Zales Nelson Ecton (April 1, 1898March 3, 1961) was an American attorney and politician from

Montana Montana () is a state in the Mountain West division of the Western United States. It is bordered by Idaho to the west, North Dakota and South Dakota to the east, Wyoming to the south, and the Canadian provinces of Alberta, British Columb ...

who represented the state in 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 po ...

, serving from 1947 to 1953.

Early life and education

Ecton was born in

Weldon, Iowa Weldon is a city in Clarke and Decatur counties of the U.S. state In the United States, a state is a constituent political entity, of which there are 50. Bound together in a political union, each state holds governmental jurisdiction over ...

on April 1, 1898. He moved with his family to

Gallatin County, Montana Gallatin County is located in the U.S. state of Montana. With its county seat in Bozeman, it is the second-most populous county in Montana, with a population of 118,960 in the 2020 Census. The county's prominent geographical features are the ...

in 1907, when he was nine years old.Scott, Kim Allen. “Historical Note.” Zales N. Ecton Papers, 1947-1953, Montana State University, Special Collections and Archival Informatics, 2009. He attended the Gallatin County public schools. He earned a Bachelor of Science degree in business from Montana State College (later

Montana State University Montana State University (MSU) is a public land-grant research university in Bozeman, Montana. It is the state's largest university. MSU offers baccalaureate degrees in 60 fields, master's degrees in 68 fields, and doctoral degrees in 35 fie ...

) and a Bachelor of Laws from the

University of Chicago Law School The University of Chicago Law School is the law school of the University of Chicago, a private research university in Chicago, Illinois. It is consistently ranked among the best and most prestigious law schools in the world, and has many dis ...

.“Ecton, Zales Nelson.” Biographical Directory of the U.S. Congress - Retro Member. Accessed April 19, 2021. https://bioguideretro.congress.gov/Home/MemberDetails?memIndex=e000037.

Career

In 1921, he became a rancher and gained interests in grain and

livestock Livestock are the domesticated animals raised in an agricultural setting to provide labor and produce diversified products for consumption such as meat, eggs, milk, fur, leather, and wool. The term is sometimes used to refer solely to ani ...

.“Our Campaigns - Candidate - Zales N. Ecton.” Our Campaigns. Accessed April 19, 2021. https://www.ourcampaigns.com/CandidateDetail.html?CandidateID=43829. Entering politics, Ecton was a member of the

Montana House of Representatives The Montana House of Representatives is, with the Montana Senate, one of the two houses of the Montana Legislature. Composed of 100 members, the House elects its leadership every two years. Composition of the House :''67th Legislature – 2021� ...

from 1933 to 1935 and the

Montana Senate The Montana Senate is the upper house of the Montana Legislature, the state legislative branch of the U.S. state of Montana Montana () is a state in the Mountain West division of the Western United States. It is bordered by Idaho to ...

from 1936 to 1946. In 1946, he ran for the Montana

seat which was being vacated by Democrat Burton K. Wheeler, who had lost the Democratic primary. As part of the Republican takeover of the Senate in 1946, Ecton defeated Democratic state Supreme Court Justice Leif Erickson by a vote of 54% to 46%.University, Montana State. “U.S. Sen. Zales Ecton.” missoulian.com, September 15, 2016. https://missoulian.com/u-s-sen-zales-ecton/image_b5bc9206-7b64-11e6-b8a9-f35d2b2c30fc.html. He served in the Senate for one term, having been narrowly defeated for reelection in 1952 by U.S. Representative

Mike Mansfield Michael Joseph Mansfield (March 16, 1903 – October 5, 2001) was an American politician and diplomat. A Democrat, he served as a U.S. representative (1943–1953) and a U.S. senator (1953–1977) from Montana. He was the longest-serving Sen ...

, a Democratic college professor and Far Eastern expert.Billings Gazette Archives. “U.S. Sen. Zales Ecton.” The Billings Gazette, September 10, 2015. https://billingsgazette.com/u-s-sen-zales-ecton/image_f73a3ac2-c121-50d2-abc7-638032947042.html. While in the Senate, Ecton served on the

United States Senate Committee on Appropriations The United States Senate Committee on Appropriations is a standing committee of the United States Senate. It has jurisdiction over all discretionary spending legislation in the Senate. The Senate Appropriations Committee is the largest comm ...

, the

United States Senate Committee on Energy and Natural Resources The United States Senate Committee on Energy and Natural Resources is a standing committee of the United States Senate. It has jurisdiction over matters related to energy and mineral resources, including nuclear development; irrigation and recl ...

, the Committee on the United States Post Office and Civil Service, and the

. Ecton was the last Republican U.S. senator from Montana until the election in 1988 of

Conrad Burns Conrad Ray Burns (January 25, 1935 – April 28, 2016) was an American politician who served as a United States Senator from Montana and later was a lobbyist. He was only the second Republican popularly elected to represent Montana in the Sen ...

, who served from 1989 to 2007. Currently, Ecton's papers are held by Archives and Special Collections at Montana State University.

Personal life

In 1921, Ecton married Vera Harris. The couple had two children, Eloise and Zales N. Jr.Associated Press. “Former U.S. Senator Zales Ecton, 62, Dies.” Great Falls Tribune, March 4, 1961. Ecton resumed his ranching business until his death in

Bozeman, Montana Bozeman is a city and the county seat of Gallatin County, Montana, United States. Located in southwest Montana, the 2020 census put Bozeman's population at 53,293, making it the fourth-largest city in Montana. It is the principal city o ...

on March 3, 1961. He was interred in Sunset Hills Cemetery.

Early life and education

Career

Personal life

References

Further reading