Lewis B. Schwellenbach

Lewis Baxter Schwellenbach (September 20, 1894 – June 10, 1948) was a United States Senator from Washington, a United States District Judge of the United States District Court for the Eastern District of Washington and the 5th United States Secretary of Labor.

Lewis B. Schwellenbach
5th United States Secretary of Labor
In office July 1, 1945 – June 10, 1948
President	Harry S. Truman
Preceded by	Frances Perkins
Succeeded by	Maurice J. Tobin
Judge of the United States District Court for the Eastern District of Washington
In office November 20, 1940 – June 30, 1945
Appointed by	Franklin D. Roosevelt
Preceded by	J. Stanley Webster
Succeeded by	Samuel Marion Driver
United States Senator from Washington
In office January 3, 1935 – December 16, 1940
Preceded by	Clarence Dill
Succeeded by	Monrad Wallgren
Personal details
Born	Lewis Baxter Schwellenbach September 20, 1894 Superior, Wisconsin
Died	June 10, 1948 (aged 53) Washington, D.C.
Resting place	Washelli Cemetery Seattle, Washington
Political party	Democratic
Education	University of Washington School of Law (LL.B.)

Education and career

Born on September 20, 1894, in Superior, Douglas County, Wisconsin, Schwellenbach moved to Spokane, Washington with his parents in 1902, attending the Spokane elementary and high schools. He received a Bachelor of Laws in 1917 from the University of Washington School of Law. He was an assistant instructor at the University of Washington from 1916 to 1917. He entered service during World War I as a Private in the 12th Infantry Regiment of the United States Army in 1918 until his discharge as a Corporal in 1919. He was admitted to the bar and entered private practice in Seattle, Washington from 1919 to 1935. He was an unsuccessful candidate for nomination for Governor of Washington in 1932.[1][2]

Congressional service

Schwellenbach was elected as a Democrat to the United States Senate and served from January 3, 1935, to December 16, 1940, when he resigned. He was not a candidate for renomination in 1940, having been appointed to the federal bench. He was a delegate to the Inter-Parliamentary Union at The Hague, Netherlands in 1938.[1]

Federal judicial service

Schwellenbach was nominated by President Franklin D. Roosevelt on May 6, 1940, to a seat on the United States District Court for the Eastern District of Washington vacated by Judge J. Stanley Webster. He was confirmed by the United States Senate on May 6, 1940, and received his commission on November 20, 1940. His service terminated on June 30, 1945, due to his resignation to become Secretary of Labor.[2]

Secretary of Labor

The official portrait of Lewis B. Schwellenbach hangs in the Department of Labor

Schwellenbach (2nd from left) at a meeting of the Truman cabinet, (August 1945).

Schwellenbach was appointed United States Secretary of Labor by President Harry S. Truman and served from July 1, 1945, until his death in Walter Reed Army Medical Center in Washington, D.C. on June 10, 1948.[1][2][3] He was interred in Washelli Cemetery in Seattle.[1]

Events of Schwellenbach's tenure as Secretary

During Schwellenbach's tenure as Secretary, fear of post war unemployment brought the United States Congress to pass the Employment Act of 1946, which made promotion of maximum employment the Nation's top priority. Schwellenbach promoted abolition of war time wage and price controls. He had to deal with a post war wave of strikes. The Republican 80th United States Congress passed the Taft–Hartley Act. Staff cuts were made at the United States Department of Labor. The Conciliation Service was removed from the Department of Labor and established as the independent Federal Mediation and Conciliation Service (FMCS). During his term, the Department's international work was institutionalized; the Office of International Labor Affairs (now the Bureau of International Labor Affairs) was established as a unit in the Office of the Secretary.[3]

Personal life

Schwellenbach's brother, Edgar W. Schwellenbach, served as a Justice of the Washington Supreme Court.[4]

References

1. United States Congress. "Lewis B. Schwellenbach (id: S000160)". Biographical Directory of the United States Congress.
2. "Schwellenbach, Lewis Baxter - Federal Judicial Center". www.fjc.gov.
3. "Hall of Secretaries: Lewis B. Schwellenbach - U.S. Department of Labor". www.dol.gov.
4. "State Supreme Court Justice Schwellenbach Dies Sunday At 70", Port Angeles Evening News (September 23, 1957), p. 6.

Sources

• Time, October 15, 1945 (A likeness of Schwellenbach was on the cover)
• Truman, David McCullough ISBN 0-671-45654-7
• Department of Labor archives

External links

• United States Congress. "Lewis B. Schwellenbach (id: S000160)". Biographical Directory of the United States Congress.
• "Hall of Secretaries: Lewis B. Schwellenbach - U.S. Department of Labor". www.dol.gov.
• Lewis B. Schwellenbach at Find a Grave