Endicott Peabody - Tenure As Governor

Tenure As Governor

During his administration as Governor, voters approved a state constitutional amendment extending the terms of office of all state constitutional offices from two years to four years, effective with the 1966 election. Peabody advocated laws to prevent discrimination in housing and the establishment of drug addiction treatment programs. He also strongly opposed capital punishment, and "vowed that he would not sign a death warrant even for the Boston Strangler, if he were ever caught and convicted." Governor Peabody was defeated in the Democratic primary and did not stand for popular reelection to a second term.

It was front page news around the country on April 1, 1964 when the governor's 72 year old mother, Mary Parkman Peabody, was arrested at the Ponce de Leon Motor Lodge in St. Augustine, Florida for attempting to be served in an integrated group at a racially segregated restaurant. This made Mrs. Peabody a hero to the civil rights movement, and brought the efforts in St. Augustine — the nation's oldest city — to national and international attention.The story of her arrest is told in many books including one by her arrest companions, Hester Campbell, entitled Four for Freedom.

Peabody is remembered for recommending the commutation of every death sentence that he reviewed while serving as governor between 1963 and 1965, in connection with his efforts to get the Legislature to abolish the death penalty. [http://users.bestweb.net/~rg/execution/MASSACHUSETTS.htm The last execution in Massachusetts state history occurred in 1947.