Adlai E. Stevenson - Bloomington, IL - Grave of a Famous Person on Waymarking.com

Adlai Stevenson played a significant role in American politics between the end of World War II and the Johnson administration. He was involved in the United Nations during its formative years, twice ran for President of the United States on the democratic ticket but was soundly defeated both times by Dwight D. Eisenhower and served as U.S. ambassador to the United Nations throughout the Kennedy years.

Adlai Stevenson was born in Los Angeles but grew up in Bloomington IL. He was named after his grandfather, Adlai Ewing Stevenson who served as Vice President of the United States under President Grover Cleveland. (This technically makes him Adlai Ewing Stevenson II.) So, I guess you could say that Adlai Stevenson had politics in his blood. The Stevenson family published a popular newspaper and were quite well off.

Having graduated from Northwestern University in 1926 with a law degree, Stevenson started working for a private law firm in Chicago. But it wasn’t long before he became involved in government activities, first as general counsel for the Agricultural Adjustment Administration, one of President Roosevelt’s alphabet soup programs, then as assistant to the Secretary of the Navy during the war years and finally with the State Department after the war.

In 1948, Stevenson was chosen to be the democratic candidate for governor of Illinois where he defeated the incumbent, Dwight Green in an upset. This led to two unsuccessful runs for President of the United States in 1952 and again in 1956. In 1960, the party turned to John F. Kennedy, who won the election and, although the two men did not get along well, Stevenson was appointed U.S. ambassador to the United Nations. While at the U.N., Stevenson had to deal with the international community during the Bay of Pigs debacle and the Cuban Missile Crisis.

Adlai Stevenson was still working as U.S. ambassador to the U.N. when he died suddenly of a heart attack in London in 1965. He is buried in the Stevenson family plot in Evergreen Cemetery in his hometown of Bloomington, IL.
(Source: wikipedia.org)

Description: See Long Description above. Date of birth: 02/05/1900 Date of death: 07/14/1965 Area of notoriety: Politics Marker Type: Headstone Setting: Outdoor Visiting Hours/Restrictions: none Fee required?: No Web site: [Web Link]

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