Brendan Thomas Byrne
| Brendan Byrne | |
|---|---|
 |
|
| 47th Governor of New Jersey | |
|
In office January 15, 1974 – January 19, 1982 |
|
| Preceded by | William Cahill |
| Succeeded by | Thomas Kean |
| Prosecutor of Essex County | |
|
In office February 16, 1959 – January 11, 1968 |
|
| Preceded by | Charles Webb |
| Succeeded by | Joseph P. Lordi |
| Personal details | |
| Born |
April 1, 1924 West Orange, New Jersey, U.S. |
| Political party | Democratic |
| Spouse(s) |
Jean Featherly (1953–1993) Ruthi Zinn (1994–present) |
| Children | 7 |
| Education |
Seton Hall University Princeton University (BA) Harvard University (LLB) |
| Military service | |
| Allegiance |
 United States
|
| Service/branch |
 U.S. Army Air Corps
|
| Years of service | 1943–1945 |
| Rank |
 First Lieutenant
|
Brendan Thomas Byrne (born April 1, 1924) is an American Democratic Party politician who served for two terms as the 47th Governor of New Jersey from 1974 to 1982. Elected in the wave of anti-Republican backlash arising from the Watergate scandal, he ushered in a period of reform of the state government and tax structure.
Byrne was born and raised in West Orange, New Jersey. He is the fourth child among five children of ethnic Irish American Catholic parents, Francis A. Byrne (1886 – 1974) and Genevieve Brennan Byrne (1888 – 1969).
In 1942, Byrne graduated from West Orange High School, where he had served as both the president of the debate club and senior class president. He briefly enrolled at Seton Hall University, only to leave in March the following year to join the U.S. Army. During World War II, Byrne served in the U.S. Army Air Corps, receiving the Distinguished Flying Cross and four Air Medals. By the time of his discharge from active service in 1945, he had achieved the rank of lieutenant.
After the war, and thanks to the G.I. Bill, Byrne attended Princeton University for two years, where he majored in Public and International Affairs. Due to the war, he spent only two years on campus, finishing his undergraduate thesis while enrolled at Harvard Law School. He graduated from Princeton in 1949, and went on to obtain his law degree from Harvard Law School in 1951.
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