William C. Marland
William Casey Marland ( born March 26, 1918 in Johnston City, Williamson County, Illinois, † November 26, 1965 in Barrington, Illinois ) was an American politician and from 1953 to 1957 the 24th Governor of the state of West Virginia.
Early years and political rise
William Marland came at the age of seven years with his parents to West Virginia. As a boy, he worked temporarily in the coal mining industry. Then he studied at the University of Alabama. At West Virginia University, he then studied law. During the Second World War he served in the U.S. Navy in the South Pacific. After the war, Marland worked as a lawyer in Charleston. In 1948 he was appointed Deputy Minister of Justice of West Virginia. A year later he was Governor Okey L. Patteson Minister of Justice ( Attorney General ) his state. In 1952 he was elected as a candidate of the Democratic Party as the new governor of West Virginia.
Governor of West Virginia
Marlands four-year term began on January 19, 1953. Immediately after taking office, the governor wanted the taxes for some industries, especially the coal industry increase. This met with determined resistance from the affected industries and the State Parliament. As a result, the legislature blocked many of Marlands proposals. Regardless of the governor sat down for a race equality. He supported the desegregation of the schools and the civil rights movement. His proposals to improve labor laws and unemployment supply came also to resistance in parliament, in which the representatives of the industry had a majority. In these circles, Marland soon became very unpopular. This unpopularity spread to the whole country and was one of the reasons that in the next gubernatorial election, the Democratic Party for the first time since 1928, lost a gubernatorial election.
Further CV
After the end of his term Marland worked as a lawyer in Charleston. In 1956 he applied unsuccessfully for a seat in the U.S. Senate. He moved temporarily to Chicago. Some time later, Marland had a drinking problem, he got back into the handle. In the meantime, he made headlines when he worked as a taxi driver. In 1965, the former governor fell ill with cancer, the consequences of which he died in November of the same year. He was married to Valerie Allen, with whom he had three children.