1. Frank Licht was an American politician and the 67th Governor of Rhode Island from 1969 to 1973, serving as the first Jewish governor in Rhode Island state history.
16 Facts About Frank Licht
1. 2.
Frank Licht was an associate justice of the Rhode Island Superior Court from 1956 to 1968 and a member of the Rhode Island Senate from 1949 to 1956.
3.
Frank Licht was the son of Jewish immigrants Rochel "Rose" Kassed from Klevan and Jacob Licht from Rovno, Russian Empire.
4.
Frank Licht graduated from Brown University in 1938 and Harvard Law School in 1941, where he was a member of Phi Beta Kappa society at both universities.
5.
In 1942 Licht was admitted to the Rhode Island bar, where he served as a law clerk for Judge John C Mahoney of the United States Court of Appeals for the First Circuit in Boston.
6.
Frank Licht was elected to the Rhode Island Senate in 1949 and served there until 1956.
7.
Frank Licht sat on the Superior Court of Rhode Island from 1956 to 1968.
8.
In 1968 Frank Licht announced his intention to run for the Democratic nominee for Governor of Rhode Island.
9.
Frank Licht served as the first Jewish governor of the state of Rhode Island from 1969 to 1973.
10.
Frank Licht took a strong stand on environmental protection, playing a big role in revitalizing the New England Water Pollution Control Commission.
11.
Frank Licht created an eleven-member Governor's Council on Environmental Quality, expanding regulatory authority against air and water pollution, and providing tax credits to businesses that included pollution-control systems into their operations.
12.
In 1973 Governor Frank Licht did not run for reelection due his unpopularity for implementing a temporary statewide sales tax.
13.
Frank Licht was the uncle of Richard A Licht, who was Lieutenant Governor of Rhode Island from 1985 to 1989 and unsuccessfully challenged John Chafee for the US Senate seat he held in 1988.
14.
On May 30,1987, Frank Licht died of cancer at Roger Williams Hospital, in Providence Rhode Island.
15.
Frank Licht was survived by his father, Jacob Licht; his wife, Dorothy; his three daughters, and four grandchildren.
16.
Michael Dukakis, the Governor of Massachusetts, the later 1988 Democratic nominee for President, and friend of Governor Frank Licht, attended and spoke at his funeral in 1987.