EDWARD L. JACKSON, Indiana’s thirty-second governor, was born in Howard County, Indiana, on December 27, 1873. His early education was attained in the Howard County public school system. He later studied law, was admitted to the bar, and established a legal career in Kennard, Indiana. Jackson entered politics in 1901, serving as prosecuting attorney of Henry County, a position he held until 1906. He also served on the bench for the Henry County Circuit Court from 1907 to 1914, and was elected Indiana’s secretary of state in 1916. With the outbreak of World War I, Jackson resigned from the secretary of state’s office to enlist for military service. He served as captain, rose to the rank of major, was stationed in Ohio, Michigan, and Indiana, and commanded the S.A.T.C. at Purdue University. After his military duty, he was appointed Indiana’s secretary of state on January 21, 1920. He won reelection as secretary of state in 1920 and 1922. Jackson won the 1924 Republican gubernatorial nomination and was sworn into the governorship on January 12, 1925. During his tenure, he advocated boosting the transactions of the Department of Conservation, the George Rogers Clark Memorial was sanctioned, numerous parks were planned for the state park system, and a state budget was implemented that reduced the state tax and paid off the state’s debt. After leaving office on January 14, 1929, Jackson retired from politics and returned to his law career in Indianapolis. After suffering a paralyzing stroke in 1948, Governor Edward L. Jackson passed away on November 18, 1954. He was buried at the Green Hill Cemetery in Orleans, Indiana.
Sobel, Robert, and John Raimo, eds. Biographical Directory of the Governors of the United States, 1789-1978, Vol. 1, Westport, Conn.; Meckler Books, 1978. 4 vols.