Ernest William Gibson Jr. (March 6, 1901 – November 4, 1969) was an American attorney, politician, and judge. He served briefly as an appointed

United States Senator The United States Senate consists of 100 members, two from each of the 50 U.S. state, states. This list includes all senators serving in the 119th United States Congress. Party affiliation Independent Senators Angus King of Maine and Berni ...

, as the 67th governor of Vermont, and as a federal judge. Born in

Brattleboro Brattleboro (), originally Brattleborough, is a town in Windham County, Vermont, United States, located about north of the Massachusetts state line at the confluence of Vermont's West River and the Connecticut River. With a 2022 Census populat ...

, and the son of a prominent Vermont political figure who served in the

United States Senate The United States Senate is a chamber of the Bicameralism, bicameral United States Congress; it is the upper house, with the United States House of Representatives, U.S. House of Representatives being the lower house. Together, the Senate and ...

, Gibson graduated from

Norwich University Norwich University is a private university in Northfield, Vermont, United States. The university was founded in 1819 as the "American Literary, Scientific and Military Academy". It is the oldest of six senior military college, senior militar ...

in 1923, attended

The George Washington University Law School The George Washington University Law School (GW Law) is the law school of George Washington University, a private research university in Washington, D.C. Established in 1865, GW Law is the oldest law school in Washington, D.C. GW Law has an al ...

, and attained admission to the bar in 1926. A Republican, he served in several elected and appointed positions in state government. When his father died while serving in the Senate, Gibson was appointed to temporarily fill the vacancy, and he served from June 1940 to January 1941. A veteran of the

United States Army Reserve The United States Army Reserve (USAR) is a Military reserve force, reserve force of the United States Army. Together, the Army Reserve and the Army National Guard constitute the Army element of the reserve components of the United States Armed ...

and

Vermont National Guard The Vermont National Guard is composed of the Vermont Army National Guard and the Vermont Air National Guard. Together, they are collectively known as the Green Mountain Boys. Both units use the original Revolutionary War-era Flag of the Green Mo ...

, during

World War II World War II or the Second World War (1 September 1939 – 2 September 1945) was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War II, Allies and the Axis powers. World War II by country, Nearly all of the wo ...

, Gibson served in the South Pacific and on the staff of the

United States Department of War The United States Department of War, also called the War Department (and occasionally War Office in the early years), was the United States Cabinet department originally responsible for the operation and maintenance of the United States Army, als ...

, and received several decorations for heroism. In 1946, he ran for

Governor of Vermont The governor of Vermont is the head of government of the U.S. state of Vermont. The officeholder is elected in even-numbered years by direct voting for a term of two years. Vermont and bordering New Hampshire are the only states to hold guberna ...

and defeated the incumbent in the Republican primary, the only time this has ever occurred in Vermont. He went on to win the general election, and won reelection in 1948. Gibson served as governor until accepting appointment as

judge A judge is a person who wiktionary:preside, presides over court proceedings, either alone or as a part of a judicial panel. In an adversarial system, the judge hears all the witnesses and any other Evidence (law), evidence presented by the barris ...

of Vermont's U.S. District Court; he remained on the bench until his 1969 death in Brattleboro. He was buried at Morningside Cemetery in Brattleboro.

Early life

Gibson was born on March 6, 1901, in

Brattleboro, Vermont Brattleboro (), originally Brattleborough, is a New England town, town in Windham County, Vermont, United States, located about north of the Massachusetts state line at the confluence of Vermont's West River (Vermont), West River and the Connec ...

, the son of Grace Fullerton Hadley and Ernest W. Gibson, who later served in the

United States House of Representatives The United States House of Representatives is a chamber of the Bicameralism, bicameral United States Congress; it is the lower house, with the U.S. Senate being the upper house. Together, the House and Senate have the authority under Artic ...

and

. He attended the public schools and graduated from

with an Artium Baccalaureus degree in 1923, where he was a member of the Alpha chapter of the

Theta Chi Theta Chi () is an international men's college fraternity. It was founded on April 10, 1856, at Norwich University then-located in Norwich, Vermont. It has initiated more than 215,000 members and has over 8,900 collegiate members across North A ...

International Fraternity. He attended

read law Reading law was the primary method used in common law countries, particularly the United States, for people to prepare for and enter the legal profession before the advent of law schools. It consisted of an extended internship or apprenticeship un ...

in his father's office, and was

admitted to the bar An admission to practice law is acquired when a lawyer receives a license to practice law. In jurisdictions with two types of lawyer, as with barristers and solicitors, barristers must gain admission to the bar whereas for solicitors there are dist ...

in 1926. While studying law he also taught at the

New York Military Academy New York Military Academy (NYMA) is a Private school, private, College-preparatory school, college preparatory, boarding school in Cornwall, New York, and one of the oldest List of United States military schools and academies, military schools i ...

Cornwall Cornwall (; or ) is a Ceremonial counties of England, ceremonial county in South West England. It is also one of the Celtic nations and the homeland of the Cornish people. The county is bordered by the Atlantic Ocean to the north and west, ...

New York New York most commonly refers to: * New York (state), a state in the northeastern United States * New York City, the most populous city in the United States, located in the state of New York New York may also refer to: Places United Kingdom * ...

, and worked as a mathematician on the

United States Coast and Geodetic Survey The United States Coast and Geodetic Survey ( USC&GS; known as the Survey of the Coast from 1807 to 1836, and as the United States Coast Survey from 1836 until 1878) was the first scientific agency of the Federal government of the United State ...

Military service

Gibson was a member of the

and

from an early age; in 1922, he joined the National Guard's Company I, 172nd Infantry Regiment as a private. In 1924 he was appointed to command the National Guard's Troop B, 316th Cavalry Regiment with the rank of

first lieutenant First lieutenant is a commissioned officer military rank in many armed forces; in some forces, it is an appointment. The rank of lieutenant has different meanings in different military formations, but in most forces it is sub-divided into a se ...

. In 1928, Gibson was a private first class assigned to Company I, 172nd Infantry. In 1934, he was a

captain Captain is a title, an appellative for the commanding officer of a military unit; the supreme leader or highest rank officer of a navy ship, merchant ship, aeroplane, spacecraft, or other vessel; or the commander of a port, fire or police depa ...

in the

Organized Reserve Corps The United States Army Reserve (USAR) is a reserve force of the United States Army. Together, the Army Reserve and the Army National Guard constitute the Army element of the reserve components of the United States Armed Forces. History Origi ...

and was assigned to the 316th Cavalry. By 1937, Gibson had returned to the Vermont National Guard and was serving as a first lieutenant. As of 1939, Gibson was a captain serving as aide-de-camp to Leonard F. Wing, the brigadier general in command of the Vermont National Guard's 86th Infantry Brigade.

Early career

Gibson began practicing law in Brattleboro in 1927. A Republican, he was

State's Attorney In the United States, a district attorney (DA), county attorney, county prosecutor, state attorney, state's attorney, prosecuting attorney, commonwealth's attorney, or solicitor is the chief prosecutor or chief law enforcement officer represen ...

of Windham County from 1929 to 1933; assistant secretary of the

Vermont Senate The Vermont Senate is the upper house of the Vermont General Assembly, the State legislature (United States), state legislature of the U.S. state of Vermont. The senate consists of 30 members elected from multi-member districts. Each senator repre ...

from 1931 to 1933; and secretary from 1933 to 1940. While serving on the Senate staff, Gibson was part of a network of acquaintances who were all lawyers, Republican party activists and National Guard members. In addition to Gibson, this group included: Leonard F. Wing; Harold J. Arthur; Murdock A. Campbell; and Francis William Billado.

U.S. Senator

Gibson was appointed to the

by Governor George D. Aiken on June 24, 1940, filling the vacancy caused by the death of his father, Ernest Willard Gibson. The younger Gibson served from June 24, 1940 to January 3, 1941, but did not run in the election to fill the vacancy. He was succeeded in the Senate by Aiken, a family friend. Political observers assumed that Gibson accepted the temporary appointment to facilitate Aiken's election. Knowing that Aiken desired to become a Senator, Gibson accepted the appointment and agreed not to run in a primary against him, which another appointee might have done. Gibson was willing to fill the vacancy temporarily and then defer to Aiken because Gibson hoped to serve as governor.

World War II

From January to May 1941, Gibson was Executive Secretary and later Chairman of the

Committee to Defend America by Aiding the Allies The Committee to Defend America by Aiding the Allies (CDAAA) was an American mass movement and political action group formed in May 1940. Also known as the White Committee, its leader until January 1941 was William Allen White. Other important me ...

(the

William Allen White William Allen White (February 10, 1868 – January 29, 1944) was an American newspaper editor, politician, author, and leader of the Progressive movement. Between 1896 and his death, White became a spokesman for Middle America (United States), ...

Committee), which advocated for aid to the

Allies An alliance is a relationship among people, groups, or states that have joined together for mutual benefit or to achieve some common purpose, whether or not an explicit agreement has been worked out among them. Members of an alliance are calle ...

prior to United States military involvement in

. Gibson volunteered for active duty during

and served in the South Pacific as G-2 (Intelligence Officer) with the 43rd Infantry Division. He later served on the Intelligence staff at the

. He was promoted to

major Major most commonly refers to: * Major (rank), a military rank * Academic major, an academic discipline to which an undergraduate student formally commits * People named Major, including given names, surnames, nicknames * Major and minor in musi ...

in July 1942, and lieutenant colonel in November 1942. While serving in the Pacific Theater, Gibson was wounded. A newspaper photo showing him having his head bandaged after he was wounded was circulated internationally, along with a caption identifying him as a former Senator, and he gained a measure of fame as a result. When

John F. Kennedy John Fitzgerald Kennedy (May 29, 1917 – November 22, 1963), also known as JFK, was the 35th president of the United States, serving from 1961 until his assassination in 1963. He was the first Roman Catholic and youngest person elected p ...

and his crew from

PT-109 ''PT-109'' was an Elco PT boat (patrol torpedo boat) last commanded by Lieutenant (junior grade) John F. Kennedy, future United States president, in the Solomon Islands campaign of the Pacific theater during World War II. Kennedy's act ...

were rescued, the coconut shell Kennedy used to send a message asking for help came into Gibson's possession. Gibson later returned it to Kennedy. Kennedy had the shell preserved in a glass paperweight, which was displayed on his

Oval Office The Oval Office is the formal working space of the president of the United States. Part of the Executive Office of the President of the United States, it is in the West Wing of the White House, in Washington, D.C. The oval room has three lar ...

desk during his presidency. It is now on display at the

John F. Kennedy Library The John F. Kennedy Presidential Library and Museum is the presidential library and museum of John F. Kennedy (1917–1963), the 35th president of the United States (1961–1963). It is located on Columbia Point in the Dorchester neighborhoo ...

Boston Boston is the capital and most populous city in the Commonwealth (U.S. state), Commonwealth of Massachusetts in the United States. The city serves as the cultural and Financial centre, financial center of New England, a region of the Northeas ...

Massachusetts Massachusetts ( ; ), officially the Commonwealth of Massachusetts, is a U.S. state, state in the New England region of the Northeastern United States. It borders the Atlantic Ocean and the Gulf of Maine to its east, Connecticut and Rhode ...

. Gibson was discharged in September 1945, shortly after receiving promotion to

colonel Colonel ( ; abbreviated as Col., Col, or COL) is a senior military Officer (armed forces), officer rank used in many countries. It is also used in some police forces and paramilitary organizations. In the 17th, 18th, and 19th centuries, a colon ...

. His awards included the

Silver Star The Silver Star Medal (SSM) is the United States Armed Forces' third-highest military decoration for valor in combat. The Silver Star Medal is awarded primarily to members of the United States Armed Forces for gallantry in action against a ...

Legion of Merit The Legion of Merit (LOM) is a Awards and decorations of the United States military, military award of the United States Armed Forces that is given for exceptionally meritorious conduct in the performance of outstanding services and achievemen ...

and

Purple Heart The Purple Heart (PH) is a United States military decoration awarded in the name of the president to those wounded or killed while serving, on or after 5 April 1917, with the U.S. military. With its forerunner, the Badge of Military Merit, ...

Governor of Vermont

In 1946, Vermont political observers expected Leonard F. Wing, the commander of the 43rd Division during the war, to run for governor. The unanswered question was whether incumbent governor Mortimer R. Proctor would run again, or would defer to Wing for the Republican nomination, then tantamount to election in Vermont. Wing died in December 1945, soon after returning home from the war. Without Wing in the race, Gibson was free to announce his candidacy. Proctor decided to run for reelection, creating a rare Republican primary contest.Rutland Herald and Barre-Montpelier Times Argus
20 in 20: Vermont's Great Moments in the 20th Century
, Ernest Gibson Wins GOP Gubernatorial Primary – 1946, 1999 Gibson, an internationalist and a progressive, argued against the Republican status quo. Making the case against unwritten party policies including the

Mountain Rule The governor of Vermont is the head of government of the U.S. state of Vermont. Since 1994, Vermont is one of only two U.S. states (New Hampshire being the other) that elects governors for two-year terms. Until 1870, Vermont elected its governors ...

and the limitation of Governors to two years in office, Gibson appealed to war veterans and younger voters, calling for action over inertia, saying "Under this rule a relatively small clique of people choose governors nearly 10 years in advance, supporting them up a series of political steps to the highest office." (According to the Mountain Rule, which had existed since the founding of the Republican Party in the 1850s, the governor and lieutenant governor candidates were identified years in advance, and alternated between the east and west sides of the

Green Mountains The Green Mountains are a mountain range in the U.S. state of Vermont and are a subrange of the Appalachian Mountains. The range runs primarily south to north and extends approximately from the border with Massachusetts to the border with Que ...

. Governors were limited to two years in office. United States Senators were also allocated based on the Green Mountains—one from the east and one from the west. As a result of this party discipline, even after the advent of primary elections and the direct election of Senators, Republicans won every statewide election in Vermont for more than 100 years.) Gibson defeated Proctor and won the general election in 1946, in what was called "a repudiation by Vermont voters of political practices and traditions that have been long established – a rebellion, not against outright mismanagement and inefficiency in the

state government A state government is the government that controls a subdivision of a country in a federal form of government, which shares political power with the federal or national government. A state government may have some level of political autonom ...

at Montpelier, but rather against the inertia and lack of aggressiveness of administration policies." He won reelection in 1948 and served from January 1947 to January 1950. During Gibson's first term, he concentrated on increasing state services following years of small budgets and limited priorities following the

Great Depression The Great Depression was a severe global economic downturn from 1929 to 1939. The period was characterized by high rates of unemployment and poverty, drastic reductions in industrial production and international trade, and widespread bank and ...

and World War II. He obtained approval of plans to expand and modernize state highways, improve health services, and enhance education and social welfare programs. To raise the funds necessary to support the largest budget in state history ($31 million), Gibson advocated for and obtained an increase in the state income tax. Gibson resigned to become a federal judge, and was succeeded by Harold J. Arthur.

Federal judicial service

Frustrated at dealing with a Republican

Vermont General Assembly The Vermont General Assembly is the legislative body of the state of Vermont, in the United States. The Legislature is formally known as the "General Assembly", but the style of "Legislature" is commonly used, including by the body itself. The G ...

and party structure that was more conservative than he, Gibson contemplated an early exit from the governorship rather than trying for a third term. Gibson was nominated by President

Harry S. Truman Harry S. Truman (May 8, 1884December 26, 1972) was the 33rd president of the United States, serving from 1945 to 1953. As the 34th vice president in 1945, he assumed the presidency upon the death of Franklin D. Roosevelt that year. Subsequen ...

on September 15, 1949, to the seat on the

United States District Court for the District of Vermont The United States District Court for the District of Vermont (in case citations, D. Vt.) is the United States district court, federal district court whose jurisdiction is the federal district of Vermont. The court has locations in Brattleboro, ...

vacated by the death of Judge James Patrick Leamy. He was confirmed by the

on October 15, 1949, and received his commission on October 18, 1949. He served as Chief Judge from 1966 to 1969. His service terminated on November 4, 1969, due to his death.

Other service

In 1956 Gibson was appointed a Civilian Aide to the

Secretary of the Army The secretary of the Army (SA or SECARMY) is a senior civilian official within the United States Department of Defense, with statutory responsibility for all matters relating to the United States Army: manpower, personnel, reserve affairs, insta ...

. The Civilian Aide program uses prominent individuals in each state and territory to promote goodwill between the civilian population and the Army by ensuring that the public is aware of ongoing Army projects and programs.

Notable law clerks

During Gibson's time on the bench his

law clerk A law clerk, judicial clerk, or judicial assistant is a person, often a lawyer, who provides direct counsel and assistance to a lawyer or judge by Legal research, researching issues and drafting legal opinions for cases before the court. Judicial ...

s included M. Jerome Diamond and James M. Jeffords, who clerked for Gibson from 1962 to 1963. According to Jeffords, a lesson imparted by Gibson played a role in Jeffords' decision to leave the Republican Party in 2001, which changed control of the United States Senate. As related by Jeffords, Gibson once paid closer attention to the facts than the letter of the law in order to arrive at a just outcome in a tort case involving skiing. When Jeffords questioned Gibson's approach, Gibson said "Never let the law get in the way of justice; justice is what counts." Jeffords further stated that he reflected on this quote often when considering decisions, including his decision to leave the Republicans.

Irasburg Affair

In 1969 Gibson headed a committee to investigate the 1968 “Irasburg Affair,” in which an

African American African Americans, also known as Black Americans and formerly also called Afro-Americans, are an Race and ethnicity in the United States, American racial and ethnic group that consists of Americans who have total or partial ancestry from an ...

minister was targeted by a campaign to force him out of Vermont. This effort included police harassment as well as an anonymous individual firing gunshots into the minister's home. Gibson's commission found fault with local and state authorities, including members of the

Vermont State Police The Vermont State Police (VSP) is the state police agency for the U.S. state of Vermont. The force has jurisdiction throughout the entire state. The Vermont Public Safety Commission directs policy and selects the commander. The commander is Colo ...

Death

Gibson died in Brattleboro on November 4, 1969. He was interred in Brattleboro's Morningside Cemetery.

Honors

Gibson received several

honorary degree An honorary degree is an academic degree for which a university (or other degree-awarding institution) has waived all of the usual requirements. It is also known by the Latin phrases ''honoris causa'' ("for the sake of the honour") or '' ad hon ...

s during his life, including a

Legum Doctor Legum is an English surname. Notable people with the surname include: * Colin Legum (1919–2003), British anti-apartheid activist * Judd Legum (born 1978), American journalist, lawyer, and political staffer * Margaret Legum (1933–2007), Brit ...

(LL.D.) from the

University of Vermont The University of Vermont and State Agricultural College, commonly referred to as the University of Vermont (UVM), is a Public university, public Land-grant university, land-grant research university in Burlington, Vermont, United States. Foun ...

in 1947 and a

Doctor of Juridical Science A Doctor of Juridical Science (SJD; ), or a Doctor of the Science of Law (JSD; ), is a research doctorate degree in law that is equivalent to a Ph.D. degree. In most countries, it is the most advanced law degree that can be earned. Australia ...

(DJS) from

Suffolk University Law School Suffolk University Law School (also known as Suffolk Law School) is the Private university, private, non-sectarian law school of Suffolk University located in Downtown Boston, downtown Boston, across the street from the Boston Common and the Fr ...

in 1958. He received a posthumous LL.D. from

Saint Michael's College Saint Michael's College (St. Mikes) is a private Catholic college in Colchester, Vermont, United States. Founded in 1904 by the Society of Saint Edmund, it grants Bachelor of Arts and Bachelor of Science degrees in more than 40 majors to abou ...

in November 1969.

Family

Gibson married Dorothy P. Switzer (1902–1958) on October 9, 1926, and they had four children. In 1961 he married Ann H. Haag. Gibson's son Ernest W. Gibson III (1927–2020) served as an Associate Justice of the

Vermont Supreme Court The Vermont Supreme Court is the highest judicial authority of the U.S. state of Vermont. Unlike most other states, the Vermont Supreme Court hears appeals directly from the trial courts, as Vermont has no intermediate appeals court. The court ...

. His daughter Grace Gibson Newcomer (born 1930) was a professor at

Westchester Community College Westchester Community College (WCC) is a public community college in Valhalla, New York, in Westchester County. It is part of the State University of New York (SUNY) system. History New York state opened five coed technical institutes in 194 ...

. His son Robert H. Gibson (1931–1999) served as Assistant Secretary of the Vermont Senate from 1963 to 1967, and Secretary from 1967 to 1999. His son David A. Gibson (1936–2010) served in the

Vermont State Senate The Vermont Senate is the upper house of the Vermont General Assembly, the state legislature of the U.S. state of Vermont. The senate consists of 30 members elected from multi-member districts. Each senator represents at least 20,300 citizens. ...

from 1977 to 1983, and was Senate Secretary from 2000 to 2010.Barre-Montpelier Times Argus
Obituary, David A. Gibson
August 19, 2010

Notes

References

External links

*

at National Governors Association * Ernest William Gibson Memorial o
Find A Grave
{{DEFAULTSORT:Gibson, Ernest W. Jr. 1901 births 1969 deaths Lawyers from Brattleboro, Vermont American people of English descent Republican Party United States senators from Vermont Republican Party governors of Vermont Governors of Vermont Judges of the United States District Court for the District of Vermont United States district court judges appointed by Harry S. Truman State's attorneys in Vermont 20th-century American lawyers Norwich University alumni George Washington University Law School alumni United States Army colonels National Guard (United States) officers Vermont National Guard personnel Military personnel from Vermont Recipients of the Silver Star Recipients of the Legion of Merit United States Army personnel of World War II United States Coast and Geodetic Survey personnel 20th-century United States senators