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Edward Martin (Pennsylvania politician)

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Edward Martin
Portrait of Martin
United States Senator
from Pennsylvania
In office
January 3, 1947 – January 3, 1959
Preceded byJoseph F. Guffey
Succeeded byHugh Scott
Chair of the National Governors Association
In office
July 1, 1945 – May 26, 1946
Preceded byHerbert B. Maw
Succeeded byMillard Caldwell
32nd Governor of Pennsylvania
In office
January 19, 1943 – January 2, 1947
LieutenantJohn C. Bell Jr.
Preceded byArthur James
Succeeded byJohn C. Bell Jr.
58th Treasurer of Pennsylvania
In office
January 15, 1929 – January 17, 1933
GovernorJohn Stuchell Fisher
Gifford Pinchot
Preceded byCharles A. Snyder
Succeeded bySamuel S. Lewis
Chair of the Pennsylvania Republican Party
In office
May 12, 1928 – June 9, 1934
Preceded byWilliam Larimer Mellon Sr.
Succeeded byM. Harvey Taylor
23rd Auditor General of Pennsylvania
In office
January 20, 1925 – January 15, 1929
GovernorGifford Pinchot
John Stuchell Fisher
Preceded bySamuel S. Lewis
Succeeded byCharles A. Waters
Personal details
Born(1879-09-18)September 18, 1879
Ten Mile, Pennsylvania, U.S.
DiedMarch 19, 1967(1967-03-19) (aged 87)
Washington, Pennsylvania, U.S.
Political partyRepublican
SpouseMary Scott (1909–1967)
Children3
EducationWaynesburg University (BA)
Military service
Allegiance United States
Branch/service United States Army
Years of service1898–1942
Rank Major general
Commands109th Infantry Regiment
110th Infantry Regiment
55th Infantry Brigade
28th Infantry Division
Battles/warsSpanish–American War
Border War
World War I
World War II

Edward Martin (September 18, 1879 – March 19, 1967) was an American lawyer, military officer and Republican party politician from Waynesburg, Pennsylvania. He served as the 32nd governor of Pennsylvania from 1943 until 1947 and as a United States Senator from Pennsylvania from 1947 until 1959.

Biography

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Early life and military service

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Edward Martin was born in Ten Mile, Pennsylvania, on September 18, 1879, attending public schools in his youth. He served with Pennsylvania volunteers during the Spanish–American War from May 11, 1898, to August 22, 1899, and reached the rank of sergeant.[1] He studied law and graduated from Waynesburg College in Waynesburg, Pennsylvania, in 1901. He served as physical director and football coach at Waynesburg in 1909.[2]

Martin enlisted in the Pennsylvania National Guard after the Spanish-American War at his former rank of sergeant, and later became an officer. He was promoted to first lieutenant on January 15, 1900, to captain on July 11, 1905, and to major on July 6, 1910. The Pennsylvania National Guard was mobilized for the Mexican Border Expedition in 1916, and Martin was on active duty from June 22 to October 27, 1916. When the United States entered World War I, Martin went on active duty again on July 15, 1917. During the war, Martin commanded the 109th Infantry Regiment from September 6–9, 1918 (being promoted to the temporary rank of lieutenant colonel on September 9) and the 110th Infantry Regiment from September 7 to October 14, 1918.[3][4] For valor and wounds received in combat, Martin earned a Distinguished Service Cross and a Purple Heart, both with oak leaf clusters. He left active duty after the Armistice, on April 25, 1919.[5]

On July 29, 1920, Martin was promoted to colonel in the Pennsylvania National Guard, and became the first post-war commander of the 110th Infantry Regiment, 28th Division, a position he held from that date until August 17, 1922.[6][7] On December 15, 1922, Martin was promoted to brigadier general and assumed command of the 55th Infantry Brigade, 28th Division.[8][9] On June 26, 1939, he became a major general and commander of the 28th Division.[10][11] After the United States entered World War II, Major General Martin was retired on April 1, 1942, because of Army regulations concerning over-age officers.

Martin was also president of the National Guard Association of the United States in 1940.

Career in law and politics

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Martin was admitted to the bar in 1905 and commenced practice in Waynesburg. He was a burgess of East Waynesburg from 1902 to 1905, solicitor of Greene County from 1908 to 1910 and again from 1916 to 1920. He served as auditor general of Pennsylvania from 1925 to 1929 and State treasurer from 1929 to 1933. He chaired the Republican State Committee of Pennsylvania from 1928 to 1934.[12][13] He was adjutant general of Pennsylvania from 1939 to 1943. He had varied business interests, including fire insurance, oil and gas, and banking.

Martin was elected Governor of Pennsylvania in November 1942. He served as president of the Council of State Governments in 1946 and was elected as a Republican to the United States Senate in the same year. In 1947, Martin received the American Legion's Distinguished Service Medal.[14] Martin was re-elected to the Senate in 1952. During the Eighty-third Congress from 1953 to 1955, when the Republicans were in the majority, he was chairman of the Committee on Public Works. Martin voted in favor of the Civil Rights Act of 1957.[15] Martin did not seek re-nomination to a third term in 1958. He died in Washington, Pennsylvania, in 1967 and is buried at Greene Mount Cemetery in Waynesburg.

Fort Indiantown Gap

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Pennsylvania State Capitol portrait of Martin as a major general commanding the 28th Infantry Division

Martin was prominent in the development of Fort Indiantown Gap and after his death, the United States Senate renamed the facility the Edward Martin Military Reservation, an honor that Martin himself had rejected throughout his life. The new name was never fully accepted by the military personnel who served there. In 1975, the Secretary of the Army renamed the post Fort Indiantown Gap in order to more closely align it with the other active duty stations throughout the United States. The Joint Force Headquarters of the Pennsylvania National Guard is located at Fort Indiantown Gap, and is named Edward Martin Hall in Martin's honor.

Edward Martin Memorial Library at NGAUS

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The Library at the National Guard Association of the United States (NGAUS) is dedicated to Martin and is named the Edward Martin Memorial Library. While not a circulating library, it serves as one of the foremost collections of National Guard documents and is ideal for researchers. Original volumes include a complete collection of NGAUS Conference minutes dating to 1879 and Adjutant General (TAG) Reports dating to the early 20th Century. The Library may be found in the National Guard Memorial Building, One Massachusetts Ave., NW, Washington DC 20001. The Edward Martin Memorial Library is managed and maintained by the National Guard Educational Foundation (NGEF).

See also

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References

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  1. ^ Official National Guard Register for 1939. Washington, D.C.: United States Government Printing Office. 1939. p. 1,102.
  2. ^ "Waynesburg's Schedule". Pittsburg Daily Post. September 28, 1909. Retrieved August 8, 2023.
  3. ^ Official National Guard Register for 1939. Washington, D.C.: United States Government Printing Office. 1939. p. 1,102.
  4. ^ Clay, Steven E. (2010). U.S. Army Order of Battle 1919-1941, Volume 1. The Arms: Major Commands and Infantry Organizations. Fort Leavenworth: Combat Studies Institute Press. p. 410.
  5. ^ Official National Guard Register for 1939. Washington, D.C.: United States Government Printing Office. 1939. p. 1,102.
  6. ^ Official National Guard Register for 1939. Washington, D.C.: United States Government Printing Office. 1939. p. 1,102.
  7. ^ Clay, Steven E. (2010). U.S. Army Order of Battle 1919-1941, Volume 1. The Arms: Major Commands and Infantry Organizations. Fort Leavenworth: Combat Studies Institute Press. p. 410.
  8. ^ Official National Guard Register for 1939. Washington, D.C.: United States Government Printing Office. 1939. p. 1,102.
  9. ^ Clay, Steven E. (2010). U.S. Army Order of Battle 1919-1941, Volume 1. The Arms: Major Commands and Infantry Organizations. Fort Leavenworth: Combat Studies Institute Press. p. 310.
  10. ^ Official National Guard Register for 1939. Washington, D.C.: United States Government Printing Office. 1939. p. 1,102.
  11. ^ Clay, Steven E. (2010). U.S. Army Order of Battle 1919-1941, Volume 1. The Arms: Major Commands and Infantry Organizations. Fort Leavenworth: Combat Studies Institute Press. pp. 221–222.
  12. ^ Armstrong, Robert B. (May 12, 1928). "Mellon to Get Keystone Vote". Los Angeles Times. Archived from the original on April 12, 2012. Retrieved January 9, 2012.
  13. ^ Townley, John B. (June 8, 1934). "Martin Gives Up Chairman Post, Recommends Taylor". Pittsburgh Press. Retrieved January 9, 2012.
  14. ^ "Distinguished Service Medal Recipients | Page 8 | the American Legion".
  15. ^ "HR. 6127. CIVIL RIGHTS ACT OF 1957". GovTrack.us.
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Political offices
Preceded by Auditor General of Pennsylvania
1925–1929 		Succeeded by
Preceded by Treasurer of Pennsylvania
1929–1933 		Succeeded by
Preceded by Governor of Pennsylvania
1943–1947 		Succeeded by
Preceded by Chair of the National Governors Association
1945–1946 		Succeeded by
Party political offices
Preceded by Republican nominee for Treasurer of Pennsylvania
1928 		Succeeded by
Preceded by Chair of the Pennsylvania Republican Party
1928–1934 		Succeeded by
Preceded by Republican nominee for Governor of Pennsylvania
1942 		Succeeded by
Preceded by Republican nominee for U.S. Senator from Pennsylvania
(Class 1)
1946, 1952 		Succeeded by
Military offices
New office Commanding General 28th Infantry Division
1941 		Succeeded by
U.S. Senate
Preceded by United States Senator (Class 1) from Pennsylvania
1947–1959
Served alongside: Francis J. Myers, James H. Duff, Joseph S. Clark Jr. 		Succeeded by
Preceded by Chair of the Senate Public Work Committee
1953–1955 		Succeeded by
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