Wallace F. Bennett

Wallace Foster Bennett (November 13, 1898 – December 19, 1993) was an American businessman and politician. A member of the Republican Party, he served as a U.S. senator from Utah from 1951 to 1974. He was the father of Bob Bennett, who later held his father's seat in the Senate.

Early life and education Wallace Bennett was born in Salt Lake City, Utah, to John Foster and Rosetta Elizabeth (née Wallace) Bennett. His grandparents were English immigrants who came to the United States in 1868. He received his early education at local public schools and graduated from LDS High School in 1916. He then enrolled at the University of Utah, where he majored in English and won a varsity letter in debate.

Military career Bennett, a member of the university's Reserve Officers' Training Corps, interrupted his college education to serve in the US Army during World War I. He was commissioned as a second lieutenant of the Infantry in September 1918 and was assigned as an instructor in the Student Army Training Corps at Colorado College.

Business career In 1920, Bennett returned to Salt Lake City and became an office clerk at Bennett's Paint and Glass Company, which his father had established. During the campaign, he accused Thomas of having communist positions and circulated pamphlets associating Thomas with communist organizations and figures. He was subsequently re-elected to three more terms. It also allowed the Federal Reserve to issue $1 and $2 notes to replace "silver certificates or the denominations thus making 1.6 billion ounces of silver available to the United States Treasury." He served as a member of the Senate Finance and Banking and Currency Committees, as well as the Joint Committee on Atomic Energy and Defense Production. Bennett was the vice chairman of Senate Ethics Committee. Bennett voted in favor of the Civil Rights Acts of 1957, 1960, 1964, and 1968, as well as the Voting Rights Act of 1965 and the confirmation of Thurgood Marshall to the US Supreme Court, but Bennett did not vote on the 24th Amendment to the U.S. Constitution. He also supported a measure that prohibited federal aid to schools that practiced racial discrimination. He was also instrumental in bringing the Central Utah Project and the defense and aerospace industries to Utah. By the end of his political career, Bennett was the ranking Republican on Senate Banking, Housing and Urban Affairs Committee, and the Senate Finance Committee. He was "recognized as one of the nations leading fiscal and monetary experts."

Bennett declined to seek re-election in 1974 and resigned on December 20 of that year to let his elected successor, Jake Garn, take office early and gain seniority.

Later life After his departure from the Senate, Bennett returned to Salt Lake City, resumed his business pursuits, and served on a variety of boards. When his son Robert was elected to his former Senate seat in 1992, the elder Bennett said, "Bob and I have made Utah history. We are the first father and son combination to be elected to the U.S. Senate in this state."

Death and burial Bennett died at his home in Salt Lake City at the age of 95. He is buried at Salt Lake City Cemetery.