Lewis Schwellenbach

About

Secretary of Labor under Harry S. Truman from 1945 to 1948 who took over an economy transitioning back from war to peace. He was previously a US Senator from Washington from 1935 to 1940.

Before Fame

After earning his law degree he worked with national trade and labor unions, before entering the U.S. Senate.

Trivia

Working under the policy of maximum employment, where his first priority was finding fitting jobs for returning servicemen, he also oversaw the end of wartime wage and price controls.

Family Life

He was born in Superior, Wisconsin, and moved with his family to Spokane, Washington, at the age of 8.

Associated With

Among his most important acts as Harry S. Truman's labor secretary was passing the Taft-Hartley Act, curbing the power of unions, overriding the president's veto.