John E. Miles

John Esten Miles (born July 28, 1884 in Murfreesboro , Tennessee , †  October 7, 1971 in Santa Fe , New Mexico ) was an American politician and from 1939 to 1943 the twelfth governor of the state of New Mexico.

Early years and political advancement

John Miles attended local schools in his homeland. At the age of 17 he left Tennessee and first moved to Texas , where he worked as a farmer. After a bad harvest in 1906, he moved to the Oklahoma Territory and then to Endee , New Mexico. There he was engaged in the publishing business as well as in cattle breeding. Between 1917 and 1920 he was head of the Post Office in Endee and from 1920 to 1924 assessor in Quay County . From 1925 to 1927 and again from 1931 to 1934 Miles served on the New Mexico Tax Commission.

Between 1934 and 1938 Miles was chairman of the Democratic Party in New Mexico. At that time, the New Mexico Democrats were split into two camps, one supporting President Franklin D. Roosevelt and his New Deal policies, while the other was in opposition to the President and his policies. Miles was rather neutral in this argument. That made him acceptable to both party wings. On November 8, 1938, he was elected the new governor of his state with 52:48 percent of the vote against Republican Albert K. Mitchell.

Governor of New Mexico

John Miles took office on January 1, 1939. After re-election in 1940, he was able to exercise it until January 1, 1943. During this time the Conchas Dam was completed. Cattle ranching experienced a great boom in New Mexico during these years. The last part of his governorship was overshadowed by the events of World War II, in which the US participated since December 7, 1941, after the Japanese attack on Pearl Harbor . The governor supported the conversion of the economy to war needs. In addition, soldiers had to be recruited for the armed forces in New Mexico.

Another résumé

After his tenure ended, John Miles became chairman of the New Mexico Public Services Commission. He held this office from 1943 to 1945 and again from 1959 to 1960. In the 1944 elections, he successfully ran for the office of New Mexico Commissioners of Public Lands . He held the post from 1945 to 1948. Between January 1949 and January 1951 he was a member of the US House of Representatives in Washington , where he prevailed in the Democratic primary against incumbent Georgia Lee Lusk . During the Korean War , Miles was a member of the Federal Government's Price Stability Commission. Miles was 1951-1952 Director of Enforcement at the Office of Price Stabilization in Denver ( Colorado ). From 1961 to 1964 he was once again chairman of the Democratic Party in New Mexico. John Miles died in October 1971. He was married to Susie Wade, with whom he had seven children.

Individual evidence

1. ↑ List of the New Mexico Commissioners of Public Lands (1912–2010) ( Memento of the original from September 24, 2015 in the Internet Archive ) Info: The  archive link was inserted automatically and has not yet been checked. Please check the original and archive link according to the instructions and then remove this notice. , Office of the NM Secretary of State, July 2012, p. 234

Web links

• John E. Miles in the Biographical Directory of the United States Congress (English)
• John Miles in the National Governors Association (English)
• John E. Miles in the database of Find a Grave (English)