The collection consists of Executive Orders signed by Governors of Tennessee between 1971 and 1983. There are three governors represented in this collection: Lamar Alexander, Ray Blanton, and Winfield Dunn.
Click here for the Guide to the State of Tennessee executive orders, 1971-1983, mpa.181 / ms.1170. Collection location: row 11, box 22.
Lamar Alexander was born in Maryville, Tennessee in 1940. He was the Republican governor of Tennessee between 1979 to 1987. Alexander graduated from Vanderbilt University and later earned a law degree at New York University. He entered politics as a legislative aide to Senator Howard H. Baker, Jr. He later worked in the office of the White House congressional liaison and then as the campaign manager of Winfield Dunn’s campaign for governor in 1970.
Alexander lost his first campaign for the governor’s office in 1974 but won his second campaign in 1978. The 1978 campaign was memorable for Alexander’s walk across Tennessee clad in a red and black plaid shirt. Tennessee experienced economic development while Alexander served as Governor. He instituted programs to improve public and higher education. Alexander continued his interest in education following his tenure as governor, including his service as president of the University of
Tennessee and in his appointment in 1991 by President George H.W. Bush as Secretary of Education. Alexander was elected to the United States Senate in 2002.
Ray Blanton was born in Hardin County, Tennessee in 1930. He was elected to the United States Congress in 1966 and served three terms in this office. Blanton was the Democratic candidate for the United States Senater against Howard H. Baker, Jr. in 1972.
Blanton was elected Governor of Tennessee in 1974. He created the Department of Tourism. During his tenure as Governor, international investment in the State of Tennessee increased. Blanton updated the State’s retirement system. He emphasized programs promoting equality for women and Afican Americans.
Blanton’s tenure as Governor was marked by corruption including mail fraud, conspiracy, and extortion.
Winfield Dunn was born in Meridian, Mississippi in 1927. He is the son of United States Representative Albert C. Dunn and Dorothy Crum Dunn. Dunn earned a business administration degree with a Political Science minor from the University of Mississippi. He graduated from the dental school at the University of Tennessee in Memphis. He practiced dentistry in Memphis, Tennessee.
Dunn defeated John J. Hooker in the gubernatorial election of 1970. He was the governor of the State of Tennessee between 1971 and 1975. He was the first Republican in nearly fifty years to occupy that position. Though Dunn was involved in Republican Party politics since his undergraduate years, he had not held political office when he defeated Hooker.
As Governor Dunn was involved in the formation of a statewide kindergarten program, an acceleration of highway construction legislation, reorganization of the state government branches, and an attempt to bridge the partisan and regional divisions within the state. Following his departure from the governor’s office, Dunn became involved in charitable organizations, Tennessee higher education, and the medical field. He remained active in Republican politics.