Robert Oscar Blood (November 10, 1887 – August 3, 1975) was an American physician and Republican politician from

Concord, New Hampshire Concord () is the capital city of the U.S. state of New Hampshire and the seat of Merrimack County. As of the 2020 census the population was 43,976, making it the third largest city in New Hampshire behind Manchester and Nashua. The village of ...

. He served in both houses of the

New Hampshire New Hampshire is a U.S. state, state in the New England region of the northeastern United States. It is bordered by Massachusetts to the south, Vermont to the west, Maine and the Gulf of Maine to the east, and the Canadian province of Quebec t ...

legislature and was the 65th

governor of New Hampshire The governor of New Hampshire is the head of government of New Hampshire. The governor is elected during the biennial state general election in November of even-numbered years. New Hampshire is one of only two states, along with bordering Verm ...

from 1941 to 1945. Blood was born in Enfield, New Hampshire, and studied at

Dartmouth College Dartmouth College (; ) is a private research university in Hanover, New Hampshire. Established in 1769 by Eleazar Wheelock, it is one of the nine colonial colleges chartered before the American Revolution. Although founded to educate Native A ...

and then Dartmouth Medical School, graduating in 1913 and establishing a long-standing practice in

Concord Concord may refer to: Meaning "agreement" * Pact or treaty, frequently between nations (indicating a condition of harmony) * Harmony, in music * Agreement (linguistics), a change in the form of a word depending on grammatical features of other ...

from 1915 (lasting until just a few years before his death). He served in the U.S. Medical Corps 1917-1919, leaving the service a lieutenant-colonel with decorations from both Britain and France. Blood began his political career in 1935, serving in the state's House (1935–36) and Senate (1937–40, president 1939-40). He won a close contest in the Republican direct primary for governor and won the election by just 800 votes. He was re-elected in 1942, but lost in 1944. His time in office was dominated by the war, but he championed his long-standing interest in veterans' affairs and was active in improving the financial condition of the state government. He lost the Congressional primary in 1946. From 1944 to 1960, Blood was the New Hampshire delegate to

Republican National Convention The Republican National Convention (RNC) is a series of presidential nominating conventions held every four years since 1856 by the United States Republican Party. They are administered by the Republican National Committee. The goal of the Repu ...

. He married Pauline Shepard in 1916 and they had three children: Robert Oscar Blood, II, Horace Shepard Blood, and Emily Blood. Blood died at Concord in 1975 and is buried at the ''Blossom Hill Cemetery'' there. His collection of fine porcelain was donated to the state after his death and was placed in

Bridges House The New Hampshire Governor's Mansion, known as "Bridges House", is the official residence of the governor of New Hampshire and the governor's family. Bridges House, located at 21 Mountain Road in Concord, the capital of New Hampshire, has served ...

- the Governor's mansion.

External links

Blood at New Hampshire's Division of Historic Resources
{{DEFAULTSORT:Blood, Robert O. 1887 births 1975 deaths Republican Party governors of New Hampshire Geisel School of Medicine alumni American Congregationalists Republican Party New Hampshire state senators Presidents of the New Hampshire Senate Republican Party members of the New Hampshire House of Representatives 20th-century American politicians People from Enfield, New Hampshire