Harry Lee Waterfield (January 19, 1911 – August 4, 1988), a Democrat, served as the 42nd and 44th Lieutenant Governor of Kentucky and unsuccessfully sought election as

Governor of Kentucky The governor of the Commonwealth of Kentucky is the head of government of Kentucky. Sixty-two men and one woman have served as governor of Kentucky. The governor's term is four years in length; since 1992, incumbents have been able to seek re-e ...

. Waterfield was originally from Calloway County, Kentucky. He worked as a newspaper publisher and then was a member of the Kentucky House of Representatives in 1938–47 and 1950–51. He was Speaker of the Kentucky House of Representatives 1944–46. He founded Investors Heritage Life Insurance Company in 1961 and served as its President and Chairman of the Board until his death. Waterfield twice won election as Lieutenant Governor of Kentucky and held that office in 1955–59 and 1963–67. He was the first person to win election to two terms as Lieutenant Governor of Kentucky. He served under Happy Chandler in his first term and under Edward T. Breathitt in his second. Waterfield became a factional ally of Happy Chandler, though at first they were not friendly to one another politically. In 1947 Waterfield sought election as

but was defeated in the Democratic primary by Chandler's factional enemy,

Earle C. Clements Earle Chester Clements (October 22, 1896 – March 12, 1985) was an American farmer and politician. He represented the Commonwealth of Kentucky in both the U.S. House of Representatives and the U.S. Senate and was its 47th Governor, serving ...

. Clements was later elected to the

United States 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 ...

where he served as

Senate Majority Whip The positions of majority leader and minority leader are held by two United States senators and members of the party leadership of the United States Senate. They serve as the chief spokespersons for their respective political parties holding t ...

when Lyndon Johnson was

Senate Majority Leader The positions of majority leader and minority leader are held by two United States senators and members of the party leadership of the United States Senate. They serve as the chief spokespersons for their respective political parties holding t ...

. Chandler then helped defeat Clements when Clements sought re-election to the Senate. Clements in turn helped his own factional ally, Bert T. Combs, defeat Waterfield, Chandler's handpicked successor, when then-Lt. Governor Waterfield sought election as governor in 1959. Combs defeated Waterfield in the primary and went on to win the office and help secure the election of his own chosen successor, Edward T. Breathitt, in 1963. The factionalism continued, as Breathitt defeated Chandler in the 1963 primary for governor before winning the general election. In 1967 Waterfield again sought the Democratic nomination for governor but lost the primary to Henry Ward, who in turn lost the general election to

Louie B. Nunn Louie Broady Nunn (March 8, 1924 – January 29, 2004) was an American politician who served as the 52nd governor of Kentucky. Elected in 1967, he was the only Republican to hold the office between the end of Simeon Willis's term in 1947 and ...

. Waterfield was a Kentucky delegate to the Democratic National Convention in 1948 and 1956 and helped lead an attempt to secure the Democratic nomination for president for Happy Chandler in 1956. The primary library at Waterfield's alma mater, Murray State University, is named in his honor.Murray State University - Waterfield Library

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Waterfield, Harry Lee 1911 births 1988 deaths American newspaper publishers (people) Lieutenant Governors of Kentucky Murray State University alumni People from Hickman County, Kentucky Speakers of the Kentucky House of Representatives Democratic Party members of the Kentucky House of Representatives People from Calloway County, Kentucky 20th-century American politicians