Everything about George Aiken totally explained
» For the playwright, see George Aiken (playwright).
George David Aiken (
August 20,
1892 –
November 19,
1984) was an
American politician from
Vermont. He served as
Governor of Vermont from
1937 to
1941 and as a
U.S. Senator from
1941 to
1975. At the time of his retirement, Aiken was the most senior member of the Senate.
Aiken was born in
Dummerston in
Windham County, Vermont, and graduated from Brattleboro High School while living in
Putney, Vermont in
1909. A
Republican, he was elected to the
Vermont House of Representatives in
1931 and served as
Speaker of the House from
1933 to
1935. He was
lieutenant governor of Vermont from
1935 to
1937 and subsequently served two terms as
governor, being first elected in
1936 and re-elected in
1938.
As governor of Vermont, he broke the
monopolies of many major industries, including banks, railroads, marble companies, and
granite companies. He also encouraged suffering
farmers in
rural Vermont to form
co-ops to market their crops and get access to
electricity.
He was elected to the
United States Senate on
November 5,
1940, to fill the vacancy in the term ending
January 3,
1945, caused by the death of
Ernest W. Gibson, and was re-elected in
1944,
1950,
1956,
1962, and
1968. During his time in the Senate he served in a number of leadership roles including
Chairman of the
Committee on Expenditures in Executive Departments in the
80th Congress and in the
Committee on Agriculture and Forestry in the
83rd Congress bringing a Vermont-centric voice to Congress emphasizing common sense solutions over party ideology. He was one of the white-haired men during the time of President
John Fitzgerald Kennedy's inaugural statement about the torch passing to a new generation. During the Vietnam war, he said the U.S. should declare victory and bring the troops home, which turned out to be a very perceptive strategy that was adopted too late.
He was a proponent of many
progressive programs such as
Food Stamps and
public works projects for rural America, such as
rural electrification,
flood control and
crop insurance. His views were at odds with those of many
Old Guard Republicans in the Senate. Exasperated members of his party often called him a
communist. Vermonters, in their contrarian way paid these comments little heed, showing Aiken such respect and affection that he reportedly spent only $17.09 on his last reelection bid. A north-south avenue on the west side of the public lawn at the
Vermont State House has been named for him, as well as the state's maple research center at the
University of Vermont.
He married Beatrice Howard and had four children by her: Dorothy, Marjorie, Howard, and Barbara. He married his second wife, Lola Pierotti, on
June 30,
1967.
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