Born in Era, Texas, May 25, 1894, Payne Templeton accompanied his family to Missoula in 1912 and entered the University of Montana. He was graduated in 1916 with a degree in Law and a minor in English and History. During his attendance at the University he also took courses in Education and in 1916 taught in St. Regis, Montana. He went on to teach in Virginia City, Montana and then to Shelby where he was hired as Superintendent of Schools. He was Principle of Sweetgrass County High School in Big Timber, 1921-1924; Principal of Flathead County High School, 1924-1936; and Superintendent of Schools in Helena, 1936-1943. He had taken and passed the state bar exam in 1918, but never practiced. In 1931, he received a Master of Arts degree in Education from the University of Chicago. In 1943 he entered the U. S. Army and served in the Military Government in Europe from 1944 to 1946. He returned to Germany in 1947 and served as Chief of the Education Branch of Military Government and as Land Commissioner for the Province of Wuertemberg-Baden. He served in this position until 1942 when he became advisor to the Teacher Education ICA Mission to the Philippines. After only one year in the Philippines, he became advisor to the government of the Republic of China for Overseas Chinese Education on Taiwan. He went on to serve in a similar capacity in the Dominican Republic, Columbia and El Salvador. He retired to Arizona in 1963 and died in Sun City, Arizona, April 5, 1970.
Payne Templeton was married to Gladys Lewis on an unknown date. At the time of the 1930 census they had four children: Mary, Marjorie, David and Patricia. Gladys was born on 3 October 1893 in Howard, Montana and died on 3 June, 1956 in Taipeh, Formosa, China. Patricia was born on 3 February 1925 in Kalispell, Montana and died in 2007.
From the guide to the Templeton Family papers, 1886-1994, (University of Montana-Missoula Maureen and Mike Mansfield Library Archives and Special Collections)
