Burnet Rhett Maybank (March 7, 1899September 1, 1954) was a three-term US senator, the 99th governor of South Carolina, and mayor of Charleston, South Carolina. He was the first governor from Charleston since the American Civil War (1861-1865) and one of only twenty people in United States history to have been elected mayor, governor, and United States senator. During his tenure in the Senate, Maybank was a powerful ally of President Franklin D. Roosevelt. His unexpected death on September 1, 1954, from a heart attack, led to Strom Thurmond being elected senator. Early life and family Maybank was born in Charleston, South Carolina, into one of the city's most prominent and wealthy families. He was the direct descendant of five former South Carolina governors: Thomas Smith, Rawlins Lowndes, Robert Gibbes, James Moore and William Aiken, Jr. Additionally, he was related to U.S. Senator Robert Barnwell Rhett. Maybank graduated from the Porter Military Academy (now known as Porter-Gaud) and went on to earn a degree from the College of Charleston. He served in the United States Navy during World War I. Burnet Maybank was born to Dr. Joseph Maybank VI and Harriet Lowndes Rhett, the first of ten. He married Elizabeth deRosset Myers on June 28, 1923. They had three children: a son, Burnet, and two daughters, Elizabeth and Roberta. After the death of his first wife Maybank remarried, but the second marriage produced no children. His son, Burnet R. Maybank Jr., later held the office of lieutenant governor of South Carolina, as well as serving as a legislator in the General Assembly and as candidate for governor. Career Mayor of Charleston Prior to becoming interested in politics and public service, Maybank had established himself in the cotton export business from 1920 to 1938. A lifelong Democrat, Maybank entered politics for the first time in 1927, when he was elected to a four-year term as alderman in Charleston. He rose to mayor pro tempore in 1930 and was then elected mayor of Charleston in 1931, serving until 1938. As mayor, Maybank balanced the budget during the Great Depression. He refused an increase of his own salary to $6,000 from $3,600, and reduced local taxes. Maybank took advantage of federal financing under President Franklin D. Roosevelt's administration for slum clearance, construction of public housing and other infrastructure, and support for unemployment payments. He also used a Works Progress Administration (WPA) grant to