Vanderbilt, William H. (William Henry), 1901-1981

William Henry Vanderbilt, descendant of the nineteenth century railroad magnate Cornelius Vanderbilt and governor of Rhode Island from 1939 to 1941, was born in New York City on November 24, 1901 to Albert and Ellen French Vanderbilt. He was educated at St. George's School in Middletown, Rhode Island and the Evans School in Mesa, Arizona and attended Princeton University for less than a year.

Vanderbilt ran as a Republican for the Rhode Island state senate in 1928. During his six years in the State Senate, he became an avid proponent of a statewide civil service system. In 1938 he ran for Governor of Rhode Island and defeated incumbent Governor Robert Quinn by 39,000 votes.

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