Francis W. Sargent
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| Francis William Sargent | |
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| In office January 22, 1969 – January 2, 1975 |
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| Lieutenant | Donald R. Dwight |
| Preceded by | John A. Volpe |
| Succeeded by | Michael S. Dukakis |
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| In office 1967 – 1969 |
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| Governor | John A. Volpe |
| Preceded by | Elliot L. Richardson |
| Succeeded by | Donald R. Dwight |
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| Born | July 29, 1915 Hamilton, Massachusetts |
| Died | October 21 1998 (aged 83) Dover, Massachusetts |
| Political party | Republican |
Francis William Sargent (July 29, 1915 - October 21, 1998) was governor of Massachusetts from 1969 to 1975. Born in 1915 in Hamilton, Massachusetts, he was known for his sharp wit and self-deprecating manner. A patrician Republican politician, "Sarge" was a student at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology where he was a classmate and friend of I.M. Pei, although Sargent never graduated. [1].
He was a dedicated conservationist who delivered the keynote address at MIT on the first Earth Day in 1970. He had earlier served as state commissioner of natural resources for ten years, and went on to win appointment as state Commissioner of Public Works in 1964.
He was elected Lieutenant Governor in 1966, and in 1969, he became acting governor when Republican John Volpe became secretary of Transportation under President Nixon.[1] In 1970, Sargent won election in his own right, defeating Boston Mayor Kevin White.
He achieved renown among conservationists and advocates of a balanced urban transportaion system by canceling most highway construction inside Route 128, with the exception of the Northeast Expressway in 1970 Sargent became a strong advocate for changing the federal laws governing aide to states for highway construction so that more funds were available for mass transit projects such as subways and light-rail vehicles. [2].
He was governor of the Commonwealth during the strife following Judge Arthur Garrity's 1974 decision to desegregate Boston public schools through court-mandated redistricting of the Boston school system, including busing some students out of their neighborhoods to end a pattern of racial segregation in the schools. Sargent had previously vetoed attempts to repeal or water-down the state's Racial Imbalance Act, which prohibited state aide to racially imbalanced school districts. When Sargent called for obeying the federal court order, pro-segregation forces complained that he and his neighbors in the well-to-do suburban Boston town of Dover, Massachusetts did not have to share any of the burden of desegregating Boston schools. On occasion, groups of anti-busing protesters from the city showed up to picket his Dover home, only to find that his road had no street lights. He retired from politics after his defeat for reelection by Michael Dukakis in November 1974. He died in 1998 in Dover, Massachusetts[2], and is buried at the Highland Cemetery in Dover, Massachusetts.
[edit] References
- ^ Francis W. Sargent, Ex-Governor, Dies. The Boston Globe. October 23, 1998.
- ^ Funeral to be Nov. 4 for Francis Sargent. The Boston Globe. October 24, 1998.
[edit] External links
| Political offices | ||
|---|---|---|
| Preceded by Elliot L. Richardson |
Lieutenant Governor of Massachusetts January 5, 1967 – January 7, 1971 |
Succeeded by Donald Dwight |
| Preceded by John Volpe (resigned) |
Acting Governor of Massachusetts January 22, 1969 – January 7, 1971 |
Succeeded by Francis W. Sargent (elected Governor) |
| Preceded by Francis W. Sargent (as Acting Governor) |
Governor of Massachusetts January 7, 1971 – January 2, 1975 |
Succeeded by Michael Dukakis |
