William Gillespie Pickrel (February 1, 1888 – March 7, 1966) was an American attorney and politician who served as the 40th and 43rd

lieutenant governor of Ohio The position of lieutenant governor of Ohio was established in 1852. The lieutenant governor becomes governor if the governor resigns, dies in office or is removed by impeachment. Before 1852, the president of the Ohio State Senate would serve as ...

in 1928 and 1931–1933 under Governor

Vic Donahey Alvin Victor "Honest Vic" Donahey (July 7, 1873April 8, 1946) was an American Democratic Party politician from Ohio. Donahey was the 50th governor of Ohio and a United States Senator from Ohio. Donahey left school early to become a printer; in ...

Biography

William G. Pickrel, nicknamed "Big Bill," was born in

Jackson, Ohio Jackson is a city in and the county seat of Jackson County, Ohio, United States approximately 27 mi (43 km) SE of Chillicothe. The population was 6,239 at the 2020 census. History Established in 1817, residents named the to ...

on February 1, 1888, the son of D. L. and Martha (née Miller) Pickrel. He was educated in Jackson and

Dayton Dayton () is the sixth-largest city in the U.S. state of Ohio and the county seat of Montgomery County. A small part of the city extends into Greene County. The 2020 U.S. census estimate put the city population at 137,644, while Greater Da ...

, graduated from

Miami University Miami University (informally Miami of Ohio or simply Miami) is a public research university in Oxford, Ohio. The university was founded in 1809, making it the second-oldest university in Ohio (behind Ohio University, founded in 1804) and the ...

Oxford, Ohio Oxford is a city in Butler County, Ohio, United States. The population was 23,035 at the 2020 census. A college town, Oxford was founded as a home for Miami University and lies in the southwestern portion of the state approximately northwest ...

in 1910, received a law degree from the

University of Cincinnati College of Law The University of Cincinnati College of Law was founded in 1833 as the Cincinnati Law School. It is the fourth oldest continuously running law school in the United States — after Harvard, the University of Virginia, and Yale — and the first in ...

in 1912, and practiced law in Dayton. Pickrel was a civic and legal activist, including serving as President of the Dayton and Ohio Bar Associations, a state bar examiner, a director of the Dayton Chamber of Commerce and a trustee of Miami University. 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 ...

, Pickrel ran unsuccessfully for the

United States House of Representatives The United States House of Representatives, often referred to as the House of Representatives, the U.S. House, or simply the House, is the lower chamber of the United States Congress, with the Senate being the upper chamber. Together they ...

in 1920. In 1928

Cyrus Locher Cyrus Locher (March 8, 1878August 17, 1929) was a Democratic politician from Ohio. He served in the U.S. Senate. He graduated from high school at Pandora, Ohio, and from Ohio Wesleyan University in 1903, when he gave the commencement oration. ...

was appointed 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 ...

. Lieutenant Governor Earl D. Bloom resigned in order to accept appointment to Locher's place as state Secretary of Commerce, and Pickrel was then appointed to the lieutenant governor's office vacated by Bloom. Pickrel completed Bloom's term, serving from April to November, 1928. In 1930 Pickrel was the successful Democratic nominee for lieutenant governor and served one term, January 1931 to January 1933. He was renominated for lieutenant governor in 1932, but withdrew before the general election. He was an unsuccessful candidate for the Democratic nomination for

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 ...

in 1934. In 1944 he ran unsuccessfully for the

against Republican incumbent

Robert A. Taft Robert Alphonso Taft Sr. (September 8, 1889 – July 31, 1953) was an American politician, lawyer, and scion of the Republican Party's Taft family. Taft represented Ohio in the United States Senate, briefly served as Senate Majority Leade ...

; he received 49.7% of the vote to Taft's 50.3%. He died of a heart ailment in a Dayton hospital on March 7, 1966."W. G. Pickrel, Former State Official, Dies", ''Findlay Republican Courier'', Tuesday, March 08, 1966, Findlay, Ohio, United States Of America

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Pickrel, William G. 1966 deaths 1888 births People from Jackson, Ohio Politicians from Dayton, Ohio Miami University alumni University of Cincinnati College of Law alumni Ohio lawyers Ohio Democrats Lieutenant Governors of Ohio 20th-century American politicians 20th-century American lawyers