Gaylord Anton Nelson (1916-2005), Wisconsin Governor, United States Senator, and founder of
Earth Day, was born and raised in Clear Lake, Polk County, Wisconsin. He graduated from
Clear Lake High School (1934), received a B.A. from San Jose State College (1939) and an
LL.B. from the University of Wisconsin at Madison (1942). After college, Nelson enlisted in
the United States Army and served until 1946 when he was honorably discharged with the rank
of first lieutenant. In 1946, he returned to Madison to practice law and suffered his first
political defeat when he ran for the State Assembly on the Progressive Republican
ticket.
The following November, he married Carrie Lee Dotson from Virginia; they subsequently
became the parents of three children: Gaylord Junior (born 1953), Cynthia (born 1956), and
Jeffrey (born 1961).
In 1948, Nelson ran again for the state legislature, this time successfully, on the
Democratic ticket. He was re-elected to the State Senate in 1952 and 1956. In 1954, Nelson
made his first bid for Congress, but was defeated by incumbent Glenn Davis. In 1959, Nelson
became the first Democratic governor elected in more than 25 years.
In 1962, Nelson ran for the United States Senate against Republican incumbent Alexander
Wiley whom he defeated. Nelson served eighteen years in the Senate (1963-1981) and
“earned the reputation of a staunch environmentalist, champion of the family farm and
small business, supporter of labor, tax reformer, friend of the elderly and poor, and
consumer and health advocate.” (Biographical material: Box 1, Folders 3-4)
Nelson, best known for pioneering the environmental movement by conceiving and organizing
Earth Day, also contributed to the public and political awareness of other significant
societal problems. He was one of only three senators opposed to the war in Vietnam from the
beginning; he strongly advocated for civil rights and the desegregation of schools; he
fought to preserve America's natural resources and to end pollution of its water and air; he
worked to combat poverty on several levels; he urged the tire and automobile industry to
adopt new safety standards; and he exposed the problems and abuses of the pharmaceutical
industry. It was said that Nelson was the conscience of the Senate, and he was well known
for his bipartisan leadership.
During his tenure, Nelson was responsible for legislation which established the Apostle
Islands National Lakeshore; preserved the Appalachian Trail; incorporated the St. Croix,
Namekagon, and Wolf Rivers into the National Wild and Scenic Rivers System; contributed to
the development of the Environmental Education Act; and aided in the passage of the
Menominee Restoration Act and the establishment of the Upper Great Lakes Regional
Commission. Nelson also developed several programs which were approved by Congress,
including the National Teacher Corps, Operation Mainstream, Green Thumb (Nelson Amendment),
the Job Corps, and Youth Corps.
Nelson served on several committees and subcommittees, most notably the Interior and
Insular Affairs Committee; the Labor and Public Welfare Committee (and as chairman of its
Employment, Poverty, and Manpower Subcommittee); and the Finance Committee (and as chairman
of its Private Pensions Subcommittee). He was a member and the chairman of the Select Small
Business Committee, chairman of its Monopoly Subcommittee, and a member of its Government
Regulations Subcommittee. Nelson also served on the Select Committee on Nutrition and Human
Needs and the Select Committee on Official Conduct.
Over time, Nelson became nationally recognized for his conservationism and was awarded the
Ansel Adams Conservation Award, the Presidential Medal of Freedom, and the United Nations
Only One World Award. In 2002, the Institute for Environmental Studies at the University of
Wisconsin-Madison was named the Gaylord Nelson Institute for Environmental Studies in his
honor. He also received honorary law degrees from Northland College, Beloit College,
Lawrence University, Ripon College, and San Jose State College.
After leaving the Senate in 1981, Nelson was appointed Counselor of the Wilderness Society
and devoted the rest of his life to environmental stewardship. Nelson continued to
participate in annual Earth Day celebrations, touring the country and giving speeches while
advocating for the protection of America's natural resources. Additionally, he lectured on
population control and environmental sustainability.
Nelson died from cardiovascular failure at his Maryland home on July 3, 2005.
Gaylord Nelson Chronology
June 4, 1916 |
Born in Clear Lake, Polk County, Wisconsin to Anton Nels Nelson and Mary Bradt
Nelson
|
1934 |
Graduated from Clear Lake High School
|
1939 |
Graduated from San Jose State College, California
|
1942 |
Graduated from University of Wisconsin Law School; enlisted in the United States
Army
|
1946 |
Discharged from the United States Army; returned to Madison, Wisconsin to practice
law; ran unsuccessfully for the State Assembly as a Republican
|
November 1947 |
Married Carrie Lee Dotson; children: Gaylord Jr. (born 1953), Cynthia (1956),
Jeffrey (1961)
|
1948 |
Elected Wisconsin State Senator as a Democrat; re-elected 1952 and 1956
|
1954 |
Ran unsuccessfully for Congress against Glenn Davis
|
1958 |
Elected Governor of Wisconsin, the first Democrat to be elected governor in more
than 25 years; re-elected 1960
|
1961 |
Governor Nelson's Outdoor Recreation Act Program (ORAP) is enacted to provide
funding for conservation efforts throughout Wisconsin
|
1962 |
Elected United States Senator; re-elected 1968 and 1974
|
1963 |
Appointed to Interior and Insular Affairs Committee (until 1970); President John F.
Kennedy's conservation tour in Wisconsin with Senator Nelson
|
1964 |
Nelson's Job Corps Program begins; Ice Age National Scientific Reserve bill enacted
into public law
|
1965 |
Nelson introduced legislation to ban DDT; appointed to the Labor and Public Welfare
Committee (until 1978); was one three Senators to oppose supplemental military
appropriations for a land war in Vietnam
|
1966 |
Nelson's National Teacher Corps established
|
1967 |
Appointed to the Select Small Business Committee (until 1981); appointed chairman
of the Monopoly Subcommittee of the Select Small Business Committee; began
investigations of the pharmaceutical industry as chairman
|
1968 |
Nelson's legislation passed to include the St. Croix, Namekagon, and Wolf Rivers in
the Wild and Scenic Rivers Act; the National Scenic Trails Act passed, preserving the
Appalachian Trail
|
1969 |
Appointed Chairman of the Employment, Poverty, and Manpower Subcommittee of the
Labor and Public Welfare Committee (until 1976)
|
April 22, 1970 |
First national Earth Day Teach-In held; Congress approved the Environmental
Education Act; Apostle Islands became a national park after nine years of effort by
Nelson
|
1971 |
Appointed to the Finance Committee (until 1980)
|
1972 |
Attended the United Nations and the Human Environment Conference in
Stockholm
|
1973 |
Menominee Indian Restoration Act signed
|
1974 |
Nelson amendment to the Elementary and Secondary Education Act approved
|
1975 |
Appointed chairman of the Select Small Business Committee (until 1980)
|
1977 |
Appointed to the Special Committee on Official Conduct
|
1980 |
Defeated for re-election by Robert Kasten (R-Wisconsin)
|
1981 |
Appointed Counselor to the Wilderness Society
|
1990 |
Received Ansel Adams Conservation Award
|
1995 |
Awarded the Presidential Medal of Freedom
|
2002 |
Institute for Environmental Studies at University of Wisconsin-Madison renamed the
Gaylord Nelson Institute for Environmental Studies
|
2004 |
Part of the Apostle Islands National Lakeshore is designated the Gaylord Nelson
Wilderness
|
July 3, 2005 |
Died at the age of 89 at his Maryland home
|