- Wilton Persons
-
Wilton Persons 3rd White House Chief of Staff In office
1958–1961President Dwight D. Eisenhower Preceded by Sherman Adams Succeeded by W. Marvin Watson
as Informal White House Chief of Staff (Johnson Admin)
Jim Jones
as Appointments Secretary
(Johnson Admin)
H.R. Haldeman
as 4th White House Chief of StaffPersonal details Born January 19, 1896 Died September 5, 1977 (aged 81) Wilton Burton "Jerry" Persons (January 19, 1896 – September 5, 1977) served as the White House Chief of Staff to President Dwight D. Eisenhower from October 7, 1958 until January 20, 1961.
Persons graduated from Auburn University in 1916. He was a career United States Army officer who had entered the U.S. Army Coast Artillery in 1917 and advanced through the ranks to major general in 1944. He had served in both the American Expeditionary Force in World War I and in Europe in World War II. He headed the office of legislative liaison for the Department of Defense between 1948 and his retirement in 1949. He retired with the rank of Major general.
Persons was called back to active duty as a special assistant to General Dwight D. Eisenhower at Supreme Headquarters Allied Powers in Europe from 1951-1952 and was active on behalf of Eisenhower's presidential campaign in 1952. He became a deputy assistant to the president in 1953 and then was made an assistant to the president in 1958. He served throughout the Eisenhower presidency, handling congressional liaison before he replaced Sherman Adams in 1958 as, effectively, Eisenhower's chief of staff.
Following the 1960 presidential election, Persons was heavily involved as Eisenhower's representative in the transition of government between the Eisenhower and John F. Kennedy administrations. He met frequently with Clark Clifford, President-elect Kennedy's transition representative, to work out the details for a smooth transfer of government.
References
Political offices Preceded by
Sherman AdamsWhite House Chief of Staff
Served under: Dwight D. Eisenhower
1958–1961Succeeded by
W. Marvin WatsonWhite House Chiefs of Staff John Steelman • Sherman Adams • Wilton Persons • Marvin Watson • H. R. Haldeman • Alexander Haig • Donald Rumsfeld • Dick Cheney • Hamilton Jordan • Jack Watson • James Baker • Donald Regan • Howard Baker • Kenneth Duberstein • John Sununu • Samuel Skinner • James Baker • Mack McLarty • Leon Panetta • Erskine Bowles • John Podesta • Andrew Card • Joshua Bolten • Rahm Emanuel • William DaleyExternal links
- Records and Papers of Wilton B. Persons, Dwight D. Eisenhower Presidential Library
- Finding aid for the Wilton B. Persons Oral Histories, Dwight D. Eisenhower Presidential Library
Sources
Categories:- White House Chiefs of Staff
- Assistants to the President of the United States
- Auburn University alumni
- 1896 births
- 1977 deaths
- Eisenhower Administration personnel
- Air Corps Tactical School alumni
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