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List of governors of Alabama

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Number of Governors of Alabama by party affiliation[1]
Party Governors
Democratic 48
Republican 5
Democratic-Republican 3
Independent 1

The following is a list of the Governors of the State of Alabama and Alabama Territory. There have officially been 52 governors of the state of Alabama; this official numbering skips acting governors.[A] In addition, five people have served as acting governor, bringing the total number of people serving as governor to 57, spread over 62 distinct terms. The 1901 constitution states that, should the governor be outside of the state for more than 20 days, the lieutenant governor becomes acting governor.[B] Presidents of the senate or lieutenant governors who replace a governor due to resignation, death or removal from office are not acting governors, but rather fully considered governors. Until 1845, the term of state officials was one year, from then until 1901 it was two years, and since 1901 it has been four years.[A]

Four governors have served multiple non-consecutive terms: Bibb Graves, James E. Folsom, Sr., George Wallace, and Forrest H. "Fob" James. Wallace served three times, the others twice. Officially, these non-consecutive terms are numbered only with the number of their first term. William D. Jelks also served non-consecutive terms, but his first term was in an acting capacity. Before it became a state, Alabama Territory had only one governor, William Wyatt Bibb; he also served as the first state governor. Lurleen Wallace, wife of George Wallace, was the first and so far only woman to serve as governor of Alabama, and only the third woman to serve as governor of any state.

List of Governors

Governor of Alabama Territory

Alabama Territory was formed on March 3 1817 from Mississippi Territory.

# Name Took office Left office Party Appointed by Notes
1 William Wyatt Bibb March 6 1817 December 14 1819 Democratic-Republican James Monroe [2]

Governors of Alabama

The State of Alabama was admitted to the Union on December 14 1819.

William Wyatt Bibb, 1st Governor of Alabama
Benjamin Fitzpatrick, 11th Governor of Alabama, and president pro tempore of the U.S. Senate
Thomas H. Watts, 18th Governor of Alabama, and Attorney General of the Confederacy
Rufus W. Cobb, 25th Governor of Alabama
B. B. Comer, 33rd Governor of Alabama
Bob Riley, 52nd and present Governor of Alabama
# Name Took office Left office Party Lieutenant Governor[3] Notes
1 William Wyatt Bibb December 14 1819 July 10 1820 Democratic-Republican None [4]
2 Thomas Bibb July 10 1820 November 9 1821 Democratic-Republican None [5]
3 Israel Pickens November 9 1821 November 25 1825 Democratic-Republican None
4 John Murphy November 25 1825 November 25 1829 Jackson Democrat None
5 Gabriel Moore November 25 1829 March 3 1831 Jackson Democrat None [6]
6 Samuel B. Moore March 3 1831 November 26 1831 Democratic None [5]
7 John Gayle November 26 1831 November 21 1835 Democratic None
8 Clement C. Clay November 21 1835 July 17 1837 Democratic None [7]
9 Hugh McVay July 17 1837 November 30 1837 Democratic None [5]
10 Arthur P. Bagby November 30 1837 November 22 1841 Democratic None
11 Benjamin Fitzpatrick November 22 1841 December 10 1845 Democratic None
12 Joshua L. Martin December 10 1845 December 16 1847 Independent None
13 Reuben Chapman December 16 1847 December 17 1849 Democratic None
14 Henry W. Collier December 17 1849 December 20 1853 Democratic None
15 John A. Winston December 20 1853 December 1 1857 Democratic None
16 Andrew B. Moore December 1 1857 December 2 1861 Democratic None
17 John Gill Shorter December 2 1861 December 1 1863 Democratic None
18 Thomas H. Watts December 1 1863 May 1 1865 Democratic None [8]
19 Lewis E. Parsons June 21 1865 December 13 1865 Democratic None [9]
20 Robert M. Patton December 13 1865 July 24 1868 Democratic None [10]
Wager Swayne March 2 1867 July 14 1868 Military None [11]
21 William H. Smith July 24 1868 November 26 1870 Republican None [12][13]
Andrew J. Applegate
22 Robert B. Lindsay November 26 1870 November 17 1872 Democratic Edward H. Moren [13]
23 David P. Lewis November 17 1872 November 24 1874 Republican Alexander McKinstry
24 George S. Houston November 24 1874 November 28 1878 Democratic Robert F. Ligon
None
25 Rufus W. Cobb November 28 1878 December 1 1882 Democratic None
26 Edward A. O'Neal December 1 1882 December 1 1886 Democratic None
27 Thomas Seay December 1 1886 December 1 1890 Democratic None
28 Thomas G. Jones December 1 1890 December 1 1894 Democratic None
29 William C. Oates December 1 1894 December 1 1896 Democratic None
30 Joseph F. Johnston December 1 1896 December 1 1900 Democratic None
William D. Jelks December 1 1900 December 26 1900 Democratic None [14]
31 William J. Samford December 26 1900 June 11 1901 Democratic None [4]
32 William D. Jelks June 11 1901 January 14 1907 Democratic None [15]
Russell M. Cunningham
Russell Cunningham April 25 1904 March 5 1905 Democratic acting as governor [16]
33 B. B. Comer January 14 1907 January 17 1911 Democratic Henry B. Gray
34 Emmet O'Neal January 17 1911 January 18 1915 Democratic Walter D. Seed, Sr.
35 Charles Henderson January 18 1915 January 20 1919 Democratic Thomas Kilby
36 Thomas Kilby January 20 1919 January 15 1923 Democratic Nathan L. Miller
37 William W. Brandon January 15 1923 January 17 1927 Democratic Charles S. McDowell
Charles S. McDowell July 10 1924 July 11 1924 Democratic acting as governor [17]
38 Bibb Graves January 17 1927 January 19 1931 Democratic William C. Davis
39 Benjamin M. Miller January 19 1931 January 14 1935 Democratic Hugh D. Merrill
38 Bibb Graves January 14 1935 January 17 1939 Democratic Thomas E. Knight
40 Frank M. Dixon January 17 1939 January 19 1943 Democratic Albert A. Carmichael
41 Chauncey Sparks January 19 1943 January 20 1947 Democratic Leven H. Ellis
42 James E. Folsom, Sr. January 20 1947 January 15 1951 Democratic James C. Inzer
43 Gordon Persons January 15 1951 January 17 1955 Democratic James B. Allen
42 James E. Folsom, Sr. January 17 1955 January 19 1959 Democratic William G. Hardwick
44 John Patterson January 19 1959 January 14 1963 Democratic Albert B. Boutwell
45 George Wallace January 14 1963 January 16 1967 Democratic James B. Allen
46 Lurleen Wallace January 16 1967 May 7 1968 Democratic Albert Brewer [4]
47 Albert Brewer May 7 1968 January 18 1971 Democratic vacant [18][19]
45 George Wallace January 18 1971 January 15 1979 Democratic Jere Beasley
Jere Beasley June 5 1972 July 7 1972 Democratic acting as governor [20]
48 Forrest H. "Fob" James Jr. January 15 1979 January 17 1983 Democratic George McMillan
45 George Wallace January 17 1983 January 19 1987 Democratic Bill Baxley
49 H. Guy Hunt January 19 1987 April 22 1993 Republican James E. Folsom, Jr. [21]
50 James E. Folsom, Jr. April 22 1993 January 16 1995 Democratic Ryan DeGraffenried, Jr. [18]
48 Forrest H. "Fob" James Jr. January 16 1995 January 18 1999 Republican Don Siegelman
51 Don Siegelman January 18 1999 January 20 2003 Democratic Steve Windom
52 Robert R. Riley January 20 2003 Incumbent Republican Lucy Baxley [22]
James E. Folsom, Jr.

Notes

  1. ^ Table does not include acting governors. 52 people have served as governor, four twice, one three times; the table includes these non-consecutive terms as well. Table also only includes state governors, which is somewhat moot since the only territorial governor also served as state governor.
  2. ^ Records are scarce as to when Bibb was actually appointed. The territory was formed on March 3 1817, but he was appointed by President James Monroe, who didn't take office until the next day. Other resources indicate that other major appointments for the territory were made on March 6 1817[C]; until a better source is found, that is the date used in this article.
  3. ^ The office of Lieutenant Governor was created in the 1868 Constitution, abolished in the 1875 Constitution, and recreated in the 1901 Constitution.[D]
  4. ^ a b c Died in office.
  5. ^ a b c As president of the state senate, filled unexpired term.
  6. ^ Resigned to take an elected seat in the United States Senate.
  7. ^ Resigned to take an appointed seat in the United States Senate.
  8. ^ Arrested by Union forces soon after the American Civil War ended; was released a few weeks later.
  9. ^ Provisional governor appointed by the Union occupation; it would appear that between Watts's arrest and Parsons's appointment, Alabama had no governor.
  10. ^ The U.S. Congress stripped Patton of most of his authority in March 1867, after which time the state was effectively under the control of Major General Wager Swayne.
  11. ^ Military governor appointed during Reconstruction; while Patton was still officially governor, he was mostly a figurehead. The term start date given is the date of the first Reconstruction Act, which put Alabama into the Third Military District; all references only say "March 1867" and "when the Reconstruction Acts were passed". The term end is also ambiguous, but it is assumed Swayne lost power the day Alabama was readmitted to the Union.
  12. ^ William H. Smith did not voluntarily take office, having been elected in February 1868, due to the failure of voters to ratify the 1868 constitution; he was installed by the U.S. Congress.
  13. ^ a b Robert Lindsay was sworn in to office, but William H. Smith refused to leave his seat for three weeks, claiming Lindsay was fraudulently elected, finally leaving office on November 26 1870 when a court so ordered.
  14. ^ Acting governor for 26 days. Jelks was president of the state senate when Governor Samford was out of state at the start of his term seeking medical treatment.
  15. ^ As president of the state senate, filled unexpired term, and was subsequently elected in his own right.
  16. ^ Acting governor for nearly a year. Cunningham was lieutenant governor when Governor Jelks was out of state for medical treatment.
  17. ^ Acting governor for two days. McDowell was lieutenant governor when Governor Brandon was out of state for 21 days as a delegate for the 1924 Democratic National Convention.
  18. ^ a b As lieutenant governor, filled unexpired term.
  19. ^ At one point in Lurleen Wallace's term, she left the state for 20 days for medical treatment; as lieutenant governor, Brewer became acting governor for part of a day. As soon as she realized this, Wallace rushed back to the state.
  20. ^ Acting governor for 32 days. Beasley was lieutenant governor when Governor George Wallace spent 52 days in Maryland for medical treatment following an assassination attempt while campaigning for President of the United States.
  21. ^ Removed from office upon being convicted of illegally using campaign and inaugural funds to pay personal debts. Hunt was later exonerated of all charges.
  22. ^ Governor Riley's second term expires in 2011; he is term limited.

Other high offices held

This is a table of congressional, confederate and other federal offices held by governors.[E] All representatives and senators mentioned represented Alabama except where noted. * denotes those offices which the governor resigned to take.

Name Gubernatorial term U.S. Congress Other offices held
House Senate
William Wyatt Bibb 1817–1820 U.S. Representative and Senator from Georgia
Israel Pickens 1821–1825 S
John Murphy 1825–1829 H
Gabriel Moore 1829–1831 H S*
John Gayle 1831–1835 H
Clement Comer Clay 1835–1837 H S*
Arthur P. Bagby 1837–1841 S Ambassador to Russia
Benjamin Fitzpatrick 1841–1845 S President pro tempore of the U.S. Senate (twice)
Joshua L. Martin 1845–1847 H
Reuben Chapman 1847–1849 H
John A. Winston 1853–1857 Elected to the U.S. Senate but was refused his seat
John Gill Shorter 1861–1863 Provisional Confederate Deputy
Thomas H. Watts 1863–1865 Attorney General of the Confederate States
Lewis E. Parsons 1865 Elected to the U.S. Senate but was refused his seat
David P. Lewis 1872–1874 Provisional Confederate Deputy
George S. Houston 1874–1878 H S
Joseph F. Johnston 1896–1900 S
William J. Samford 1900–1901 H
B. B. Comer 1907–1911 S
Bob Riley 2003–present H

Living former governors

As of August 2007, seven former governors were alive, the oldest being John Patterson (1959–1963, born 1921). The most recent governor to die was George Wallace (1971–1979, 1983–1987), on September 13 1998.

Name Gubernatorial term Date of birth
John Patterson 1959–1963 September 27 1921
Albert Brewer 1968–1971 October 26 1928
Jere Beasley 1972 (acting) December 12 1935
Forrest H. "Fob" James Jr. 1979–1983, 1995–1999 September 15 1934
H. Guy Hunt 1987–1993 June 17 1933
James E. Folsom, Jr. 1993–1995 May 14 1949
Don Siegelman 1999–2003 February 24 1946

References

Allgemein
  • "List of Alabama Governors". The Alabama Department of Archives & History. Retrieved 2007-08-01.
  • "Governors of Alabama". National Governors Association. Retrieved 2007-08-01.
Specific

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