Frank Elliott Barnett (July 20, 1933 – July 15, 2016) was the

governor of American Samoa This is a list of governors, etc. of the part of the Samoan Islands (now comprising American Samoa) under United States administration since 1900. From 1900 to 1978 governors were appointed by the Federal government of the United States. Sinc ...

from October 1, 1976, to May 27, 1977. Before becoming governor, he was a

Federal Bureau of Investigation The Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) is the domestic intelligence and security service of the United States and its principal federal law enforcement agency. Operating under the jurisdiction of the United States Department of Justice ...

agent and a

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attorney. He served as the first

lieutenant governor of American Samoa The government of American Samoa consists of a locally elected governor, lieutenant governor and the American Samoa Fono, which consists of an 18-member Senate and a 21-member House of Representatives. The first popular election for Governor and ...

for two years prior to his governorship. While Governor, a number of Samoans signed a petition accusing him of abusing local officials; others signed a counter-petition supporting him, and the charges were eventually dropped. This arose from his firing of Mere Betham, a native who had been serving as Samoan Director of Education, an action he defended as necessary to improve education on the island, but others decried as racist; Barnett reinstated Betham one week after dismissing her. Barnett graduated from Knoxville High School in

Knoxville, Tennessee Knoxville is a city in and the county seat of Knox County in the U.S. state of Tennessee. As of the 2020 United States census, Knoxville's population was 190,740, making it the largest city in the East Tennessee Grand Division and the stat ...

in 1950. He served in the

United States Marine Corps The United States Marine Corps (USMC), also referred to as the United States Marines, is the maritime land force service branch of the United States Armed Forces responsible for conducting expeditionary and amphibious operations through c ...

. Barnett went to

University of Tennessee The University of Tennessee (officially The University of Tennessee, Knoxville; or UT Knoxville; UTK; or UT) is a public land-grant research university in Knoxville, Tennessee. Founded in 1794, two years before Tennessee became the 16th sta ...

and later received his law degree in 1959 from

University of Tennessee College of Law The University of Tennessee College of Law is the law school of the University of Tennessee located in Knoxville, Tennessee. Founded in 1890, the College of Law is fully accredited by the American Bar Association and is a charter member of the Ass ...

. He practiced law in Knoxville, Tennessee and was involved with the

Republican Party Republican Party is a name used by many political parties around the world, though the term most commonly refers to the United States' Republican Party. Republican Party may also refer to: Africa * Republican Party (Liberia) *Republican Party ...

. Barnett's wife was Carolyn Barnett. They had two children.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Barnett, Frank 1933 births 2016 deaths Republican Party governors of American Samoa Federal Bureau of Investigation agents Lieutenant Governors of American Samoa Tennessee lawyers Military personnel from Georgia (U.S. state) Military personnel from Tennessee Politicians from Atlanta Politicians from Knoxville, Tennessee University of Tennessee College of Law alumni Tennessee Republicans 20th-century American lawyers