John E. Weeks

John Eliakim Weeks (June 14, 1853 – September 10, 1949) was an American politician from Vermont. He served as the 61st Governor of Vermont from 1927 to 1931.

John Eliakim Weeks
Member of the U.S. House of Representatives from Vermont's 1st district
In office March 4, 1931 – March 3, 1933
Preceded by	Elbert S. Brigham
Succeeded by	Constituency abolished
61st Governor of Vermont
In office January 6, 1927 – January 8, 1931
Lieutenant	Hollister Jackson Stanley C. Wilson
Preceded by	Franklin S. Billings
Succeeded by	Stanley C. Wilson
Vermont Commissioner of Public Welfare
In office 1923-1926
Preceded by	New position
Succeeded by	William H. Dyer
Vermont Director of State Institutions
In office 1917-1923
Preceded by	New position
Succeeded by	Position eliminated (Consolidated with Commissioner of Public Welfare)
Speaker of the Vermont House of Representatives
In office 1915-1917
Preceded by	Charles Albert Plumley
Succeeded by	Stanley C. Wilson
Member of the Vermont House of Representatives
In office 1888 1912 1915-1917
Member of the Vermont Senate
In office 1896
Assistant Judge of Addison County, Vermont
In office 1884-1886 1902-1904
Personal details
Born	John Eliakim Weeks June 14, 1853 Salisbury, Vermont
Died	September 10, 1949 (aged 96) Middlebury, Vermont
Political party	Republican
Spouse(s)	Hattie J. Dyer
Profession	Banker Businessman Politician

Early life

Weeks was born in Salisbury, Vermont on June 14, 1853, the son of Ebenezer Weeks and Elizabeth (Dyer) Weeks. He attended the county schools and Middlebury High School. He married Hattie J. Dyer of Salisbury in 1879.[1] She died in 1942, and they had no children.

Career

Weeks as depicted in 1894's Men of Vermont Illustrated.

Weeks operated a farm and operated several other businesses, including growing and selling hay, raising and selling livestock, selling insurance, and appraising and settling estates. He became president of the Addison County Trust Company and the Columbus Smith Trust Company, and served on the board of directors for both the Brandon National Bank and the National Bank of Middlebury.

A Republican, Weeks served as Addison County Assistant Judge from 1884 to 1886. He was a member of the Vermont House of Representatives in 1888. He moved to Middlebury, Vermont in 1896 and that year was also elected to the Vermont State Senate. In 1896 he was also elected trustee of the state industrial school (later named the Weeks School).[2] He served as Assistant Judge again from 1902 to 1904. He returned to the Vermont House in 1912, and was Speaker from 1915 to 1917. Weeks became Director of State Institutions in 1917 and served until 1923.[3] Weeks was Vermont's Commissioner of Public Welfare from 1923 to 1926.

Weeks was elected Governor in 1926. In 1928 he became the first Vermont Governor elected to a second two-year term, arguing that he should be given an exemption from the Republican Party's Mountain Rule in order to oversee efforts to recover from the great flood of 1927. Weeks served from January 6, 1927 to January 8, 1931. In addition to flood recovery efforts, the Weeks administration was marked by an average of forty-nine miles of road annually being paved on a pay-as-you-go basis.[4]

In 1930, Weeks was elected to the United States House of Representatives from Vermont's 1st District. This district was scheduled to be eliminated due to redistricting, and incumbent Republican Elbert S. Brigham was not running for reelection. Weeks argued that serving one term and then retiring would be a fitting capstone to his career, and would ensure that two incumbent Republicans did not have to run against each other in a 1932 primary for Vermont's sole U.S. House seat. Weeks won the seat and served one term, 1931 to 1933.[5] After serving in Congress, Weeks returned to his Middlebury business interests.

Death

Weeks died in Middlebury on September 10, 1949. At 96 years and 88 days, he remains the longest lived of all Vermont governors.

He is interred at West Salisbury Cemetery, Salisbury, Vermont.[6]

References

1. John E. Weeks. Encyclopedia, Vermont Biography. 1912. p. 371. Retrieved November 16, 2012. John E. Weeks vermont biography.
2. "John E. Weeks". Biographical Directory of the United States Congress. Retrieved November 16, 2012.
3. "John E.Weeks". The Political Graveyard. Retrieved November 16, 2012.
4. "John E. Weeks". National Governors Association. Retrieved November 16, 2012.
5. "John E. Weeks". Govtrack US Congress. Retrieved November 16, 2012.
6. "West Salisbury Cemetery, Salisbury". Vermont Old Cemetery Association. Retrieved November 16, 2017.

External links

• The Political Graveyard

• United States Congress. "John E. Weeks (id: W000244)". Biographical Directory of the United States Congress.
• National Governors Association
• Encyclopedia, Vermont Biography
• John E. Weeks at Find a Grave
• Govtrack US Congress