Milward L. Simpson
Encyclopedia
Milward Lee Simpson was an American
politician who served as a U.S. Senator
and as the 23rd Governor of Wyoming
.
, Teton County
, Wyoming, the son of Margaret (née Burnett) and William Lee Simpson. He attended the public schools of Wood River
, Meeteetse
, and Cody
; and graduated from the University of Wyoming
in Laramie
(Albany County) in 1921. While a student at Wyoming, he was both an athlete and a member of the university's debate
team. He then attended Harvard University Law School from 1921 to 1925. During World War I
, Simpson served as a second lieutenant in the infantry, United States Army
. Simpson was admitted to the bar in 1926 and practiced law in Cody until 1955.
Simpson served as a member of the Wyoming House of Representatives
from 1926 to 1927. He was a member of the board of trustees of the University of Wyoming in 1939 and president of the board from 1943-1954. He was a member of the National Association of Governing Boards of State Universities and Allied Institutions in 1950 and served as president of the body from 1952-1953.
Milward Simpson was narrowly elected Governor of Wyoming in November 1954. He defeated the Democrat William Jack, 56,275 (50.5 percent) to 55,163 (49.5 percent). Simpson was unseated in 1958, a heavily Democratic year nationally, after a single term in office by John J. Hickey
of Rawlins
(Carbon County
), 55,070 (48.9 percent) to 52,488 (46.6 percent). He resumed his law practice in 1959.
Simpson later won a special election on November 6, 1962, to the United States Senate to fill the vacancy caused by the death of Republican Senator-elect Edwin Keith Thomson
in the term ending January 3, 1967; he was not a candidate for Senate reelection in 1966 but was succeeded by outgoing Governor Clifford Peter Hansen
of Jackson
. Simpson lived in Cody until his death in 1993 at age 95.
Simpson, along with Barry Goldwater
of Arizona
, Norris Cotton
of New Hampshire
, Bourke B. Hickenlooper
of Iowa
, and John Tower
of Texas
, was one of six Republican Senators who voted against the Civil Rights Act of 1964
.
His son, Alan K. Simpson
, also served in the United States Senate as a Republican. Alan Simpson was the Senate GOP whip during the early 1990s.
As a young man, Milward Simpson played professional baseball in Cody. One of his teammates was the future Louisiana Lieutenant Governor and Education Superintendent William J. "Bill" Dodd (1909–1991). They became close friends.
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
politician who served as a U.S. Senator
United States Senate
The United States Senate is the upper house of the bicameral legislature of the United States, and together with the United States House of Representatives comprises the United States Congress. The composition and powers of the Senate are established in Article One of the U.S. Constitution. Each...
and as the 23rd Governor of Wyoming
Wyoming
Wyoming is a state in the mountain region of the Western United States. The western two thirds of the state is covered mostly with the mountain ranges and rangelands in the foothills of the Eastern Rocky Mountains, while the eastern third of the state is high elevation prairie known as the High...
.
Life and career
Simpson was born in JacksonJackson, Wyoming
Jackson is a town located in the Jackson Hole valley of Teton County, Wyoming, United States. The population was 8,647 at the 2000 census. It is the county seat of Teton County....
, Teton County
Teton County, Wyoming
Teton County is a county located in the U.S. state of Wyoming. As of 2010, the population was 21,294. Its county seat is Jackson. Teton County contains the affluent Jackson Hole skiing area...
, Wyoming, the son of Margaret (née Burnett) and William Lee Simpson. He attended the public schools of Wood River
Wood River
- In Canada :* Wood River , a tributary of the Columbia River via Kinbasket Lake- In the United States :* Wood River * Wood River , Connecticut & Rhode Island* Big Wood River, Idaho* Little Wood River, Idaho...
, Meeteetse
Meeteetse, Wyoming
Meeteetse is a town in Park County, Wyoming, United States. The population was 351 at the 2000 census.-Geography:Meeteetse is located at ....
, and Cody
Cody, Wyoming
Cody is a city in Park County, Wyoming, United States. It is named after William Frederick Cody, primarily known as Buffalo Bill, from William Cody's part in the creation of the original town. The population was 9,520 at the 2010 census...
; and graduated from the University of Wyoming
University of Wyoming
The University of Wyoming is a land-grant university located in Laramie, Wyoming, situated on Wyoming's high Laramie Plains, at an elevation of 7,200 feet , between the Laramie and Snowy Range mountains. It is known as UW to people close to the university...
in Laramie
Laramie, Wyoming
Laramie is a city in and the county seat of Albany County, Wyoming, United States. The population was 30,816 at the . Located on the Laramie River in southeastern Wyoming, the city is west of Cheyenne, at the junction of Interstate 80 and U.S. Route 287....
(Albany County) in 1921. While a student at Wyoming, he was both an athlete and a member of the university's debate
Debate
Debate or debating is a method of interactive and representational argument. Debate is a broader form of argument than logical argument, which only examines consistency from axiom, and factual argument, which only examines what is or isn't the case or rhetoric which is a technique of persuasion...
team. He then attended Harvard University Law School from 1921 to 1925. During World War I
World War I
World War I , which was predominantly called the World War or the Great War from its occurrence until 1939, and the First World War or World War I thereafter, was a major war centred in Europe that began on 28 July 1914 and lasted until 11 November 1918...
, Simpson served as a second lieutenant in the infantry, United States Army
United States Army
The United States Army is the main branch of the United States Armed Forces responsible for land-based military operations. It is the largest and oldest established branch of the U.S. military, and is one of seven U.S. uniformed services...
. Simpson was admitted to the bar in 1926 and practiced law in Cody until 1955.
Simpson served as a member of the Wyoming House of Representatives
Wyoming House of Representatives
The Wyoming House of Representatives is the lower house of the Wyoming State Legislature. There are 60 Representatives in the House, representing an equal amount of single-member constituent districts across the state, each with a population of at least 9,000. The House convenes at the Wyoming...
from 1926 to 1927. He was a member of the board of trustees of the University of Wyoming in 1939 and president of the board from 1943-1954. He was a member of the National Association of Governing Boards of State Universities and Allied Institutions in 1950 and served as president of the body from 1952-1953.
Milward Simpson was narrowly elected Governor of Wyoming in November 1954. He defeated the Democrat William Jack, 56,275 (50.5 percent) to 55,163 (49.5 percent). Simpson was unseated in 1958, a heavily Democratic year nationally, after a single term in office by John J. Hickey
John J. Hickey
John Joseph Hickey was an American politician who served as a U.S. Senator from Wyoming.Born in Rawlins, Carbon County, Wyoming, Hickey attended public schools and graduated with a law degree from the University of Wyoming in 1934, and practiced law in Rawlins...
of Rawlins
Rawlins, Wyoming
Rawlins is a city in Carbon County, Wyoming, United States. The population was 8,538 at the 2000 census. It is the county seat of Carbon County...
(Carbon County
Carbon County, Wyoming
Carbon County is a county located in the U.S. state of Wyoming. As of 2010, the population was 15,885. Its county seat is Rawlins.- History :Carbon County was organized in 1868....
), 55,070 (48.9 percent) to 52,488 (46.6 percent). He resumed his law practice in 1959.
Simpson later won a special election on November 6, 1962, to the United States Senate to fill the vacancy caused by the death of Republican Senator-elect Edwin Keith Thomson
Edwin Keith Thomson
Edwin Keith Thomson was a United States Representative from Wyoming. Born in Newcastle, Wyoming, he attended the public schools in Beulah, Wyoming and Spearfish, South Dakota...
in the term ending January 3, 1967; he was not a candidate for Senate reelection in 1966 but was succeeded by outgoing Governor Clifford Peter Hansen
Clifford Hansen
Clifford Peter Hansen was a Republican politician from the American state of Wyoming. He served as both the 26th Governor and U.S. senator...
of Jackson
Jackson, Wyoming
Jackson is a town located in the Jackson Hole valley of Teton County, Wyoming, United States. The population was 8,647 at the 2000 census. It is the county seat of Teton County....
. Simpson lived in Cody until his death in 1993 at age 95.
Simpson, along with Barry Goldwater
Barry Goldwater
Barry Morris Goldwater was a five-term United States Senator from Arizona and the Republican Party's nominee for President in the 1964 election. An articulate and charismatic figure during the first half of the 1960s, he was known as "Mr...
of Arizona
Arizona
Arizona ; is a state located in the southwestern region of the United States. It is also part of the western United States and the mountain west. The capital and largest city is Phoenix...
, Norris Cotton
Norris Cotton
Norris H. Cotton was an American Republican politician from the state of New Hampshire.Norris Cotton was born on a farm in Warren, New Hampshire. He was educated at Phillips Exeter Academy in New Hampshire and Wesleyan University in Connecticut...
of New Hampshire
New Hampshire
New Hampshire is a state in the New England region of the northeastern United States of America. The state was named after the southern English county of Hampshire. It is bordered by Massachusetts to the south, Vermont to the west, Maine and the Atlantic Ocean to the east, and the Canadian...
, Bourke B. Hickenlooper
Bourke B. Hickenlooper
Bourke Blakemore Hickenlooper , was a Republican politician from the US state of Iowa. He was lieutenant governor from 1939 to 1943 and then the 29th Governor of Iowa from 1943 to 1945...
of Iowa
Iowa
Iowa is a state located in the Midwestern United States, an area often referred to as the "American Heartland". It derives its name from the Ioway people, one of the many American Indian tribes that occupied the state at the time of European exploration. Iowa was a part of the French colony of New...
, and John Tower
John Tower
John Goodwin Tower was the first Republican United States senator from Texas since Reconstruction. He served from 1961 until his retirement in January 1985, after which time he was the chairman of the Reagan-appointed Tower Commission that investigated the Iran-Contra Affair. He was George H. W...
of Texas
Texas
Texas is the second largest U.S. state by both area and population, and the largest state by area in the contiguous United States.The name, based on the Caddo word "Tejas" meaning "friends" or "allies", was applied by the Spanish to the Caddo themselves and to the region of their settlement in...
, was one of six Republican Senators who voted against the Civil Rights Act of 1964
Civil Rights Act of 1964
The Civil Rights Act of 1964 was a landmark piece of legislation in the United States that outlawed major forms of discrimination against African Americans and women, including racial segregation...
.
His son, Alan K. Simpson
Alan K. Simpson
Alan Kooi Simpson is an American politician who served from 1979 to 1997 as a United States Senator from Wyoming as a member of the Republican Party. His father, Milward L. Simpson, was also a member of the U.S...
, also served in the United States Senate as a Republican. Alan Simpson was the Senate GOP whip during the early 1990s.
As a young man, Milward Simpson played professional baseball in Cody. One of his teammates was the future Louisiana Lieutenant Governor and Education Superintendent William J. "Bill" Dodd (1909–1991). They became close friends.