Governors of West
Virginia
1. Arthur Ingram Borema 1863-1869
2. Daniel Duane Tompkins Farnsworth
1869
3. William Erskine Stevenson 1869-1871
4. John Jeremiah Jacob 1871-1877
5. Henry Mason Mathews 1877-1881
6. Jacob Beeson Jackson 1881-1885
7. Emanuel Willis Wilson 1885-1890
8. Aretas Brooks Fleming 1890-1893
9. William Alexander MacCorkle 18931897
10. George Wesley Atkinson 1897-1901
11. Albert Blakeslee White 1901-1905
12. William Mercer Owens Dawson 19051909
13. William Ellsworth Glasscock 19091913
14. Henry Drury Hatfield 1913-1917
15. John Jacob Cornwell 1917-1921
16. Ephraim Franklin Morgan 1921-1925
17. Howard Mason Gore 1925-1929
18. William Gustavus Conley 19291933
19. Herman Guy Kump 1933-1937
20. Homer Adams Holt 1937-1941
21. Matthew Mansfield Neely 19411945
22. Clarence Watson Meadows 19451949
23. Okey Leonidas Patteson 1949-1953
24. William Casey Marland 1953-1957
25. Cecil Harland Underwood 19571961
26. William Wallace Barron 1961-1965
27. Hulett Carlson Smith 1965-1969
28. Arch Alfred Moore, Jr. 1969-1977
29. John Davison Rockefeller IV 19771985
30. Arch Alfred Moore, Jr. 1985-1989
31. William Gaston Caperton III 19891997
32. Cecil Harland Underwood 19972001
Arthur Ingram
Boreman
July 24, 1823 - April 19, 1896
(R) Wood County
Elected governor in 1863,
1864, & 1866
Boreman was elected West
Virginia's first governor in
1863.
Boreman contributed effectively to the government of the new state,
supporting legislation which instituted the West Virginia Code, Board
of Public Works, and the public school system. During the Civil War,
he organized state militia units to combat Confederate guerrillas in the
southern part of the state.
Daniel Duane Tompkins
Farnsworth
December 23, 1819 - December 5,
1892
(R) Upshur County
Appointed to serve from February
26, 1869 - March 4, 1869
On February 26, 1869, Arthur I.
Boreman resigned as governor
to join the United States Senate.
Farnsworth, as state senate
president, succeeded him,
serving a seven-day term.
William Erskine
Stevenson
March 18, 1820 - November 29,
1883
(R) Wood County
Elected governor in 1868
As governor, Stevenson
successfully advocated for the
right of Confederate veterans to
vote. Ironically, most Confederates
were Democrats, leading to
Stevenson's defeat for re-election
in 1870.
John Jeremiah
Jacob
December 9, 1829 - November
24, 1893
(D) Hampshire County
Elected governor in 1870 (twoyear term) and in 1872 (four-year
term)
Jacob supported the
elimination of all remaining
legislation that discriminated
against former Confederates.
Henry Mason
Mathews
March 29, 1834 - April 28,
1884
(D) Greenbrier County
Elected governor in 1876
As governor, Mathews dealt with
economic problems associated with
the national depression. In July
1877, four months into his term,
Mathews sent the state militia to
Martinsburg, Berkeley County,
where Baltimore and Ohio Railroad
workers had been stopping trains to
protest wage cuts.
Jacob Beeson
Jackson
April 6, 1829 - December 11,
1893
(D) Wood County
Elected governor in 1880
As governor, Jackson
advocated improved
education, re- writing the
West Virginia Code, and tax
reform.
Emanuel Willis
Wilson
August 11, 1844 - May 28,
1905
(D) Kanawha County
Elected governor in 1884
As governor, Wilson continued his
opposition to monopolies and
dealt with the issue of political
corruption. He failed to secure
legislation forbidding the pollution
of streams. Wilson gained national
attention by refusing to extradite
members of the Hatfield family to
Kentucky during the HatfieldMcCoy feud.
Aretas Brooks
Fleming
October 15, 1839 - October 13,
1923
(D) Marion County
Elected in 1888, assumed
office Feb. 6, 1890
Fleming served only a three-year term,
1890-1893, due to a dispute over the
results of the 1888 election. The
legislature finally selected Fleming in
January 1890. Bitter over the results,
Republicans blocked most of Fleming's
initiatives.
William Alexander
MacCorkle
May 7, 1857 - September 24,
1930
(D) Kanawha County
Elected governor in 1892
As governor, MacCorkle advocated
increased funding for state institutions
and improved transportation. Through
an advertising program, he actively
promoted the state's natural resources
to attract industry. MacCorkle opposed
the growing labor movement among
coal miners and dispatched the state
militia to break a strike.
George Wesley
Atkinson
June 29, 1845 - April 4, 1925
(R) Ohio County
Elected governor in 1896
Despite the fact Atkinson was the first
Republican governor in twenty-six years,
his policies were similar to those of his
Democratic predecessors. He advocated
the growth of industry, improved
transportation, funding for state
institutions, and establishment of free
public libraries. He was also the first
governor to promote legislation to
improve child welfare and labor
conditions.
Albert Blakeslee
White
September 22, 1856 - July 3,
1941
(R) Wood County
Elected governor in 1900
As governor, White focused on
revising the constitution and the tax
code. He favored placing more of
the burden of taxes on corporations.
Despite opposition from industry,
the legislature enacted a series of
tax reforms during a special session
in July 1904.
William
Mercer Owens
Dawson
May 21, 1853 - March 12, 1916
(R) Preston County
Elected governor in 1904
During Dawson's term, the
legislature increased the powers and
duties of the state tax commissioner
and gave the governor the right to
remove tax assessors for refusal to
comply with new tax laws. In 1909,
state educational, charitable, penal,
and correctional institutions were
reorganized under a board of control.
William Ellsworth
Glasscock
December 13, 1862 - April 12,
1925
(R) Monongalia County
Elected governor in 1908
The last year of his term was
marred by a violent coal strike in
the Paint Creek-Cabin Creek area
of Kanawha County. On three
separate occasions, Glasscock
declared martial law and sent in
troops. He refused to release Mary
Harris "Mother" Jones.
Henry Drury
Hatfield
September 15, 1875 - October 23,
1962
(R) McDowell County
Elected governor in 1912
As governor, Hatfield's first act
was to dictate a settlement to the
coal miners on strike in the Paint
Creek-Cabin Creek area of
Kanawha County.
John Jacob
Cornwell
July 11, 1867 - September 8,
1953
(D) Hampshire County
Elected governor in 1916
One month after Cornwell took
office, the United States entered
World War I. Due in part to the
governor's efforts, West Virginia
had one of the highest
percentages of volunteers of any
state.
Ephraim Franklin
Morgan
January 16, 1869 - January 15,
1950
(R) Marion County
Elected governor in 1920
At the time Morgan became governor, a
virtual state of war existed between union
coal miners and coal operators. The United
Mine Workers union was protesting for the
right to organize miners in the
southwestern part of the state. In late
summer 1921, the governor called upon
President Warren G. Harding to dispatch
federal troops to end an armed miners'
march in Boone and Logan counties. After
the conflict ended, Morgan used National
Guard troops to discourage miners from
again taking up arms.
Howard Mason
Gore
October 12, 1887 - June 20, 1947
(R) Harrison County
Elected governor in 1924
As governor, Gore improved the state's agricultural programs and
acted on requests from rural areas for reforms in handling state
funds. Through a bipartisan commission, he was able to disperse
more tax money to counties and municipalities. In addition, his
support of road construction earned Gore the nickname, "road
building governor."
In 1927, fire destroyed the temporary "pasteboard capitol," built after the
old capitol burned in 1921.
William Gustavus
Conley
January 8, 1866 - October 21,
1940
(R) Kanawha County
Elected governor in 1928
During the Conley administration, the
legislature established a public
unemployment bureau, library
commission, bridge commission,
water commission, athletic
commission, and raised taxes to pay
for the main building of the new state
capitol.
Herman Guy
Kump
October 31, 1877 - February
14, 1962
(D) Randolph County
Elected governor in 1932
Kump became governor at
the height of the Great
Depression, inheriting a
state treasury deficit of $4
million. The legislature
spent a record 240 days in
session in 1933, developing
a new tax program.
Homer Adams
Holt
March 1, 1898 - January 16,
1975
(D) Fayette County
Elected governor in 1936
As governor, Holt instituted a
program to improve the
facilities of state institutions.
He drew criticism for his
attacks on school lobbyists
and the labor movement,
resulting in a split within the
Democratic party.
Matthew Mansfield
Neely
November 9, 1874 - January 18,
1958
(D) Marion County
Elected governor in 1940
Neely's candidacy was the result
of a split within the Democratic
party. With the support of labor,
he backed improvements in
unemployment compensation
and the establishment of a human
rights commission.
Clarence Watson
Meadows
February 11, 1904 - September
12, 1961
(D) Raleigh County
Elected governor in 1944
More than any of his predecessors,
Meadows used radio to convey his
message to the people. He helped
mediate a number of labor disputes.
Meadows reorganized the state's
Board of Education, Conservation
Commission, Industrial Publicity
Commission, and West Virginia
University's Board of Governors.
Okey Leonidas
Patteson
September 14, 1898 - July 3,
1989
(D) Fayette County
Elected governor in 1948
As governor, one of Patteson's most
important and controversial decisions
was to locate the state School of
Medicine, Dentistry, and Nursing in
Morgantown. During his term, the
legislature created the position of state
Tax Commissioner and authorized cities
to levy sales taxes. In 1952, Patteson
organized the state Turnpike
Commission to oversee the construction
of the West Virginia Turnpike.
William Casey
Marland
March 26, 1918 - November 26, 1965
(D) Wyoming County
Elected governor in 1952
Three days after becoming governor, Marland proposed
a severance tax on extractive industries, most notably
coal. The legislature, heavily backed by the coal
industry, blocked this tax and others which would have
benefitted schools and roads. Marland advocated the
desegregation of schools, expansion of the state parks
and other recreational facilities, improved
unemployment and workers' compensation laws, and an
industrial development program.
After his term as governor he moved to Chicago to work for a coal company. Several years later,
he was discovered driving a taxi cab following a battle with alcoholism.
Cecil Harland
Underwood
(R) Tyler County
Elected governor in 1956
In 1957, he became the youngest
governor in the history of the state
and the first Republican governor
in twenty-four years.
In his first term as governor,
Underwood worked to improve roads
and assist those impoverished by
rapid technological changes,
particularly the mechanization of the
coal industry.
William Wallace
Barron
December 8, 1911 (D) Randolph County
Elected governor in 1960
In Barron's first year as governor, the
legislature created the Public Employees
Retirement System, the Department of
Natural Resources, the Air Pollution
Control Commission, the Human Rights
Commission, the Industrial Development
Authority, and the Department of
Commerce.
In 1971, he was indicted on jury tampering charges associated with the 1968 trial.
He was sentenced to prison, fined, and stripped of his law license.
Hulett Carlson
Smith
October 21, 1918 (D) Raleigh County
Elected governor in 1964
During Smith's term, the
legislature enacted measures to
control air and stream pollution
and protect human rights, as well
as passing some of the state's first
strip mining legislation. In his first
year as governor, Smith signed
into law a bill repealing the death
penalty.
Arch Alfred
Moore, Jr.
April 16, 1923 (R) Marshall County
Elected governor in 1968, 1972, & 1984
With the passage of the Governor's Succession
Amendment in 1970, Moore became the first
governor to succeed himself since 1872.
The 1968 Modern Budget Amendment also gave him more budgetary powers than any
previous governor. Moore presided over the establishment of the Department of Highways
and the construction of modern interstate systems, begun during the administration of
Governor Cecil Underwood. The Board of Regents was created to manage all state
colleges and universities. Other accomplishments of his first term included designation of
"black lung" as a coal mining disease and the development of public kindergartens
Arch Alfred Moore, Jr.
On February 26, 1972, an earthen dam broke on
Buffalo Creek , unleashing 135 million gallons of
water, near the community of Man, Logan County.
The resulting flood killed 125 people and 4,000
lost their homes and possessions.
Governor Moore negotiated a $1 million
settlement, while the state eventually paid the
federal government $9.5 million in clean-up
costs and interest.
During Moore's second term, new state medical schools were established in
Lewisburg and at Marshall University in Huntington. One of his pet projects was
the West Virginia Science and Culture Center on the State Capitol Complex.
In 1975, Moore and his campaign manager were indicted for extortion, the first
seated governor to be officially charged with a crime. Both were found not guilty.
In 1990, Moore was found guilty of mail fraud. He served over two years in federal
prison and paid a settlement to the state.
John Davison
Rockefeller, IV
June 18, 1937 (D) Kanawha County
Elected governor in 1976 & 1980
As governor, Rockefeller
promoted the state's energy
resources and chaired the
President's Commission on Coal.
He cut the size of state
government and dealt with the
issues of inflation, fuel shortages,
a lengthy coal strike, floods, and
the effects of two severe winters.
In 1984, Rockefeller was elected
to the United States Senate.
Arch Alfred Moore, Jr.
April 16, 1923 (R) Marshall County
Elected governor in 1968,
1972, & 1984
At the beginning of Moore's third
term, West Virginia had the
highest unemployment rate in the
nation due to a recession in the
coal industry. Moore expanded
corporate tax credits to attract
businesses to the state. In
addition, the legislature reduced
the amount coal companies were
required to pay into workers'
compensation.
William Gaston
Caperton III
February 21, 1940 (D) Kanawha County
Elected governor in 1988 & 1992
As governor, Caperton reorganized state
government to reduce a large debt
incurred during the 1980s. To combat
this public debt, he secured legislation
to raise taxes and supported a
constitutional amendment to adopt a
state lottery. Caperton advocated
placing computers in all schools.
Cecil Harland
Underwood
(R) Cabell County
Elected governor in 1996
In 1996, Underwood defeated Democrat
Charlotte Pritt to become the state's oldest
governor, forty years after being the state's
youngest executive. In a 2000 bid for reelection, he was defeated by Bob Wise.
WISE, Robert Ellsworth, Jr.,
Governor of West Virginia, 2000-2005.
a Representative from West Virginia; born in
Washington, D.C., January 6, 1948; B.A.,
Duke University, Durham, N.C., 1970; J.D.,
Tulane University School of Law, New
Orleans, La., 1975; admitted to the West
Virginia bar in 1975 and commenced practice
in Charleston; member, State senate, 19801982; elected as a Democrat to the Ninetyeighth and to the eight succeeding Congresses
(January 3, 1983-January 3, 2001); was not a
candidate for reelection to the United States
House of Representatives in 2000; Governor
of West Virginia, 2000-2005.
Joseph Manchin III
August 24, 1947 (D) Marion County
Elected governor in 2004 and 2008 Joseph “Joe”
Manchin III was born in Fairmont and grew up in
Farmington. After graduating from West Virginia
University, Manchin worked in the family carpet store
and later ran an energy brokering company that is now
run by his son. In 1982, he won a seat in the West
Virginia House of Delegates, serving a single term; in
1986, he was elected to the State Senate, holding that
office from 1987 to 1997. In 1996, Manchin ran for
governor but lost in the primary. Four years later, in
2000, he won election to the Secretary of State’s Office.
Manchin successfully ran for governor in 2004 and won
re-election in 2008. The death of longtime United States
Senator Robert C. Byrd in 2010, Joe Manchin ran for
Byrd’s unexpired term and won a special election held in
November. Manchin was sworn in as United States
senator on November 15, 2010.
Earl Ray Tomblin
Earl Ray Tomblin is West Virginia’s 35th governor. He was born
March 15, 1952, in Logan County. He received his undergraduate
degree from West Virginia University, an M.B.A. from Marshall
University and attended the University of Charleston.
A self-employed businessman and former school teacher, Governor
Tomblin was elected to the West Virginia House of Delegates in 1974
at the age of 22 and held that position until he was elected to the
West Virginia Senate in 1980. Governor Tomblin is the longest
serving Senate President, a position he has held since his election in
1995. He was named the state’s first Lieutenant Governor in 2000.
He has dedicated his professional career to public service for the
betterment of West Virginia.
He started acting as Governor in November 2010, when Governor
Manchin resigned the position to fill the unexpired term of U. S.
Senator Robert C. Byrd.
Elected Governor in Special Election in October 2011
Compiled by the
West Virginia
State Archives