Peter Tali Coleman

Peter Coleman


43rd, 51st, and 53rd Governor of American Samoa
In office January 2, 1989 – January 3, 1993
Lieutenant	Galea'i Poumele Gaioi Galeai
Preceded by	A. P. Lutali
Succeeded by	A. P. Lutali
In office January 3, 1978 – January 3, 1985
Lieutenant	Tufele Liamatua
Preceded by	Rex Lee
Succeeded by	A. P. Lutali
In office October 15, 1956 – May 24, 1961
Preceded by	Richard Lowe
Succeeded by	Rex Lee
High Commissioner of the Trust Territory of the Pacific Islands Acting
In office July 1, 1976 – July 9, 1977
Preceded by	Edward E. Johnston
Succeeded by	Adrian P. Winkel

Personal details
Born	(1919-12-08)December 8, 1919 Pago Pago, American Samoa, U.S.
Died	April 28, 1997(1997-04-28) (aged 77) Honolulu, Hawaii, U.S.
Political party	Republican
Spouse(s)	Nora Stewart (1941–1997)
Children	Amata
Education	Georgetown University (BA, LLB)
Military service
Allegiance	United States
Service/branch	United States Army
Rank	Captain
Battles/wars	World War II

Peter Tali Coleman (December 8, 1919 – April 28, 1997) was the first person of Samoan descent to be appointed Governor of American Samoa and later became the territory's first popularly elected governor. A member of the Republican Party, he is the only U.S. governor whose service spanned five decades (1956–1961, 1978–1985 and 1989–1993) and one of the longest-serving governors of any jurisdiction in American history.

Background

Early life and career

Born in Pago Pago, American Samoa, Coleman graduated from Saint Louis School in Honolulu, Hawaii. He later joined the U.S. Army, rising to the rank of captain during World War II. He received his law degree from Georgetown University, and served in American Samoa both as a public defender and as the territory's attorney general.

Coleman was appointed governor of American Samoa in 1956 by President Dwight Eisenhower. At the conclusion of his term, he served a variety of positions in the Pacific Islands, including:

district administrator for the Marshall Islands
district administrator for the Marianas Islands
deputy high commissioner of the Trust Territory of the Pacific Islands and then served as acting high commissioner for one year

In 1977, Coleman became the first popularly elected governor of American Samoa. He was subsequently elected in 1980 and 1988.

Death and legacy

Coleman died in 1997 in Honolulu after a two-year struggle with liver cancer.

In 2014, his daughter Aumua Amata Radewagen, was elected Delegate to represent American Samoa in the United States House of Representatives.^[1]

References

↑ Fili Sagapolutele (November 5, 2014). "1st woman elected as American Samoa delegate". San Francisco Chronicle. Retrieved November 9, 2014.

External links

Political offices
Preceded by Richard Lowe	Governor of American Samoa 1956–1961	Succeeded by Rex Lee
Preceded by Edward E. Johnston	High Commissioner of the Trust Territory of the Pacific Islands Acting 1976–1977	Succeeded by Adrian P. Winkel
Preceded by Rex Lee	Governor of American Samoa 1978–1985	Succeeded by A. P. Lutali
Preceded by A. P. Lutali	Governor of American Samoa 1989–1993	Succeeded by A. P. Lutali

Governors of American Samoa
Commandant (1900–05)	Tilley Sebree Minett Underwood
Naval (1905–51)	Moore Parker Crose Post Stearns Post Woodruff Poyer Terhune Evans Pollock Kellogg Bryan Graham Lincoln Spore Emerson Lincoln Landenberger Latimore Dowling Fitzpatrick Milne Hanson Wallace Wild Larsen (alongside Wild) Moyer Hobbs Hungerford Canan Houser Huber Darden
Civil (1951–78)	Phelps Elliott Ewing Judd Lowe Coleman Lee Aspinall Haydon Mockler Ruth Barnett Lee
Elected (since 1978)	Coleman Lutali Coleman Lutali Sunia Tulafono Moliga

This article is issued from Wikipedia. The text is licensed under Creative Commons - Attribution - Sharealike. Additional terms may apply for the media files.