Luther H. Hodges
Luther Hartwell Hodges (March 9, 1898 – October 6, 1974) was a businessman and American politician. After a career in textile manufacturing, he entered public service, gaining some state appointments. Elected as lieutenant governor of North Carolina in 1952, he succeeded to the Governor's office in 1954 after the death of the incumbent. He was elected in 1956 to a full four-year term, serving in total as the 64th governor of the state of North Carolina from 1954 to 1961.
This article is about Governor of North Carolina and U.S. Secretary of Commerce. For his son, banker and Deputy Secretary of Commerce, see Luther H. Hodges Jr.
Luther Hodges
William B. Umstead
Luther E. Barnhardt
October 6, 1974 (aged 76)
Chapel Hill, North Carolina, U.S.
3
In 1961 he was appointed as United States Secretary of Commerce under Presidents John F. Kennedy and Lyndon B. Johnson, serving until 1965.[1] He returned to North Carolina and served as chairman of Research Triangle Park, a major facility established during his tenure as governor.
$_$_$DEEZ_NUTS#2__titleDEEZ_NUTS$_$_$
$_$_$DEEZ_NUTS#2__descriptionDEEZ_NUTS$_$_$
Civil rights[edit]
In 1959, Hodges became involved in the Kissing Case, where two young African-American boys (one aged 9, and one aged 7) had been convicted of rape because a white girl (aged 8) had kissed them each on the cheek. They had been sentenced to the state reformatory. A range of activists, civil rights organizations, Eleanor Roosevelt and President Eisenhower, in addition to the international press, pressured Hodges for clemency. After three months Hodges pardoned them, but refused to apologize.[5]: 118 [6] Former First Lady Eleanor Roosevelt "led an international campaign on their behalf."[5]: 118 [7]: 118
Later years[edit]
He died on October 6, 1974, in Chapel Hill, North Carolina, and is buried at the Overlook Cemetery in Eden, North Carolina. A monument was erected in his honor near a water fountain in Eden's Freedom Park.
Legacy[edit]
Hodges's son, Luther H. Hodges Jr., was a prominent banking executive and United States Deputy Secretary of Commerce.