Governor Albert D. Rosellini with a group of Pierce County Democrats at a testimonial dinner for the governor. Ethel Rosellini, the governor's wife, is flanked by her husband (R) and State Attorney General John J. O'Connell. Standing are P.C. Democratic party chairman George Sheridan and John McCutcheon, county prosecutor and the evening's master of ceremonies. The Fellowship Hall dinner replaced the usual Jefferson-Jackson day fund raiser and was planned so that the governor could make a direct report to Pierce County residents regarding the progress of his administration. Albert Rosellini was born to immigrant parents in Tacoma in 1910. An attorney, he was elected to the State Senate in 1938 and championed liberal causes including juvenile justice reform and transportation improvements. His first term as governor saw the modernization of the mental health system, increased aid to colleges and universities, creation of a separate justice and prison system for juveniles, merit system for state employees and establishment of the Department of Commerce and Economic Development. He made effective use of the state's first televised debates between gubernatorial candidates and defeated State Supt. of Public Instruction Lloyd Andrews in his re-election bid. Attempting a third consecutive term, he lost the 1964 elections to Republican State House leader, Dan Evans. Subsequent tries for the King County Executive and governor were not successful. In 1988, the state renamed the Evergreen Floating Bridge, the world's longest floating bridge, for the governor who pushed its construction. ALBUM 10. (Seattle/King Co. HistoryLink.org; TNT 5-4-58, A-7, TNT 5-10-58, p. 1)
Governors; Rosellini, Albert D.; Rosellini, Ethel; O'Connell, John J.; Sheridan, George; McCutcheon, John;