Arnold Williams (May 21, 1898 – May 25, 1970) was an American politician and businessman who served as the 21st

governor A governor is an administrative leader and head of a polity or political region, ranking under the head of state and in some cases, such as governors-general, as the head of state's official representative. Depending on the type of political ...

Idaho Idaho ( ) is a state in the Pacific Northwest region of the Western United States. To the north, it shares a small portion of the Canada–United States border with the province of British Columbia. It borders the states of Montana and Wyomi ...

from 1945 until 1947. A member of the

Democratic Party Democratic Party most often refers to: *Democratic Party (United States) Democratic Party and similar terms may also refer to: Active parties Africa *Botswana Democratic Party *Democratic Party of Equatorial Guinea *Gabonese Democratic Party *Demo ...

, he later served as Idaho's secretary of state from 1959 until 1966.

Early life and education

Born in Fillmore,

Utah Utah ( , ) is a state in the Mountain West subregion of the Western United States. Utah is a landlocked U.S. state bordered to its east by Colorado, to its northeast by Wyoming, to its north by Idaho, to its south by Arizona, and to it ...

, Williams attended its public school and Henagers Business College in

Salt Lake City Salt Lake City (often shortened to Salt Lake and abbreviated as SLC) is the capital and most populous city of Utah, United States. It is the seat of Salt Lake County, the most populous county in Utah. With a population of 200,133 in 2020, th ...

Career

Williams served in the

U.S. Army The United States Army (USA) is the land service branch of the United States Armed Forces. It is one of the eight U.S. uniformed services, and is designated as the Army of the United States in the U.S. Constitution.Article II, section 2, cl ...

during

World War I World War I (28 July 1914 11 November 1918), often abbreviated as WWI, was one of the deadliest global conflicts in history. Belligerents included much of Europe, the Russian Empire, the United States, and the Ottoman Empire, with fightin ...

. Following his discharge, he established a successful

dry cleaning Dry cleaning is any cleaning process for clothing and textiles using a solvent other than water. Dry cleaning still involves liquid, but clothes are instead soaked in a water-free liquid solvent. Tetrachloroethylene (perchloroethylene), known i ...

business in

Rexburg, Idaho Rexburg is a city in Madison County, Idaho, United States. The population was 39,409 at the 2020 census. The city is the county seat of Madison County and its largest city. Rexburg is the principal city of the Rexburg, ID Micropolitan Statist ...

. After serving in government at the local and county level, he was elected to the Idaho House in 1936 and served several terms. Williams was elected lieutenant governor in 1944 and became governor in November 1945. He finished the unexpired term of Charles Gossett, who resigned after ten months and was immediately appointed by Williams to the

U.S. Senate The United States Senate is the upper chamber of the United States Congress, with the House of Representatives being the lower chamber. Together they compose the national bicameral legislature of the United States. The composition and pow ...

seat left vacant by the death of Republican John Thomas. Williams became the state's first

Mormon Mormons are a religious and cultural group related to Mormonism, the principal branch of the Latter Day Saint movement started by Joseph Smith in upstate New York during the 1820s. After Smith's death in 1844, the movement split into severa ...

governor and was the Democratic nominee for governor in 1946, but was defeated in the general election by

Republican Republican can refer to: Political ideology * An advocate of a republic, a type of government that is not a monarchy or dictatorship, and is usually associated with the rule of law. ** Republicanism, the ideology in support of republics or agains ...

C. A. Robins Charles Armington Robins (December 8, 1884 – September 20, 1970) was an American physician and the 22nd governor of Idaho. Early years Born in Iowa at Defiance in Shelby County, at age four Robins moved west with his family to Colorado, ...

, a physician from St. Maries. The first Mormon to be elected as Idaho's governor was incumbent Democrat John Evans in 1978. Williams was a delegate to the Democratic National Convention from Idaho in 1948, and later was elected secretary of state of Idaho in 1958, and served until 1966.

Personal life

Williams married Luella Huskinson and they had two children. He died at age 72 in

Idaho Falls Idaho Falls ( Shoshoni: Dembimbosaage) is a city in and the county seat of Bonneville County, Idaho, United States. It is the state's largest city outside the Boise metropolitan area. As of the 2020 census, the population of Idaho Falls was 6 ...

on May 25, 1970, and is interred at Fielding Memorial Park Cemetery in Idaho Falls.

References

External links

National Governors Association
* {{DEFAULTSORT:Williams, Arnold 1898 births 1970 deaths American Latter Day Saints Democratic Party governors of Idaho Lieutenant Governors of Idaho Secretaries of State of Idaho Democratic Party members of the Idaho House of Representatives 20th-century American politicians People from Fillmore, Utah United States Army personnel of World War I United States Army soldiers