (the first Republican to hold that office), and a two-term United States Senator.
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Early life and career
Service in World War II
Bellmon was born in Tonkawa, Oklahoma and graduated from Billings High School in Billings, Oklahoma. He graduated from Oklahoma A & M (now Oklahoma State University) in 1942 with a Bachelors Degree in agriculture. He was a lieutenant in the United States Marine Corps from 1942 to 1946. He was a tank platoon leader in the Pacific Theater of World War II. He took part in four amphibious landings on Pacific islands, including Iwo Jima.[1] For his service, he was awarded the Legion of Merit and a Silver Star.[2] After the war he returned to farming and took up politics.
Entry into Oklahoma politics
Bellmon served a single term in the Oklahoma House of Representatives (1946-1948). While in the legislature, in January 1947, he married Shirley Osborn, to whom he remained married until her death in 2000. In 1960 he served as the State Republican Party Chairman. Elected in 1962 as Oklahoma's first Republican governor since statehood in 1907, he served his first term from 1963 to 1967. While Governor, he served as the chairman of the Interstate Oil Compact Commission and as a member of the executive committee of the National Governor's Association.[3] Under Oklahoma law at the time, a term limit was in place; he was not able to run for a second term.
In 1968, he was serving as the national chairman for Richard Nixon's presidential election campaign, but then decided to run for the U.S. Senate, and won, unseating U.S. Senator A.S. Mike Monroney.[4] In the Democratic landslide of 1974, he managed to be reelected over Congressman Ed Edmondson by a very narrow margin. He did not run for a third term in 1980. During his service in the Senate, he sometimes took moderate positions that put him at odds with the largely conservative Oklahoma Republican Party: he supported Gerald Ford over Ronald Reagan in the 1976 presidential election (even though the state delegation was committed to Reagan)[4]; he opposed a constitutional amendment to prohibit forced busing for the purpose of racially desegregating public schools; and he supported the Panama Canal treaty.[5]
During his second term he was the ranking Republican on the Senate Budget Committee.[1] He was a co-founder and co-chairman of the Committee for a Responsible Federal Budget.[3] He chose not to run for re-election in 1980[4] and was succeeded by Republican Don Nickles.
Bellmon was appointed the interim director of the Oklahoma Department of Human Services by Governor George Nigh, a Democrat, in 1982.[4]
Returning to the Governor's mansion
In 1986, Oklahoma Republican leaders asked Bellmon if he would consider running for governor again (by now the term limit provision had been removed). Bellmon agreed to run, and in November Oklahoma voters returned Bellmon to the Governor's Mansion for a second term. During his second tenure as Governor he chaired the Southern States Energy Board.
During his second term, Bellmon worked with Democrats in the Oklahoma legislature to pass an educational reform package, HB 1017, over the opposition of most Republicans. Bellmon chose not to seek reelection in 1990. The Republican candidate to replace him, Bill Price, promised to repeal HB 1017. However, Price was defeated by Democrat David Walters,[5] whom Bellmon had defeated four years earlier.
Death penalty
Bellmon is notable for overseeing as Governor both Oklahoma's last pre-Furman execution (when James French was electrocuted in 1966) and its first post-Furman, when Charles Coleman was put to death by lethal injection in 1990.[citation needed]
Later years
Bellmon returned to his agriculture business interests.[6] Bellmon also taught at Oklahoma City University, Central State University, Oklahoma State University, and the University of Oklahoma. Shirley Bellmon died in 2000; Bellmon married a longtime friend, Eloise Bollenbach, in 2002.[4] A March 1, 2009 profile in The Oklahoman reported that he was living with Eloise in Kingfisher, Oklahoma; the article also reported that, despite suffering from Parkinson's Disease and a heart ailment, Bellmon was still operating his family farm in Billings.[7]
Death
Bellmon died September 29, 2009 in Enid, Oklahoma at the age of 88 after a long battle with Parkinson's disease.[2]
See also
- Governor of Oklahoma
- Government of Oklahoma
- Oklahoma Republican Party
- Politics of Oklahoma
- List of United States Senators from Oklahoma
References
- ^ a b Hanneman, Carolyn G.. "Bellmon, Henry Louis (1921- )". Encyclopedia of Oklahoma History & Culture. Oklahoma Historical Society. http://digital.library.okstate.edu/encyclopedia/entries/B/BE012.html. Retrieved 2009-03-01.
- ^ a b Hoberock, Barbara (2009-09-29). "Former governor Henry Bellmon dies". Tulsa World. http://www.tulsaworld.com/news/article.aspx?subjectid=12&articleid=20090929_12_0_OKLAHO50963&allcom=1. Retrieved 2009-09-29.
- ^ a b Henry Bellmon at the Biographical Directory of the United States Congress.
- ^ a b c d e "Former Oklahoma Gov. Henry Bellmon dies", The Oklahoman, September 29, 2009.
- ^ a b Randy Krehbiel, "State mourns GOP giant: Ex-governor, senator dies at 88", Tulsa World, September 30, 2009.
- ^ Greiner, John (2007-11-04). "Love of the farm shapes Henry Bellmon's life". The Oklahoman. http://newsok.com/article/3163305/1194132974. Retrieved 2009-03-01.
- ^ Painter, Bryan (2009-03-01). "Rural upbringing shapes former governor Henry Bellmon's life". The Oklahoman: p. 6. http://www.newsok.com/rural-upbringing-shapes-former-governor-henry-bellmons-life/article/3349503. Retrieved 2009-03-01.
External links
- Henry Bellmon at the Biographical Directory of the United States Congress
- Encyclopedia of Oklahoma History and Culture - Bellmon, Henry
- O-State Stories Oral History Interview with Henry Bellmon, Oklahoma Oral History Research Program
| Political offices | ||
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| Preceded by George Patterson Nigh |
Governor of Oklahoma 1963 – 1967 |
Succeeded by Dewey F. Bartlett |
| Preceded by George Patterson Nigh |
Governor of Oklahoma 1987 – 1991 |
Succeeded by David Walters |
| United States Senate | ||
| Preceded by A. S. Mike Monroney |
United States Senator (Class 3) from Oklahoma 1969 – 1981 Served alongside: Fred R. Harris, Dewey F. Bartlett, David L. Boren |
Succeeded by Donald Lee Nickles |
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