Governor Warren Everett Green

WARREN EVERETT GREEN was born in Jackson County, Wisconsin, moving with his family to Hamlin County, Dakota Territory at the age of eleven. In 1895 he began farming and raising stock near Hazel. He was prominent in his community, serving for some twelve years as president of his district’s school board. He was a member of the South Dakota Senate for several non-consecutive terms, and served on the State Board of Charities and Corrections from 1913 to 1919. Elected governor during the depth of the Great Depression, he emphasized economy while in office, reducing operating costs of state government, and he helped alleviate the effects of the economic slump-exacerbated by drought conditions-through organizing and directing the state’s relief agencies. Green was defeated for election to a second term during the 1932 Democratic landslide, eventually returning to farming. He also chaired the South Dakota delegation to the Republican National Convention in 1936.