Nelson Rockefeller | |
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41st Vice President of the United States | |
In office December 19, 1974 – January 20, 1977 | |
President | Gerald Ford |
Preceded by | Gerald Ford |
Succeeded by | Walter Mondale |
49th Governor of New York | |
In office January 1, 1959 – December 18, 1973 | |
Lieutenant | Malcolm Wilson |
Preceded by | W. Averell Harriman |
Succeeded by | Malcolm Wilson |
1st Under Secretary of Health, Education and Welfare | |
In office June 11, 1953 – December 22, 1954 | |
President | Dwight D. Eisenhower |
Preceded by | Office Created |
Succeeded by | Herold Christian Hunt |
1st Assistant Secretary of State for American Republic Affairs | |
In office December 20, 1944 – August 17, 1945 | |
President | Franklin D. Roosevelt Harry S. Truman |
Preceded by | Office Created |
Succeeded by | Spruille Braden |
Personal details | |
Born | Nelson Aldrich Rockefeller July 8, 1908 Bar Harbor, Maine, U.S. |
Died | January 26, 1979 New York City, U.S. | (aged 70)
Resting place | Rockefeller Family Cemetery Sleepy Hollow, New York |
Political party | Republican |
Spouse(s) | Mary Todhunter Clark (m. 1930–1962; divorced) Margaretta Large Fitler (m. 1963–1979; his death) |
Relations | Rockefeller family |
Children |
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Parents | John Davison Rockefeller, Jr. Abigail Greene Aldrich |
Residence | New York City |
Alma mater | Dartmouth College (A.B.) |
Profession |
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Nelson Aldrich Rockefeller (July 8, 1908 – January 26, 1979) was an American politician and businessman. A liberal Republican,[1] he was the 41st vice president of the United States from December 1974 to January 1977. Before becoming Vice President, he was the 49th governor of New York from 1959 to 1973, and served as assistant secretary of State for American Republic Affairs, as well as under secretary of Health, Education and Welfare.
Before entering politics, he was a businessman. As a businessman, Rockefeller was president and later chair of Rockefeller Center, Inc., and he formed the International Basic Economy Corporation in 1947. He served as trustee, treasurer, and president of the Museum of Modern Art, and founded the Museum of Primitive Art in 1954.
A grandson of billionaire John D. Rockefeller and a member of the wealthy Rockefeller family, he was an art collector and served as administrator of the Rockefeller Center in Manhattan, New York City. He was from one of the richest and most powerful families in the United States.