William Scranton

William Warren "Bill" Scranton (July 19, 1917 – July 28, 2013) was an American Republican Party politician. Scranton served as the 38th Governor of Pennsylvania from 1963 to 1967. From 1976 to 1977, he served as United States Ambassador to the United Nations.

Biography

Early life

William Scranton was born on July 19, 1917, while the Scranton family was on vacation at a cottage in Madison, Connecticut. He was the son of Worthington Scranton, a wealthy Pennsylvania businessman, and Marion Margery Scranton, a member of the Republican National Committee for over two decades. Despite her own involvement in politics, his mother tried to dissuade him from entering politics, due to his childhood struggles with asthma, believing that the stress of campaigning would be detrimental to his frail health. Mrs. Scranton died just before her son's election to Congress in 1960. He was the grandnephew of Joe Scranton, a U.S. Congressman from Pennsylvania. Scranton family members were the founders and patriarchs of the city of Scranton, Pennsylvania. He was also a nephew by marriage of former U.S. Supreme Court Justice David Davis, a confidante of President Abraham Lincoln. His maternal ancestors came to America on the Mayflower.