Governor Brendan T. Byrne Administration Timeline
Pre-Governorship (1924-1972)
1924
April 1: Born in West Orange, New Jersey, the fourth of five children of Francis A. Byrne (1888-1973) and his spouse Genevieve (Brennan) Byrne. Francis, a long-time local politician, served as West Orange Tax Assessor, chair of the West Orange Zoning Board of Adjustment, West Orange Town Commissioner and member of the Essex County Tax Board.
1942
Graduates from West Orange High School, where he served as president of the debating club and senior class president. After graduation, Byrne enrolls at Seton Hall University.
1943
March: Leaves Seton Hall to enlist in the Army Air Corps in World War II. He completes over 50 combat missions as a B-17 navigator in the European Theater, and his service earns him the Distinguished Flying Cross, four Air Medals, and a Presidential Unit Citation.
1945
Following the end of the war, honorably discharged from military service, having attained the rank of lieutenant with the 414th Bomb Squadron of the 15th Air Force. He subsequently serves in the U.S. Air Force Reserve and enrolls at Princeton University under the G.I. Bill.
1949
Graduates from Princeton University’s School of Public and International Affairs with an A.B. upon completion of the thesis Proportional Representation in Municipal Government. Enrolls in Harvard Law School.
1950
Graduates from Harvard Law School with L.L.B. and begins clerking for Judge Joseph Weintraub.
1951
Passes the New Jersey bar exam and begins law career at the firm of McGlynn, Weintraub and Stein.
Enters politics for the first time, serving on the West Orange Planning Board and continues as a member until January 1, 1958.
1953
June 27: Marries Jean Featherly, a school teacher from West Orange.
1954
June 9: Jean Byrne gives birth to the Byrnes’ first child, son Brendan T. “Tom” Byrne Jr. They later would have Susan, Nancy, Tim, Mary Anne, Barbara and Bill.
1955
Appointed Assistant Counsel to Governor Robert B. Meyner.
1956
Appointed Acting Executive Secretary to Governor Robert B. Meyner.
1959
Appointed as Deputy Attorney General in charge of Essex County prosecutor’s office.
Appointed by Governor Meyner to full term as Essex County Prosecutor.
1964
Appointed to second term as Essex County Prosecutor by Governor Richard J. Hughes.
During second term as prosecutor, serves as president of the County Prosecutor’s Association of New Jersey and vice president of the National District Attorneys Association.
1965
Helps found Intercontinental Life Insurance Company with other principals including law partner Martin L. Greenberg. Serves as chairman of the board until his resignation in 1970.
1968
Appointed by Governor Richard J. Hughes as President of the New Jersey Board of Public Utility Commissioners.
Appointed to the Executive Commission on Ethical Standards
1970
Nominated by Governor William T. Cahill and confirmed by the State Senate for position as Superior Court Judge in Essex County. Resigns all posts at the Intercontinental Life Insurance Company as well as his position as director at the Broad National Bank in Newark and his partnership in the law firm of Teltser, Byrne and Greenberg in East Orange.
1972
Appointed Superior Court Assignment Judge for Morris, Sussex and Warren Counties.
Governorship (1973-1982)
1973
Resigns as Superior Court Judge and enters the Democratic Gubernatorial primary.
June 5: Defeats Ralph DeRose and Anne Klein in the Democratic primary, winning the party’s nomination for Governor. Congressman Charles Sandman defeats incumbent Governor William Cahill for the Republican nomination.
November 6: Elected Governor of New Jersey, defeating Congressman Sandman by 721,000 votes, the largest plurality in the State’s history.
1974
January 15: Sworn in as 54th Governor of New Jersey
March: The Byrne family moves into Morven, the Governor’s mansion in Princeton, leaving Byrne’s life-long home of West Orange
First Term: 1974-1978
In first executive order, declares and energy emergency and establishes “odd-even” gas rationing in response to crisis caused by Arab oil embargo.
Inaugurates public financing for future gubernatorial general elections. New Jersey is the first state to do so
Institutes the state’s first income tax, becoming one of the final states to have such a tax
Imposes spending limits on local, county and state government, as well as school districts
Creates the Department of the Public Advocate and the Department of Energy
1977 Re-election campaign
June 7: Faces 10 opponents in the Democratic primary election, but emerges as the party’s nominee
November 8: Despite being down as many as 20 points in initial polls, Byrne wins reelection over State Senator Raymond Bateman
Second Term: 1978-1982
Passes the Pinelands Protection Act, regulating development of over one-fifth of New Jersey lan
Oversees major highway expansions, including Route 287 and the Atlantic City Expressway
Opens casino-hotel gambling in Atlantic City
Continues to develop the Meadowlands Sports Complex
Orders mandatory water rationing in North and Central New Jersey, effecting over 3 million residents after reports show reservoirs hold less than a 40-day supply of water
1982
January 19: Completes second term as governor as successor Thomas H. Kean is sworn in to office. Family relocates from Morven Governor’s Residence to a private residence in Princeton
Post-Governorship
1982
Joins law firm of Carella, Bain, Gilfillan and Rhodes as a partner, which later changes its name to Carella, Byrne, Bain and Gilfillan. Firm’s senior partner Charles Carella previously served as an Essex County assistant prosecutor under Byrne and later as executive director of NJ Lottery Commission and as Executive Secretary to Byrne in Governor’s Office
Joins boards of directors of Prudential Insurance Company of America; New Jersey Bell Telephone Co.; and Jamesway Corp
1985
November: Appointed Chair of the Council on New Jersey Affairs, a position he holds until 1989
1988
September 7: Elected to the board of directors of Ingersoll-Rand Co.
1989
January: After nomination by Governor Kean and confirmation by State Senate, begins serving as a commissioner of the New Jersey Sports and Exposition Authority for a four-year term ending in January 1993
1993
Marriage to Jean Byrne is dissolved by divorce
1994
August: Marries public relations executive Ruth Zinn
Becomes a director of the Mack-Cali Realty Corporation
Son, Brendan T. Byrne Jr., is elected Chair of the New Jersey Democratic State Committee
2002
July 24: Lebanon State Forest, located in the Pinelands, is renamed Brendan T. Byrne State Forest
2018
January 4: Governor Brendan Byrne passes away at the age of 93