This article is about the U.S. senator from Missouri. For the cricketer, see Stuart Symington (cricketer). For the diplomat, see W. Stuart Symington (diplomat).
Stuart Symington
United States Senator from Missouri
In office January 3, 1953 – December 27, 1976
Preceded by
James P. Kem
Succeeded by
John Danforth
1st United States Secretary of the Air Force
In office September 18, 1947 – April 24, 1950
President
Harry S. Truman
Preceded by
Position established
Succeeded by
Thomas K. Finletter
Personal details
Born
William Stuart Symington III
(1901-06-26)June 26, 1901 Amherst, Massachusetts, U.S.
Died
December 14, 1988(1988-12-14) (aged 87) New Canaan, Connecticut, U.S.
Political party
Democratic
Spouses
Evelyn Wadsworth
(m. 1924; died 1972)
Ann Hemingway Watson
(m. 1978)
Relatives
Symington family
Education
Baltimore City College Yale University (BA)
Military service
Allegiance
United States
Branch/service
United States Army
Years of service
1918–1919
Rank
Second Lieutenant
Unit
84th Division
Battles/wars
World War I
William Stuart Symington III (/ˈsaɪmɪŋtən/SY-ming-tən; June 26, 1901 – December 14, 1988) was an American businessman and Democratic politician from Missouri. He served as the first Secretary of the Air Force from 1947 to 1950 and was a United States Senator from Missouri from 1953 to 1976.
Born in Amherst, Massachusetts, Symington worked as an executive in his uncle's iron products company and for other companies before becoming president of Emerson Electric. He resigned from Emerson in 1945 to take various positions in the administration of President Harry S. Truman, becoming the first Secretary of the Air Force in 1947. He was elected to the Senate in 1952, defeating incumbent Republican Senator James P. Kem. He joined the Senate Armed Services Committee and the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, and emerged as a prominent critic of McCarthyism.
Symington sought the Democratic nomination in the 1960 presidential election with the backing of former President Truman, but the nomination went to John F. Kennedy. After the Kansas City Athletics moved to Oakland, Symington threatened to revoke Major League Baseball's antitrust exemption, which in turn encouraged the formation of the Kansas City Royals. Symington declined to seek re-election in 1976 and was succeeded by John Danforth.
William StuartSymington III (/ˈsaɪmɪŋtən/ SY-ming-tən; June 26, 1901 – December 14, 1988) was an American businessman and Democratic politician from Missouri...
Symington comes from a political family: his father, J. Fife Symington Jr., served as Ambassador to Trinidad and Tobago; his cousin StuartSymington was...
The Symington Amendment is legislation introduced by StuartSymington, a Democratic senator from Missouri, authored to strengthen the US position on nuclear...
the chief of space operations. The first secretary of the Air Force, StuartSymington, was sworn in on September 18, 1947, upon the split and re-organization...
together with dignitaries including Secretary of the Air Force W. StuartSymington, Air Force Chief of Staff General Hoyt S. Vandenberg, and Major General...
time, against Democratic incumbent StuartSymington. He lost in a close race. In 1976 Danforth ran to succeed Symington, who was retiring. He had little...
StuartSymington decided to retire, instead of seeking a fifth term. On the Democratic side, former Governor Warren Hearnes competed with Symington's...
Missouri Young Democrats and chair of the National Youth for StuartSymington during Symington's unsuccessful 1960 run for U.S. President. Litton served as...
Barbara Phipps Janney (1911-1987), daughter of Henry Carnegie Phipps StuartSymington Janney III (born 1948), great-grandson of Henry W. Phipps Jr., grandson...
Republican U.S. Representative Clark MacGregor. Incumbent Democrat StuartSymington was originally elected in 1952 over Republican James P. Kem with 54%...
Ewing Kauffman. The franchise was established following the actions of StuartSymington, then-U.S. Senator from Missouri, who demanded a new franchise for...
Adlai Stevenson 905.5 W. Averell Harriman 210 Lyndon B. Johnson 80 StuartSymington 45.5 Happy Chandler 36.5 James C. Davis 33 John S. Battle 32.5 George...
Massachusetts Senate Majority Leader Lyndon B. Johnson from Texas Senator StuartSymington from Missouri Senator Hubert Humphrey from Minnesota Senator Wayne...
Senator StuartSymington was re-elected to a fourth term in office over Republican John Danforth (who would eventually succeed the retiring Symington in 1976)...
Williams of Michigan Favorite sons received the support of Missouri (StuartSymington), Florida (George Smathers), New Jersey (Robert Meyner), Mississippi...
Republican challenger in the general election. Democratic incumbent StuartSymington was reelected to a third term in a landslide, defeating Republican...
nomination were Kennedy, Governor Pat Brown of California, Senator StuartSymington of Missouri, Senator Lyndon B. Johnson of Texas, former Illinois Governor...
the Under Secretary of War, became the Secretary of the Army; and StuartSymington, who had been the Assistant Secretary of War for Air, became the first...
more times, serving until his retirement in 1989. Incumbent Democrat StuartSymington was re-elected to a second term. Hazel Palmer was the first woman ever...
missile gap to exist. Hawkish members of Congress, such as Senator StuartSymington, continued to beat the drums about the alleged missile gap in an effort...
Global Information
Second Lieutenant