Governor Dedicates Van Wagoner Building
Governor Dedicates Van Wagoner Building
State Transportation Building gets a new name.
Governor Engler today dedicated the Murray D. Van Wagoner Transportation Building in honor of the late Michigan Governor and State Highway Commissioner. The building, formerly known as the Transportation Building, located at 425 W. Ottawa, Lansing, houses the Michigan Department of Transportation.
“Governor Van Wagoner’s lifetime commitment to public service speaks to the dedication and respect to which he gave all his endeavors,” said Engler. “His contributions to the state and country have earned him a place among the highest honored Michigan citizens.”
Murray D. Van Wagoner served as Governor of Michigan in 1941-1942 and elected State Highway Commissioner from 1933-1940. He was responsible for the first roadside park along a state highway system and established the nation’s first permanent travel information center at New Buffalo as State Highway Commissioner. Van Wagoner was also an early advocate of the Mackinac Bridge by working to build the causeway on the north side of the Straits in 1941. Further construction on the bridge came to halt with the beginning of World War II.
It was during his governorship that he made his most significant public service contribution. At the request of President Franklin D. Roosevelt, Van Wagoner led the development of the “Arsenal of Democracy” through the construction of an expressway linking Detroit and Ypsilanti to support the Willow Run bomber plant, in only 11 months.
In addition, Van Wagoner launched the civilian defense program and the expansion of the home guard and worked to see that strikes did not disrupt the production of essential war materials.
In 1947, President Harry S. Truman appointed Van Wagoner as U.S. Military Governor of Bavaria. In 1949, he was named land commissioner of Bavaria for the U.S. State Department.
Van Wagoner returned to Michigan in 1950, soon after he joined a private firm as a consulting engineer, and in 1951 served as a regent of the University of Michigan. The last, and longest, post held by Van Wagoner was that of member and vice-chairman on the Mackinac Bridge Authority, a tenure that ran from its inception in 1950 until his death in 1986.
Van Wagoner was married for 61 years to Helen. They had two children named Ellen and Jo Ann. Van Wagoner passed away on June 12, 1986, at age 88. They are survived by their daughter Jo Ann, who lives in Reno, Nevada, with her husband, U.S. Army General (Retired) Frederick Karhohs and their two children: Major Jeffery Karhohs and James Karhohs, DDS and son-in-law Walt Wikol of Birmingham and his four children: Murray D. Van Wagoner Wikol, Michael, Amy Christine, Thomas, and 12 great-grandchildren.
