John M. Patterson facts for kids
Quick facts for kids
John M. Patterson
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| 44th Governor of Alabama | |
| In office January 19, 1959 – January 14, 1963 |
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| Lieutenant | Albert Boutwell |
| Preceded by | Jim Folsom |
| Succeeded by | George Wallace |
| 36th Attorney General of Alabama | |
| In office January 17, 1955 – January 19, 1959 |
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| Governor | Jim Folsom |
| Preceded by | Bernard Sykes |
| Succeeded by | MacDonald Gallion |
| Personal details | |
| Born |
John Malcolm Patterson
September 27, 1921 Goldville, Alabama, U.S. |
| Died | June 4, 2021 (aged 99) Goldville, Alabama, U.S. |
| Political party | Democratic |
| Spouses |
Gladys Broadwater
(m. 1942; div. 1945)Mary Jo McGowin
(m. 1947; div. 1975)Tina Sawyer
(m. 1975) |
| Education | University of Alabama (LLB) |
| Military service | |
| Allegiance |  United States |
| Branch/service |  United States Army |
| Years of service | 1939–1945 1951–1953 |
| Rank |  Major |
| Battles/wars | World War II Korean War |
John Malcolm Patterson (September 27, 1921 – June 4, 2021) was an American politician. He served as the Attorney General of Alabama from 1955 to 1959. At age 37, he became the 44th Governor of Alabama, serving from 1959 to 1963.
Patterson gained public attention in the mid-1950s. He and his father, Albert Patterson, worked to fight crime in the town of Phenix City, Alabama. His father was sadly murdered in 1954. As governor, John Patterson supported racial segregation, which meant keeping people of different races separate. He later said he regretted this view.
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Early Life and Military Service
John Patterson was born in Goldville in Tallapoosa County, Alabama. His parents, Agnes Louise and Albert Patterson, were both schoolteachers. His father later became a lawyer.
At 17, in 1940, Patterson joined the United States Army. He served during World War II in North Africa, Sicily, Italy, Southern France, and Germany. He even worked on Dwight D. Eisenhower's staff. In 1945, he left the Army as a major. He then earned a law degree from the University of Alabama School of Law. He was called back to the Army from 1951 to 1953 for the Korean War, serving in Europe. After his military service, he joined his father's law practice.
Becoming Attorney General of Alabama
In 1954, John Patterson's father, Albert, ran for state attorney general. He promised to stop crime in Phenix City and across the state. Albert Patterson won the Democratic nomination, which almost guaranteed he would win the election. However, he was shot and killed in Phenix City on June 18, 1954.
After his father's death, John Patterson took his place on the ballot. He easily won the election and became the Attorney General of Alabama. A movie called The Phenix City Story (1955) was made about these events. Actor Richard Kiley played John Patterson in the film.
As Attorney General, Patterson continued to fight organized crime. He also became known for his actions against the civil rights movement. After the 1954 Supreme Court decision in Brown v. Board of Education, which said public schools could not be segregated, Patterson worked with other Southern states. He tried to stop the NAACP from operating in Alabama. He used a technicality (they didn't register as an out-of-state group) to ban them. He also took legal action to stop boycotts by Black citizens in Tuskegee against white businesses.
Serving as Governor of Alabama
In 1958, Patterson ran for governor of Alabama. His main promises were strong law enforcement and keeping racial segregation. He highlighted his work against crime in Phenix City as Attorney General. His support for segregation led to an endorsement from the Ku Klux Klan. He famously said, "If a school is ordered to be integrated, it will be closed down." Patterson won the Democratic primary against George Wallace, who would later become governor. He was the second-youngest governor in Alabama's history.
During Patterson's time as governor, the Alabama legislature increased money for highways, waterways, and pensions for older people. They also spent more on schools and mental health facilities. Laws were passed to stop loan sharking, which is lending money at very high interest rates. While he was governor, Black students who held a sit-in at Alabama State University were expelled. Patterson also defended Alabama's voter registration rules against criticism from the federal government.
Role in the Bay of Pigs Invasion
In 1959, the Central Intelligence Agency (CIA) asked Patterson for help. They wanted the Alabama Air National Guard to train pilots for a secret plan to invade Fidel Castro's Cuba. Patterson agreed after being told that President Dwight D. Eisenhower supported the project.
During the 1960 presidential campaign, Patterson supported John F. Kennedy for president. He helped raise money and gathered delegates for Kennedy in Alabama. He also led Alabama's group to the 1960 Democratic convention in Los Angeles. Patterson told Kennedy about the secret Cuban invasion plan. A few months into his presidency, Kennedy approved a changed version of the plan, which became the Bay of Pigs Invasion.
Later Public Life and Legacy
Patterson left office in 1963 because Alabama's constitution did not allow governors to run for immediate re-election. George Wallace, his opponent from 1958, became the next governor. Patterson ran for governor again in 1966 but lost to Wallace's wife, Lurleen Wallace, who was running for her husband. In 1970, he also ran for Chief Justice of the Alabama Supreme Court but lost.
From the late 1970s to the 1980s, Patterson taught American government at Troy State University. In 1984, Governor George Wallace appointed Patterson to the Alabama Court of Criminal Appeals. He was re-elected to this court until he retired in 1997.
In 2003, Patterson was chosen to be chief justice of a "Special Supreme Court." This court heard the case of Alabama Chief Justice Roy Moore. Moore had refused to remove a monument of the Ten Commandments from the courthouse, even after a federal court ordered him to. The special court decided that Moore's removal from office was legal.
A 90-minute documentary about Patterson, called John Patterson: In the Wake of the Assassins, was made in 2007. It included a long interview with Patterson himself.
Patterson supported Barack Obama in the 2008 presidential election. He publicly said he regretted his past support for segregated schools. He explained that at the time, suggesting an end to racial separation in schools was a very unpopular idea in Alabama politics.
A book about Patterson, Nobody but the People, was published in 2008. It was written by historian Warren Trest.
Personal Life
John Malcolm Patterson was married three times. He married Gladys Broadwater in 1942, but they divorced a few years later. He married his second wife, Mary Jo McGowin, in 1947. Mary Jo died in 1985. Patterson married his third wife, Tina Sawyer, in 1975.
Patterson was the last living U.S. governor who had served in the 1950s. He passed away at his home in Goldville on June 4, 2021, just before his 100th birthday.
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John Malcolm Patterson
