Thomas P. Gill
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Thomas Ponce Gill (April 21, 1922 – June 3, 2009) was a Hawaii politician. 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 served in the United States Congress from 1963 to 1965 and was the third lieutenant governor of Hawaii from 1966 to 1970. He unsuccessfully ran for governor twice, in 1970 and 1974.


Early life

Born in Honolulu, Hawaii, Gill attended public schools (Lincoln Elementary and Roosevelt High School).The Thomas P. Gill Papers, University of Hawaii Library
He was a decorated infantryman in the Pacific Theatre during World War II, earning a Bronze Star and a Purple Heart. After the war, he attended law school at
Boalt Hall The University of California, Berkeley, School of Law (commonly known as Berkeley Law or UC Berkeley School of Law) is the law school of the University of California, Berkeley, a public research university in Berkeley, California. It is one of ...
at
UC-Berkeley The University of California, Berkeley (UC Berkeley, Berkeley, Cal, or California) is a public land-grant research university in Berkeley, California. Established in 1868 as the University of California, it is the state's first land-grant univ ...
and began practicing law in Hawaii.Tom Gill, 87, was wild card of politics


Career

Gill served in Hawaii's territorial legislature and, after statehood in 1959, became a member of the first state house delegation, representing the 15th district until his time in Congress. He was elected to one of his state's two Congressional seats in 1962 and served one term. In Congress, he was a staunch supporter of liberal causes, including civil rights. He then worked as the director of Hawaii's Office of Economic Opportunity. In 1964, Gill chose not to seek reelection and instead ran unsuccessfully for U.S. Senator, losing to Republican incumbent
Hiram Fong Hiram Leong Fong (born Yau Leong Fong; October 15, 1906 – August 18, 2004) was an American businessman, lawyer, and politician from Hawaii. Born to a sugar plantation Cantonese immigrant worker, Fong became the first Chinese-American and first ...
. In 1966, he was elected Lieutenant Governor with incumbent Governor John A. Burns. During his term as Lieutenant Governor, Gill, considered outspoken and acerbic, developed differences with Burns, and was never shy about criticizing the incumbent, despite being part of his administration. In 1970, Gill challenged Burns in the
Democratic Democrat, Democrats, or Democratic may refer to: Politics *A proponent of democracy, or democratic government; a form of government involving rule by the people. *A member of a Democratic Party: **Democratic Party (United States) (D) **Democratic ...
primary. Gill ran as a reformer, campaigning against what he described as an entrenched, corrupt political machine. He narrowly lost, even though Burns significantly outspent him in a savvy campaign that included sophisticated use of expensive image-building television spots. Most in the state's large Japanese population remained loyal to Burns, who had spearheaded their rise to political power during the 1950s. Before Neil Abercrombie lost in 2014 this race stood as the closest anyone came to a primary defeat of an incumbent governor of Hawaii. Gill ran in the primary for governor again in 1974, but lost again in the primary to George Ariyoshi, who had succeeded him as lieutenant governor. After failing both campaigns, he resumed his career as a lawyer.


Papers

Thomas P. Gill donated 86 record center boxes of material to the University of Hawaii at Manoa Library in May 2001. The bulk of the papers cover Gill's two years in Congress and four years in the Hawaii Lt. Governor's office. The collection is rich in material documenting his enthusiastic political life and his concerns about nuclear power; the environment; land development, especially on the Big Island of Hawaii; social and economic justice; and the high cost of living in Hawaii. There is a smaller amount of material from his pre- and post-Congressional life. The papers are arranged in five series: Political Offices (held by Gill), 1955–1970; Politics (Democratic Party, Hawaii and National), 1952–1972; Personal (election campaigns and biographical material), 1939–2001; Memorabilia (mostly election campaigns), 1940–2005 and bulk 1958–1980; Audiovisual (audiotapes, films, photographs; primarily election campaigns and Big Island development), 1958–1974. The papers were arranged and described from July 2005 through March 2006 by archivist Ellen Chapman, and are available to researchers in the Library's Archives & Manuscripts Department by appointment. A Finding Aid, which provides a timeline, series descriptions, and list of specific topics covered in the collection is available a
The Thomas P. Gill Papers
web site.


Personal life

Gill was the son of Thomas Gill (born in New York in 1870) and Lorin Johnston Tarr (born in Kansas in 1889), and the grandson of Dr. Charles Robert Gill (born in New York in 1821) and María Dolores Ponce de León (born in Cuba in 1834 to Cuban parents). Gill married Lois Hanawalt in 1947 and had six children, including two sons who have been involved in Hawaiian politics. His son Gary served on the Honolulu City Council and son Tony is a labor lawyer who considered seeking the governorship in 2006. Gill died in 2009 in Honolulu, aged 87.


See also

* List of Hispanic and Latino Americans in the United States Congress


References


External links


''Honolulu Star-Bulletin'' article on role in 1964 Civil Rights Act
, - , - {{DEFAULTSORT:Gill, Thomas 1922 births 2009 deaths 20th-century American politicians United States Army personnel of World War II American politicians of Cuban descent Democratic Party members of the United States House of Representatives from Hawaii Hawaii lawyers Lieutenant Governors of Hawaii Democratic Party members of the Hawaii House of Representatives Members of the Hawaii Territorial Legislature Politicians from Honolulu President Theodore Roosevelt High School alumni UC Berkeley School of Law alumni 20th-century American lawyers United States Army soldiers Hawaii National Guard personnel