This week’s Vice-President is: Alben Barkley!
Born: November 24, 1877
Died: April 30, 1956
Vice-President #: 35
Under: Harry Truman
Dates: January 20, 1949 – January 20, 1953
Party: Democratic
Fun Facts: Barkley, a Kentuckian, was 71 when he became Vice-President, the oldest to date. He also is the only Vice-President to ever marry while in office. Yep, at age 71, he married a widow (Jane Hadley) who was 38, which caused quite a stir. He was also the last VP born in a log cabin.
According to the Truman Library website: “Because of his legislative experience, Truman insisted on his inclusion in all cabinet-level meetings and on the National Security Council, which made him the first working Vice-President in United States History.”
His 10-year old grandson once called him “Veep” which is when the term was coined. He died of a heart-attack while giving a speech at a “mock convention” at Washington and Lee University in Virginia. Reportedly, he had just said: “I would rather be a servant in the House of the Lord than to sit in the seats of the mighty” before keeling over.
