WWII WAR GOVERNOR MI MILITARY GOVERNOR of NAZI BAVARIA VAN WAGONER SIGNED PHOTO!

Description

MURRAY D. VAN WAGONER
The “Mackinac Bridge” Governor
(1898 – 1986)
WORLD WAR II GOVERNOR OF MICHIGAN 1941-1943,
POST-WAR MILITARY GOVERNOR OF BAVARIA APPOINTED BY GENERAL LUCIUS D. CLAY 1947-1949 – ISSUING A WARNING TO
BAVARIAN
MINISTER-PRESIDENT
HANS EHARD
AGAINST REPLACING NON-NAZI PUBLIC SERVANTS WITH FORMER NAZIS,
MICHIGAN STATE HIGHWAY COMMISSIONER 1933-1940
&
DEMOCRATIC PARTY POLITICIAN FROM OAKLAND COUNTY, MI.
During his two years in office, Gov. Van Wagoner encouraged the construction of road projects and most famously the
Mackinac Bridge
, the elimination of a 27 million dollar deficit occurred, worker strikes involving the auto and electrical industries were dealt with, the reorganization of the Michigan civil service system was initialized, and measures were secured for the war effort!
<
<>
>
HERE’S AN AUTOGRAPH NOTE SIGNED BY VAN WAGONER ON A 1940s VINTAGE SEPIA-TONE PHOTOGRAPH AS GOVERNOR:
“
Regards,
Murray D. Van Wagoner
Gov of Michigan~”
The document measures 8½” x 12” and is in VERY FINE CONDITION.
A FINE PIECE OF MICHIGAN POLITICAL HISTORY TO ADD TO YOUR AUTOGRAPH, MANUSCRIPT & EPHEMERA COLLECTION!
<
<>
::
<>
>
BIOGRAPHY OF THE HONORABLE
MURRAY D. VAN WAGONER
Murray Delos Van Wagoner
(March 18, 1898 – June 12, 1986) was an American politician. He served as the
38th Governor
of
Michigan
from 1941 to 1943.
Early life
Van Wagoner was born near
Kingston, Michigan
in
Tuscola County
. In 1921, he received a
civil engineering
degree from the
University of Michigan
. He worked for a firm in the private sector, and became the owner of his own company. He married Helen Jossman and they had two children together. He served as
Oakland County
drain commissioner from 1930 until 1933, when he became
Michigan State Highway
commissioner, a position he held until he was elected governor in 1940.
Politics
Van Wagoner was a delegate to the
Democratic National Conventions
in
1936
and
1940
, both of which re-nominated
Franklin D. Roosevelt
for U.S. President.
On November 5, 1940, he defeated the incumbent
Republican
Governor of Michigan
,
Luren Dickinson
, by 131,281 votes to become Michigan's 38th governor. During his two years in office, he encouraged the construction of road projects and most famously the
Mackinac Bridge
, the elimination of a 27 million dollar deficit occurred, the state mental hospital was reinstated, a consolidated tax collection department was established, worker strikes involving the auto and electrical industries were dealt with, the reorganization of the Michigan civil service system was initialized, and measures were secured for the war effort.
In 1942, Van Wagoner was unsuccessful for re-election against
Republican
Harry Kelly
. Van Wagoner was a delegate to the Democratic National Convention in
1944
, which re-nominated President Roosevelt for his fourth term. In 1946, he ran for governor again and was defeated by Republican
Kim Sigler
.
In October 1947, General
Lucius D. Clay
appointed Van Wagoner to the post of military governor of
Bavaria
, succeeding Brigadier General Walter J. Muller. While military governor, he warned Bavarian
Minister-President
Hans Ehard
against replacing non-Nazi public servants with former Nazis.
Van Wagoner resigned the post in November 1949.
He was a delegate to the
1952 Democratic National Convention
, which nominated
Adlai Stevenson
for
President of the United States
. Stevenson lost the general election to General
Dwight D. Eisenhower
.
Retirement, death and legacy
Van Wagoner retired from political life and returned to his engineering interests. He was a member of
American Legion
,
Freemasons
,
Elks
, and the
National Exchange Club
. He died at the age of eighty-eight in
Farmington Hills, Michigan
. He is interred at White Chapel Memorial Park Cemetery of
Troy
.
Today the
Michigan Department of Transportation
building in
Lansing
is named after him,
The Murray Van Wagoner Transportation Building
.
I am a proud member of the Universal Autograph Collectors Club (UACC), The Ephemera Society of America, the Manuscript Society and the American Political Items Collectors (APIC) (member name: John Lissandrello). I subscribe to each organizations' code of ethics and authenticity is guaranteed. ~Providing quality service and historical memorabilia online for over 20 years.~
WE ONLY SELL GENUINE ITEMS, i.e., NO REPRODUCTIONS, FAKES OR COPIES!