Keen Johnson, Date of Birth, Place of Birth, Date of Death

    

Keen Johnson

45th Governor of Kentucky

Date of Birth: 12-Jan-1896

Place of Birth: Lyon County, Kentucky, United States

Date of Death: 07-Feb-1970

Profession: politician, editor, journalist

Nationality: United States

Zodiac Sign: Capricorn


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About Keen Johnson

  • Keen Johnson (January 12, 1896 – February 7, 1970) was the 45th Governor of Kentucky, serving from 1939 to 1943; being the only journalist to have held that office.
  • After serving in World War I, Johnson purchased and edited the Elizabethtown Mirror newspaper.
  • He revived the struggling paper, sold it to a competitor and used the profits to obtain his journalism degree from the University of Kentucky in 1922.
  • After graduation, he became editor of The Anderson News, and in 1925, he accepted an offer to co-publish and edit the Richmond Daily Register. In 1935, Johnson was chosen as the Democratic nominee for lieutenant governor.
  • He was elected and served under Governor A.
  • B.
  • "Happy" Chandler from 1935 to 1939.
  • He had already secured the Democratic gubernatorial nomination in 1939 when Chandler resigned and elevated Johnson to governor so that Johnson could appoint Chandler to the U.S.
  • Senate seat vacated by the death of M.
  • M.
  • Logan.
  • He went on to win a full gubernatorial term in the general election, defeating Republican King Swope.
  • Johnson's desire to expand the state's social services was hampered by the financial strain imposed on the state by the outbreak of World War II.
  • Nevertheless, he ran a fiscally conservative administration and took the state from being $7 million in debt to having a surplus of $10 million by the end of his term. Following his term as governor, Johnson joined Reynolds Metals as a special assistant to the president.
  • He continued his employment with Reynolds until 1961.
  • He took a year-long leave of absence in 1946 to accept President Harry S.
  • Truman's appointment as the first U.S.
  • Undersecretary of Labor, serving under Lewis B.
  • Schwellenbach.
  • He unsuccessfully ran for a seat in the U.S.
  • Senate in 1960, losing to incumbent Republican John Sherman Cooper.
  • He died February 7, 1970, and was buried in Richmond Cemetery in Richmond, Kentucky.

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