Sid McMath

Sid McMath

Sidney Sanders McMath (June 14, 1912 – October 4, 2003) was a decorated U.S. Marine, attorney and the 34th Governor of Arkansas (1949–1953) who, in defiance of his state's political establishment, championed rapid rural electrification, massive highway and school construction, the building of the University of Arkansas for Medical Sciences, strict bank and utility regulation, repeal of the poll tax, open and honest elections and broad expansion of opportunity for black citizens in the decade following World War II.

McMath remained loyal to President Harry S. Truman during the "Dixiecrat" rebellion of 1948, campaigning throughout the South for Truman's re-election. As a former governor, McMath led the opposition to segregationist Governor Orval Faubus following the 1957 Little Rock school crisis. He later became one of the nation's foremost trial lawyers, representing thousands of injured persons in precedent-setting cases and mentoring several generations of young attorneys.

Read more about Sid McMath:  Early Life, Military Service, Early Career in Politics, Governor of Arkansas, Defeat For Third Term and U.S. Senate, Trial Law Practice, Later Life, Historical Evaluation, Bold Positions & Political Consequences, Legacy, Death