Governor Burton Melvin Cross

BURTON M. CROSS, the sixty-first governor of Maine, was born in Gardiner, Maine on November 15, 1902. His education was attained in the public schools of his native state. Cross entered politics in 1933, serving as a member of the Augusta Common Council, a position he held four years. He also served on the Board of Aldermen in 1937, was a member of the Maine House of Representatives from 1941 to 1945, and served as a member of the Maine State Senate from 1945 to 1952, serving as senate president in 1949. Cross won the 1952 Republican gubernatorial nomination, and then went on to win the general election by a popular vote. During his tenure, the Maine statutes were revised, the highway commissionship was changed to a seven year term and a full time position, and the state finance office was reorganized to work closer with the governor’s office. Also, a hospital care program for the indigent was improved, the liquor commission was restructured, and a liquor deal controversy that implicated the governor was resolved. After running unsuccessfully for reelection, Cross retired from political life. He stayed active, working in the insurance and stock brokerage industry. Governor Burton M. Cross passed away on October 22, 1998, and was buried at the Forest Grove Cemetery in Augustus, Maine.