Fan, Campaign - Governor Frank White
Object number2016.007.01
Date1982
Associated LocationArkansas, United States of America
MediumPaper, Ink
Dimensions13 × 7 1/2 in. (33 × 19.1 cm)
Credit LineOld State House Museum Collection
Terms
Frank Durward White was born on June 4, 1933 in Texarkana, Texas and served as Arkansas' forty-first governor from 1981-1983. After short stints at various universities, White accepted an appointment to the U.S. Naval Academy and graduated in 1956. After graduation, he was commisioned in the U.S. Air Force as a pilot. In 1961, he was discharged with the rank of captain and married Mary Blue Hollenberg. The couple later divorced in 1973 and he married Gay Daniels. Although the couple did not have any children, they gained custody of White's three children from his first marriage. His first foray into Arkansas politics was as a member of Governor David Pryor's cabinet. White was named director of the Arkansas Industrial Development Commission in 1975. In 1980, he filed as a Republican to run against Governor Bill Clinton, who was seeking a second term. Although Clinton was expected to win, things did not go according to plan. Clinton began to lose popularity due to several issues and White beat Clinton by a narrow margin. His tenure as governor was plagued with several pre-existing issues, but White was able to find enough funding to start a vocational-technical education division of the Deparment of Education and increase funding for the Department of Corrections. However, White only served one term as governor after he lost his re-election campaign to Clinton in 1982. White stayed active in the political arena and established himself as a popular toastmaster at events throughout the two decades after he retired from elective politics, raising millions of dollars for various charities. White passed away on May 21, 2003 of a heart attack and is buried at Mount Holly Cemetery in Little Rock, Arkansas.
Status
On view
