Governor Clifford Joy Rogers

Born in Clarion, Iowa, CLIFFORD JOY ROGERS was orphaned at the age of seven and raised by his uncle, a professor at the University of Iowa. After attending the University of Iowa, he enlisted in the Army, serving on the Mexican border and in Europe during World War I. He then settled in Gillette, Wyoming, where he was a high school football coach. He also lived briefly in Sheridan before moving to Cheyenne in 1928. There, he was secretary to Governor Alonzo M. Clark from 1931 to 1933 and served as Deputy Secretary of State from 1933 to 1935. He was elected State Treasurer, a position that he held from 1947 to 1951, and served as Secretary of State from 1951 to 1953. As Secretary of State, he assumed the governorship upon the resignation of Frank Barrett. During Rogers’ term as governor, Wyoming’s state motto—“Equal Rights”—was adopted. He was defeated in the 1954 Republican gubernatorial primary, but was elected Wyoming State Treasurer in 1959, a position that he held until his death.