| John C. West | |
|---|---|
| 109th Governor of South Carolina | |
| In office January 19, 1971 – January 21, 1975 |
|
| Lieutenant | Earle Morris, Jr. |
| Preceded by | Robert Evander McNair |
| Succeeded by | James B. Edwards |
| 80th Lieutenant Governor of South Carolina | |
| In office January 17, 1967 – January 19, 1971 |
|
| Governor | Robert Evander McNair |
| Preceded by | Robert Evander McNair |
| Succeeded by | Earle Morris, Jr. |
| 14th United States Ambassador to Saudi Arabia | |
| In office June 8, 1977 – March 21, 1981 |
|
| President | Jimmy Carter Ronald Reagan |
| Preceded by | William J. Porter |
| Succeeded by | Robert Gerhard Neumann |
| Personal details | |
| Born | August 27, 1922 Camden, South Carolina |
| Died | March 21, 2004 (aged 81) |
| Nationality | American |
| Political party | Democratic |
| Alma mater | University of South Carolina |
| Religion | Episcopalian |
John Carl West (August 27, 1922 – March 21, 2004) was a U.S. Democratic Party politician who served as the 109th Governor of South Carolina from 1971 to 1975. He served as ambassador to Saudi Arabia from 1977 to 1981.
He was born in Camden, South Carolina and grew up in the Kershaw County, South Carolina farming community of Charlotte Thompson. The following May, his father, along with seventy-six other persons, was killed in a fire at the nearby Cleveland School. His mother and maternal grandmother escaped unharmed from the fire. In 1942, he married his childhood sweetheart, Lois Rhame. The couple had three children, a daughter and two sons, Shelton, Douglas, and John, Jr. That same year, he graduated from The Citadel, and was enlisted in the United States Army as an intelligence officer during World War II, assigned to stateside service.
Following the war, he earned a law degree from the University of South Carolina in 1946. From 1948 to 1952, he served on the state Highway Commission. In 1954, he coordinated the unsuccessful U.S. Senate candidacy of Edgar A. Brown. He served in the state senate from 1954 to 1966. During his tenure in the state senate, he served on several committees which studied public school curriculum, investigated Communist party activities, studied the state Development Board, studied state support for the nursing profession, studied state support for junior colleges, and recommended revisions to the state constitution.
He served as the 80th Lieutenant Governor of South Carolina from 1966 to 1970. In the 1970 gubernatorial election, West defeated U.S. Congressman Albert Watson, a former Democrat, carrying 53.2% of the vote. Following his tenure as Governor, he returned to private law practice and served as United States Ambassador to Saudi Arabia from 1977 to 1981. After returning to the United States, he became a Professor of Middle Eastern Studies at the University of South Carolina. From 1993 until his death from cancer, he was a Partner in the Hilton Head, South Carolina law office of Bethea, Jordan, and Griffin.
| Political offices | ||
|---|---|---|
| Preceded by Robert Evander McNair |
Governor of South Carolina 1971–1975 |
Succeeded by James B. Edwards |
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