Lurleen Wallace

Lurleen Wallace
46th Governor of Alabama
In office January 16, 1967 – May 7, 1968
Lieutenant	Albert Brewer
Preceded by	George Wallace
Succeeded by	Albert Brewer
First Lady of Alabama
In role January 14, 1963 – January 16, 1967
Governor	George Wallace
Preceded by	Florentine Patterson
Succeeded by	George Wallace (as First Gentleman)
Personal details
Born	Lurleen Brigham Burns (1926-09-19)September 19, 1926 Tuscaloosa, Alabama, U.S.
Died	May 7, 1968(1968-05-07) (aged 41) Montgomery, Alabama, U.S.
Cause of death	Cancer
Resting place	Greenwood Cemetery
Political party	Democratic
Spouse	George Wallace ​ (m. 1943)​
Children	4, including George III
Education	Tuscaloosa Business College
Signature
Lurleen Wallace's voice Portion of a commencement address by Lurleen Wallace at Judson College Recorded April 16, 1967

Lurleen Burns Wallace (born Lurleen Brigham Burns; September 19, 1926 – May 7, 1968) was an American politician who served as the 46th governor of Alabama for 16 months from January 16, 1967 until her death on May 7, 1968. She was the first wife of Alabama governor George Wallace, whom she succeeded as governor because the Alabama constitution forbade consecutive terms.^[1]

Wallace was Alabama's first female governor and was the only woman to hold the governorship until Kay Ivey succeeded to the office in April 2017. Wallace is also (as of 2024) the only female governor in U.S. history to have died in office as well as being the first and only female Democrat to have served as governor in Alabama history. In 1973, she was posthumously inducted into the Alabama Women's Hall of Fame.^[2]