Governor Smylie remembers

by Robert E. Smylie

Robert E. Smylie was born in Marcus, Iowa, in 1914 and first came to Idaho as a student at what was then the College of Idaho in Caldwell. Subsequently he worked his way through law school at George Washington University in Washington, D.C., served in the Coast Guard during World War II, married, and came back to Idaho in 1947 first as Assistant Attorney General and then Attorney General. In 1954 Robert E. Smylie decided to run for governor, was elected, and served in that office until 1967. During his three terms in office, Governor Smylie could count among his many achievements an increase in the minimum wage, a five-day work week for state employees, creation of the Department of Commerce, a massive state highway construction program, promotion of the interests of business, land, and water within Idaho, serving as chair of the Western Governor's Association, the establishment of the state park system, and the introduction of a state sales tax to fund education.