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Brewster Family Collection, 1900-1983, n.d.
2.5 linear feet
Catalog Number:
M201
Series List:
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Agency History / Biographical Note:
Ralph Owen Brewster (1888-1961) was born in Dexter, Maine, to William E. and
Carrie Bridges Brewster on February 22, 1888. He was graduated from Bowdoin
College in 1909 (summa cum laude; Phi Beta Kappa Society).
He worked as the principal of Castine High School before attending Harvard
University. There he earned an L.L.B. in 1913. From
1914-1925 Brewster was a partner in the Portland, Maine, law firm of Chapman
and Brewster. His political career began in 1916 when he was elected to the
lower house of the Maine legislature. After resigning this position in order
to enlist in the U.S. Army, Brewster was re-elected after his return at the
end of World War I. In 1922 he was elected to the Maine State Senate, where
he served until being elected governor of Maine in 1924. He served as
governor from 1924-1928, was elected as the 3rd District U.S. congressman
from 1934-1940, then won a seat in the U.S. Senate, serving from 1941-1952.
Brewster lost the election for a third term in the U.S. Senate in 1952 and
retired in 1953. Brewster married Dorothy Foss in 1913. They had two sons:
Charles Brewster, born in 1916, and Owen Brewster, who was born in 1917 but
died young in 1932. Brewster died in Brookline, Massachusetts, on December 25,
1961.
Scope and Content:
The collection (1900-1983, bulk 1923-1962) contains scrapbooks, letters, clippings,
assorted ephemera and images compiled and saved by Ralph Owen
Brewster's mother, Carrie Bridges Brewster, and his wife, Dorothy Foss
Brewster. The materials primarily reflect the political career of Ralph Owen
Brewster but also provide information through family letters and
memorabilia about other Brewster family members. The photographs include
Brewster family portraits and images of Ralph Owen Brewster's political
activities. More extensive documentation of Brewster's political career is
available in the Ralph Owen Brewster Papers.
Cite as:
Brewster Family Collection, George J. Mitchell Department of Special
Collections & Archives, Bowdoin College Library.
Access Restrictions:
None.
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