Orville Lothrop Freeman (1918 - 2003)

Born 9 May 1918 in Minneapolis, Hennepin, Minnesota, United States

Died 20 Feb 2003 at age 84 in Minneapolis, Hennepin, Minnesota, United States

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Preceded by 15th Secretary Ezra Taft Benson Preceded by 28th Governor C. Elmer Anderson

Orville Freeman 16th United States Secretary of Agriculture 1961—1969 29th Governor of Minnesota 1955—1961

Succeeded by 17th Secretary Clifford M. Hardin Succeeded by 30th Governor Elmer L. Andersen

Biography

Orville Freeman is Notable.

Orville Freeman was a Minnesotan.

Orville L. Freeman was born in 1918. He is the son of Orville E. Freeman and Sarah "Sadie" Elizabeth Lothrop.^[1] He married Jane Charlotte Shields May 2, 1942 in Washington, D.C.^[2][3] In 1940, his grandmother, Nellie Benson Freeman, lived with the family.^[4][5][6]

Minnesota Governors

Orville L. Freeman Biography

Born in Minneapolis, Orville Freeman received his B.A. from the University of Minnesota in 1940. A Marine during World War II, he was wounded, recovered, and became a major. He earned a law degree from the University of Minnesota in 1946, gained admission to the bar in 1947, and worked at a Minneapolis law firm until 1955.

The young lawyer focused as much on politics as the law, forging a close relationship with Minneapolis Mayor Hubert H. Humphrey. Freeman was the Democratic-Farmer-Labor Party’s secretary (1946–1948), managed Humphrey’s successful Senate run (1948), and became DFL party chair (1948–1950). In 1950 he lost the race for state attorney general, and in 1952 he lost the gubernatorial race to incumbent C. Elmer Anderson. Freeman defeated Anderson in 1954 and went on to serve three terms.

The DFL governor established the state’s Fair Employment Practices Commission (1955), Water Resources Board (1955), and Duluth Seaway Port Authority (1955); expanded education funding; and protected Fort Snelling from highway encroachment. His tireless advocacy for farmers consistently earned him rural votes. In 1959 he mobilized the National Guard and declared martial law during a meat-packing strike in Albert Lea. That unpopular decision cost him support from businessmen.

Freeman nominated John F. Kennedy at the 1960 Democratic National Convention. Back home, his rejection of anti-Catholic sentiment helped Kennedy narrowly win Minnesota. In the same close election, Freeman lost his fourth re-election bid.

Kennedy then named the forty-six-year-old to be U.S. secretary of agriculture, a post he held under Kennedy and Lyndon B. Johnson from 1961 to 1969.

Returning to private life, Freeman was president of a Washington, D.C.-based computer software design company (1969–1970); president, CEO, and chairman (1970–1984) of a New York City firm that helped companies manage worldwide operations; and senior partner in a Washington, D.C., international law firm (1985–1995). After retiring, he was a visiting scholar at the University of Minnesota’s Hubert H. Humphrey Institute for Public Affairs (1995–1997).

Freeman died in Minneapolis in 2003 of complications from Alzheimer’s disease.^[7]

Sources

1. ↑ 1930 US Fed Census: "United States Census, 1930," database with images, FamilySearch (https://familysearch.org/ark:/61903/1:1:X3Z5-CZX : accessed 29 March 2021), Orville L Freeman in household of Orville E Freeman, Minneapolis (Districts 1-250), Hennepin, Minnesota, United States; citing enumeration district (ED) ED 216, sheet 10B, line 61, family 171, NARA microfilm publication T626 (Washington D.C.: National Archives and Records Administration, 2002), roll 1097; FHL microfilm 2,340,832.
2. ↑ Marriage: Marriage Records. "District of Columbia Marriages". Clerk of the Superior Court, Records Office, Washington D.C., Orville Lothrop Freeman, Male, Age: 23, Birth Date: abt 1919, Marriage Date: 2 May 1942, Marriage Place: District of Columbia, USA, Spouse: Jane Charlotte Shields Film Number: 002293624.
3. ↑ 1920 US Fed Census: "United States Census, 1920", database with images, FamilySearch (https://www.familysearch.org/ark:/61903/1:1:MWYR-JFH : 2 February 2021), Orville L Freeman in entry for Orville E Freeman, 1920.
4. ↑ 1940 US Fed Census: "United States Census, 1940," database with images, FamilySearch (https://www.familysearch.org/ark:/61903/1:1:KSK7-X9G : 7 January 2021), Orville L Freeman in household of Orville E Freeman, Minneapolis, Hennepin, Minnesota, United States; citing enumeration district (ED) 89-141, sheet 1A, line 26, family 7, Sixteenth Census of the United States, 1940, NARA digital publication T627. Records of the Bureau of the Census, 1790 - 2007, RG 29. Washington, D.C.: National Archives and Records Administration, 2012, roll 1980.
5. ↑ Death: "United States Social Security Death Index," database, FamilySearch (https://familysearch.org/ark:/61903/1:1:JYY7-MNR : 10 January 2021), Orville L Freeman, 20 Feb 2003; citing U.S. Social Security Administration, Death Master File, database (Alexandria, Virginia: National Technical Information Service, ongoing).
6. ↑ Find-a-Grave: "Find A Grave Index," database, FamilySearch (https://www.familysearch.org/ark:/61903/1:1:QVV7-4TZM : 7 August 2020), Orville L. Freeman, ; Burial, Minneapolis, Hennepin, Minnesota, United States of America, Lakewood Cemetery; citing record ID 7201618, Find a Grave, http://www.findagrave.com.
7. ↑ Minnesota Governors Biography: https://mnhs.gitlab.io/archive/governors-of-minnesota-collections/collections.mnhs.org/governors/index.php/10004223.html

• Find A Grave Memorial# 7201618

• Orville Freeman on Wikipedia