Heber Manning Wells
(1859-1938)
Oil on canvas, 50 x 32”
John Willard “Will” Clawson

Heber Manning Wells was the state’s first Governor, as well as it’s youngest, taking office when he was 36 years old.  Wells was elected in November 1895 and Utah became a state on January 4, 1896.  Governor Wells tackled the job of organizing state courts and offices for the new state.  He signed into law many bills, including Alice Merrill Horne’s bill creating the State Institute of Art (currently the Utah State Arts Council) – the first state sponsored arts organization in the country. 

Wells served two terms as Utah’s governor and spent the rest of his career in various public offices, including managing the Utah Savings and Trust Company for a few years, serving on the Salt Lake City Commission, and as assistant treasurer and treasurer of the U.S. Shipping Board Fleet Corporation.  During his retirement he wrote editorials for the Deseret News.   

Artist:
John Willard Clawson trained with George Ottinger in Utah and later with impressionist masters in Europe, including Claude Monet.  The influences of impressionism are evident in Clawson’s works. He uses warm, bright colors and thickly applied paint to portray his subjects.  He was a well known portrait painter and painted celebrities and well known members of Utah society including his grandfather Brigham Young.  Clawson painted the portraits of three other Utah Governors –Cutler, Bamberger, and Dern.

John C. Cutler
(1846-1928)
Oil on canvas, 46 x 32”
John Willard “Will” Clawson

John Christopher Cutler was born in Sheffield, England and immigrated to Utah in 1864 at the age of twelve.  He became a businessman in Utah and worked for many local companies and banks.  Cutler secured the GOP nomination for governor and won the 1904 election with the support of the “Federal Bunch” –a group of Republicans who had received federal appointments through Senator Reed Smoot and who were a powerful political force in the state.  In his inaugural address as the state’s second governor Cutler promised to make no great changes in state government and promised that successful policies would be continued. 

Cutler’s contributions to the state included establishing a juvenile court system and creating a board to manage state parks.  In 1907 Cutler proposed that the Legislature fund the building of a State Capitol on Arsenal Hill.  The bill was not approved.  The Legislature also denied Cutler’s request for an institution to care for handicapped individuals.  Cutler lost favor with the Federal Bunch, withdrew from the 1908 election for governor, and threw his support behind William Spry.   

Artist: 
A nationally known portrait painter, John Willard Clawson studied locally with George Ottinger and in Europe with impressionist masters including Claude Monet.  Will Clawson painted many society figures of his day, including a portrait of his grandfather Brigham Young, and three other Utah Governors –Wells, Bamberger and Dern.

William Spry
(1864-1929)
Oil on canvas, 58 x 137”
Lee Greene Richards

William Spry was born in England and came to Utah in 1875.  Spry lived in Tooele County and worked at a variety of jobs until he found his place in politics.  He served as the tax collector for Tooele County and in the Utah House of Representatives.  An important member of Senator Reed Smoot’s “Federal Bunch”, Spry secured the nomination for governor on the Republican ticket and was elected in 1908. 

Spry emphasized to the Legislature the need for a State Capitol.  At first denied, the project was able to go forward with a donation in 1911 from the estate of multimillionaire Edward H. Harriman.  Spry appointed a Capitol Commission to oversee the project and the Capitol was officially dedicated on October 9, 1916.

Spry’s second term was marked by controversy.  Swedish immigrant Joe Hill was convicted of murdering two Salt Lake City men and, despite circumstantial evidence of his innocence, Hill was sentenced to death.  Spry received appeals from all over the world, including a plea from U.S. President Woodrow Wilson, to give Hill a new trial.  He refused – a stance which resulted in the Spry family receiving numerous death threats.  Spry ran for a third term in 1916 but lost the Republican nomination.  

Artist:
Lee Greene Richards was a well-known Utah artist who studied with J.T. Harwood and trained in France.  His artwork can be seen throughout the Utah State Capitol – a mural in the rotunda depicting 18th and 19th century Utah history, as well as his portraits of Utah Governors Mabey, Maw, and Spry.  Richards’ murals can also be found on the ceilings of several temples of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints.

Simon Bamberger
(1846-1926)
Oil on canvas, 46 x 32
John Willard “Will” Clawson

In 1916 Utah voters elected Democrat Simon Bamberger.  Bamberger was born in Germany and immigrated to the United States at the beginning of the Civil War.  He was involved in the mining and railroad industries as an investor and entrepreneur.  Bamberger opened an amusement park he called Lagoon in 1896 as a resort stop on his railway between Salt Lake City and Ogden. 

Bamberger’s career in public service included a seat on the Salt Lake City Board of Education and in the Utah State Senate for ten years.  Bamberger had a reputation as a philanthropist who bought flour and coal for the needy and offered free days at Lagoon for disadvantaged groups.  He was an accomplished diplomat who had a wide circle of friends from every religious denomination throughout the state.  They supported him when he announced his intention to run for Governor in 1916. 

Bamberger ran on a very progressive ticket, taking a firm stand supporting Prohibition.  In his message to the Legislature in 1917, Bamberger urged strict management of the economy and more efficient government.  By the time he left office three years later (declining to run for a second term) the state’s budget deficit had been eliminated. 

Artist:
John Willard Clawson was a nationally known portrait painter.  He studied locally with George Ottinger and in Europe with Impressionist masters including Claude Monet.  Will Clawson painted many society figures of his day, including a portrait of his grandfather Brigham Young and three other Utah Governors –Heber Wells, John Cutler and George Dern.

Charles Rendell Mabey
(1877-1959)
Oil on canvas, 48 x 39”
Lee Greene Richards

Charles Mabey was born in Bountiful Utah in 1877.  He attended the University of Utah and worked for ten years as a teacher and administrator.  Mabey served in the Utah National Guard during the Spanish-American War and WWI and received a citation for gallantry.   

Mabey began his political career as a justice of the peace and following that as a city councilman and mayor of Bountiful.  He also served two terms in the Utah State Legislature. 

In the gubernatorial race of 1920 Mabey campaigned vigorously, promising development of the state’s resources and economy in state administration.  As governor he quickly began his plan to streamline state administration (which was very successful, the administration costs fell nearly $170,000 in one fiscal year).  Much of his work is still in place today.  Upgrading the quality of public education was important to Governor Mabey.  Under his encouragement, the Legislature increased education funding to the entire state.  The state saw the construction of nearly 500 miles of new roads during Mabey’s term in office.  He left office with many lasting achievements. 

Artist:  
Lee Greene Richards was a highly successful Utah painter whose work was known internationally.  He trained with J.T. Harwood and in France where in 1904, he topped the French Salon list for honorable mention, becoming the first Utah artist to receive such a distinction.  Richards’ work can be seen elsewhere in the Capitol, including the murals in the rotunda and portraits of other Utah Governors Spry and Maw. 

George Henry Dern
(1872-1936)
Oil on canvas, 46 x 32”
John Willard “Will” Clawson

George Henry Dern was born in Nebraska in 1872 and came to Utah at age 22.  He worked for the Mercur Gold Mine and other local mining companies.  He was elected to the State Senate in 1914.  Despite being a non-Mormon and a Democrat, Dern was successful in Utah politics.  His election in 1924 as Utah’s sixth governor came in a year when he was the only Democrat elected to a statewide office. 

Governor Dern was a progressive politician and his accomplishments include a revision of tax laws that favored middle and lower income groups.  He also secured federal funds for road construction and other programs.  He declined to run for a third term in 1932 and promoted Henry Blood as his successor. 

Dern became the first Utahn to hold a position in a Presidential cabinet when President Franklin D. Roosevelt named him Secretary of War (despite Dern’s lack of military experience).  His accomplishments included enlarging and motorizing the nation’s military in its preparation for WWII, and at the federal level creating the Civil Conservation Corps.

Artist:
A nationally known portrait painter, John Willard Clawson studied locally with George Ottinger and in Europe with painters Claude Monet and Eduard Manet.  Will Clawson painted celebrities, prominent society figures, and leaders of LDS church including his grandfather, Brigham Young.  Three other Utah Governors had their portraits painted by Clawson – Wells, Cutler and Bamberger.

Henry Hooper Blood
(1872-1942)
Oil on canvas, 46 x 32”
Gordon Nicholson Cope

Henry Hooper Blood was born in Kaysville, Utah in 1872.  He worked at a variety of occupations, including manager of Kaysville Milling Co. before entering public service in 1893 as the city recorder of Kaysville.  Blood became the chairman of the State Highway Commission, a position which gave him good experience and introduced him to local officials all over the state, connections which helped him in his bid for governor. 

Blood served two terms as governor during the lowest point of the Great Depression, from 1933 to 1941, when Utah’s unemployment rate was as high as 36 percent (fourth highest in the nation).  Blood’s approach to the state’s problems was to drastically cut state expenditures and obtain federal relief dollars through New Deal programs.  He was particularly successful in securing funds for Civil Conservation Corps and Works Progress Administration projects including the murals in the Capitol rotunda.  He also worked hard for the construction of dams throughout the state which provided jobs and improved area water capacity.  In 1933 he supported the repeal of Prohibition –Utah became the final state necessary for ratifying the 21st Amendment –despite his personal opposition to alcohol.  He was the first governor to live in the Thomas Kearns mansion, which today still serves as the official governor’s residence.   

Artist:
Gordon Cope spent much of his career in Utah, training with A.B. Wright and LeConte Stewart before going to Europe to study.  He was the head of the art department at LDS University and a teacher for the Work Progress Administration.  A gifted painter of both portraits and landscapes, Cope also worked on completing the murals in the Capitol’s rotunda.

Herbert Brown Maw
(1893-1990)
Oil on canvas, 59 x 37”
Lee Greene Richards

Herbert Brown Maw was born in Ogden, Utah in 1893.  He attended the University of Utah and during WWI he served as an LDS chaplain.  Following the war, he taught political science and speech.  He served as Dean of Men at the University of Utah from 1928 to 1936. 

In 1928 Maw was elected to the State Senate and served there for ten years, four as the senate president.  He was elected governor in 1940 and quickly reorganized the executive branch creating fewer departments, receiving bipartisan support from the Legislature.  With WWII on the horizon, Maw worked hard to attract military instillations and industries to Utah.  Utah’s geographic place in the country made it an ideal location for many wartime facilities that created thousands of jobs and energized Utah’s economy.  Maw served his second term as governor during the transition period from war to peacetime economy.  He supported housing and education legislation to help veterans return to civilian life.  He was particularly dedicated to improving highway systems so that Utah’s scenic attractions would be more accessible.  After losing his bid for a third term, Maw retired to private law practice and maintained office hours well into his nineties, handling many pro bono cases for the poor.   

Artist:
Lee Greene Richards’s work was known internationally.  In 1904, he headed the French Salon list for honorable mention, becoming the first Utah artist to receive such a distinction.  His work can be seen throughout the Utah State Capitol building on murals in the rotunda and Senate chamber, as well as his portraits of Utah Governors Spry, and  Mabey.

Joseph Bracken Lee
(1899-1996)
Oil on canvas, 44 x 34”
C.J. Fox

Joseph Bracken Lee was born in Price, Utah in 1899.  He began his political career as the Mayor of Price, an office he held for 12 years.  He made several unsuccessful bids for Congress and governor, and was elected as governor in 1948. 

Lee gained national attention for his battle against federal income tax and for his ideas regarding reform in state government.  He made deep cuts in many state agency budgets despite Utah’s $9 million budget surplus.  He reorganized the welfare, highway, and education departments, and created a state motor pool.  A controversial governor, Lee had a low opinion of teachers and school administrators, a point of view he often vocally stated and which eventually united the entire educational establishment against him in subsequent elections.  Despite having political enemies, Lee’s popularity as governor remained intact enough for him to win a second term. 

After losing a bid for a third term, running on the Independent ticket, Lee continued to run for other public offices including Senate, Governor, and Mayor.  In 1959 he became the mayor of Salt Lake City and served 12 years in that office.  When he retired at age 73, Lee had served an impressive 32 years in elective office for the state of Utah. 

Artist:  
C.J. Fox is a mystery to the Capitol Preservation Board.  No records remain as to when Governor Lee’s portrait was painted or even what Fox’s first name was.

George Dewey Clyde
(1898-1972)
Oil on canvas, 48 x 36”
Everett “Ev” Clark Thorpe

George Dewey Clyde was born in 1898 in Springville, Utah.  He earned a Master’s degree in engineering and taught at what is now Utah State University, teaching classes focused on hydraulics, irrigation methods and fluid mechanics.  He was a successful researcher and published nearly 50 articles in engineering journals.  Governor Blood appointed Clyde as the State Water Conservator in 1934, at the height of Utah’s worst drought. 

Important issues on Clyde’s political platform when he was elected in 1957 included strict economy in government and strong advocacy of states’ water rights against the federal government.  Canyonlands National Park was created in 1964 during Clyde’s term in office.  He oversaw the construction of a multimillion-dollar interstate highway system and the building of the University of Utah’s medical school.  He defended minority rights by opposing a “Sunday closing” bill, arguing that not all religions viewed Sunday as a Sabbath.  He remained unfailingly dedicated to water projects in Utah during his years as governor. 

Artist:
Ev Thorpe began his figurative art career as a sports artist for local Utah newspapers.   He studied under LeConte Stewart in Utah and at the Los Angeles County Art Institute and at the Hans Hofmann School of Art in Massachusetts.  His work ranged from illustration to portraiture to mural projects.  His career spanned over forty years.  Thorpe painted Governor Clyde in his professional environment standing in Utah’s arid southwest desert with plans for the Glen Canyon dam in hand. 

Calvin L. Rampton
(1913-2007)
Oil on canvas, 60 x 36”
Alvin Gittins

Born in 1913, Calvin Lewellyn Rampton was Utah’s third Governor from Davis County.  He attended the University of Utah and served in the Utah National Guard during WWII in Europe where he was awarded the Bronze Star.  Rampton’s early career was spent as an attorney for Davis County and the State of Utah.  A lifelong Democrat, he ran unsuccessfully for the United States Senate in 1954 and 1962.  Although discouraged by these losses, he accepted his party’s nomination for governor and won that office in 1964. 

Rampton asked the 1965 Legislature for increased spending for education, passage of three civil rights bills, and the right to use federal funds for urban renewal –and the Legislature responded favorably to a majority of his requests.  The 1967 Legislature okayed  $117 million for higher education. 

Rampton easily won re-election in 1968 and 1972 making him Utah’s first and only governor to serve three full terms.  As Governor Rampton worked with business leaders and championed industrial development, tourism, development of energy resources, and expansion of the defense industry in Utah. During his third term he recommended ratification of the Equal Rights’ Amendment to the U.S. Constitution.  He also supported state building projects including Salt Lake City’s Symphony Hall, the Salt Lake Arts Center and numerous public school projects. 

“Cal” Rampton remained a popular governor throughout his three terms in office.  The Calvin L. Rampton Complex which houses the Utah Department of Transport and the Utah Department of Public Safety is named after him.  The Governors Board Room in the renovated Utah State Capitol was posthumously named for him after his death in 2007.   

Artist:
Alvin L. Gittins was an Englishman by birth. He came to the United States as an exchange student and taught at the University of Utah beginning in 1947.  Gittins became Utah’s most dominant portrait painter and was noted for his ability to capture his subject’s personality and likeness, as well as his masterly, traditional style.  His portraits of University of Utah figures hang in nearly every building on campus.  Gittins is remembered as one of Utah’s finest painters. 

Scott M. Matheson
(1929-1990)
Oil on canvas, 55 X 37”
Alvin Gittins
1922-1981

Scott Milne Matheson was born in Chicago, Illinois in 1929, but spent his summers working in Parowan, Utah his parents hometown.  He attended East High School and the University of Utah before graduating from Stanford University Law School in 1952.  Matheson practiced law in Cedar City and worked for the legal department of the Union Pacific Railroad. 

An active member of the Democrat party, Matheson ran for governor in 1976.  At his inauguration, Matheson declined the traditional military cannon salute.  His inaugural address emphasized the need to use Utah’s resources wisely and to protect the environment. 

Matheson faced many challenges when he took office: inflation during the 1970s, drought, population growth, spiraling Medicaid costs, and fast-growing enrollment in schools.  Matheson successfully protested the location of an MX missile system in Utah and the transfer of nerve gas bombs to the state.  Environmental issues were important to Matheson and he opposed nuclear waste dumps in Utah.  Three thousand acres of the deep Creek Mountains is named Scott’s Basin in honor of Matheson’s conservation efforts.  Matheson had the foresight to see that computer technology would play an important role in the future and requested funds for the state to own and manage its own data processing system.

Artist:
Alvin L. Gittins was a professor and Chair of the Art Department at the University of Utah.  His portraits of University figures hang in nearly every building on campus.  Gittins was Utah’s most dominant portrait painter and was noted for his ability to capture his subject’s personality as well as likeness and for his masterly traditional style.  He is remembered as one of Utah’s finest painters.

Norman Bangerter
(b. 1933)
Oil on canvas, 58 X 38”
Keith Eddington

Norman Howard Bangerter was born in 1933 in rural Salt Lake County.  For 50 years, with the sole exception being his college and army days, he lived less than 10 blocks from the farmhouse where he was born.  He attended the University of Utah and Brigham Young University before serving in the U.S. Army in Korea from 1953-54. 

Governor Bangerter began his career as a contractor.  He entered politics in 1974 after winning a seat in the Utah House of Representatives.  His leadership skills helped him become the first Speaker of the House in over 40 years to serve two terms.   He became Governor in 1984 –the state’s first Republican governor in 20 years.  Bangerter outlined his top administration’s priorities, which he called the “Three Es”:  education, economic development, and efficiency in government.  A fourth “E” for environment was added a few years later. 

In the face of statewide economic difficulties, Bangerter campaigned aggressively to rebuild the state’s economy and successfully recruited new businesses and industries to the state.  During his two terms in office Bangerter saw the establishment of a State Court of Appeals, the building of a performing arts building at the University of Utah, as well as new facilities at the state prison, and an increase in funding and test scores for Utah schools.   

Artist: 
Keith Eddington was born in Philadelphia and raised in Lehi, Utah.  He served in WWII in both the European and Pacific theaters.  Eddington studied art at the University of Utah and was the student of famous Utah artists Arnold Frieberg, LeConte Stewart and Alvin Gittins.  He later joined the faculty at the University of Utah where he taught for 20 years.  During a long,  successful career he also taught at Brigham Young University and was the head of Keith Eddington & Associates, a highly respected graphic design firm in Salt Lake City.  In his retirement years he continued to paint portraits.  He died in Salt Lake City in 2007.

Michael O. Leavitt
(b.1951)
Oil on canvas, 60.5 X 48.5”
William Whitaker

Michael Okerlund Leavitt was born in Cedar City, Utah in 1951.  He graduated from Southern Utah University with a degree in business and economics. Leavitt joined the Leavitt Group, the regional insurance organization founded by his father, and eventually became the President and CEO of the company. Leavitt also served as a member of the Utah State Board of Regents.

Leavitt won the 1992 election for governor; with running mate Olene Walker who became the first woman to serve as lieutenant governor in Utah. During Leavitt’s administration independent public policy analysts ranked Utah among the best-managed states in the nation.  One in every four jobs in Utah was created, and the state experienced its longest sustained economic expansion in its history.  Governor Leavitt made education a priority during his 3 terms in office and saw education become the highest funding priority of state government during his 11 year tenure.

President George W. Bush nominated Governor Leavitt to be the Administrator of the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency. Leavitt accepted the position and retired as Governor in November 2003. In January 2006 Leavitt was nominated and confirmed as the United States Secretary of Health and Human Services.   

Artist:
William “Bill” Whitaker, Jr. is the only son of painter William Whitaker, Sr. He therefore grew up surrounded by art. He earned his degree from the University of Utah and later taught at Brigham Young University. Whitaker studied under the famous Utah artist Alvin Gittins and is known for his beautiful portraits, his primary subject matter. Whitaker frequently concentrates on portraits of LDS officials and other prominent people.

Olene Walker
(b. 1930)
Oil on canvas,
William Whitaker, Jr.

Olene Smith Walker was born in Ogden, Utah.  She received her Bachelor’s, Master’s and Doctor of Philosophy degrees from Brigham Young University, Stanford University and the University of Utah, respectively. 

Before entering politics, Walker founded the Salt Lake Education Foundation and served as its director.  She also served as director of the Utah Division of Community Development.  Walker was a representative in the Utah State Legislature for eight years and served a term as Majority Whip.  She was Utah’s first woman lieutenant governor and spearheaded many important initiatives including education programs, healthcare reform, and workforce development.  She led the Healthcare Reform Task Force that established the Children’s Health Insurance Program, ensuring affordable healthcare for Utah’s children. 

Walker assumed the office of Governor of the State of Utah after Governor Mike Leavitt resigned his office to serve as Administrator of the EPA.  On November 5, 2003 Walker was sworn in as Utah’s 15th and first woman governor.  During her term as governor, Walker was committed to education funding, providing affordable housing across the state, and literacy programs.     

Artist:
William “Bill” Whitaker, Jr. is the only son of painter William Whitaker, Sr. He therefore grew up surrounded by art.  He earned his degree from the University of Utah and later taught at Brigham Young University.   Whitaker studied under the famous Utah artist Alvin Gittins and is known for his beautiful portraits, his primary subject matter. Whitaker frequently concentrates on portraits of LDS officials and other prominent people.  He also painted the portrait of Governor Leavitt in the Capitol Collection.