Wesley Bolin

WESLEY BOLIN was born on a farm near Butler, Missouri, on July 1, 1909. His family moved to Phoenix when he was seven years old, and he graduated from Phoenix Union High School and Phoenix College. He worked with several business firms in the Salt River Valley before being elected constable of West Phoenix Precinct in 1938. From 1943 until 1948, Bolin was justice of the peace of the West Phoenix Precinct court. In 1948, he was elected secretary of state. He served 13 consecutive terms. While secretary of state, Bolin was elected to one term as president of the National Association of Secretaries of State and served on the association's executive board from 1953 to 1977. In October 1977, he became Governor of Arizona when Raul H. Castro resigned to become Ambassador to Argentina. The State Bar of Arizona presented Governor Bolin with its first Liberty Bell Award in Arizona in recognition of his responsibility as keeper of the laws. After Governor Bolin passed away in office in 1978, the plaza in downtown Phoenix across from the Capitol Building was named in his memory.