Governor Martin Sennet Conner

MARTIN S. CONNER, the forty-fourth governor of Mississippi, was born in Hattiesburg, Mississippi on August 31, 1891. His education was attained at the University of Mississippi, where he graduated in 1910, and at Yale University, where he earned a law degree in 1913. After establishing his legal career in Seminary, Mississippi, Conner entered into politics. He served as a member of the Mississippi House of Representatives from 1916 to 1924, was speaker of the house from 1920 to 1924, and served as a delegate to the Democratic National Convention in 1920. After two unsuccessful gubernatorial bids in 1923 and 1927, Conner was elected governor by a popular vote on November 3, 1931. He was sworn into office on January 17, 1932. During his tenure, problems resulting from the Depression were dealt with; an emergency revenue act of 1932 was sanctioned; tourism was promoted; the states’ universities and colleges accreditation was restored; and a surplus in the state treasury was achieved. After completing his term, Conner left office on January 21, 1936. He made two unsuccessful bids to return to the governor’s office in 1939 and 1943. Conner was appointed the first commissioner of the Southeastern Conference in 1940, a position he held until his death. Governor Martin S. Conner passed away on September 16, 1950 and was buried in the Lakewood Memorial Park in Jackson, Mississippi.