Past Secretaries of the Interior

Since its founding in 1849, the U.S. Department of the Interior has been led by 53 past secretaries:

  1. Thomas Ewing 1849-1850
  2. Thomas M.T. McKennan 1850
  3. Alexander H.H. Stuart 1850-1853
  4. Robert McClelland 1853-1857
  5. Jacob Thompson 1857-1861
  6. Caleb B. Smith 1861-1862
  7. John P. Usher 1863-1865
  8. James Harlan 1865-1866
  9. Orville H. Browning 1866-1869
  10. Jacob D. Cox 1869-1870
  11. Columbus Delano 1870-1875
  12. Zachariah Chandler 1875-1877
  13. Carl Schurz 1877-1881
  14. Samuel J. Kirkwood 1881-1882
  15. Henry M. Teller 1882-1885
  16. Lucius Q.C. Lamar 1885-1888
  17. William F. Vilas 1888-1889
  18. John W. Noble 1889-1893
  19. Michael H. Smith 1893-1896
  20. David R. Francis 1896-1897
  21. Cornelius N. Bliss 1897-1899
  22. Ethan A. Hitchcock 1899-1907
  23. James R. Garfield 1907-1909
  24. Richard A. Ballinger 1909-1911
  25. Walter Lowrie Fisher 1911-1913
  26. Franklin K. Lane 1913-1920
  27. John B. Payne 1920 -1921
  28. Albert B. Fall 1921-1923
  29. Hubert Work 1923-1928
  30. Roy O. West 1928-1929
  31. Ray L. Wilbur 1929-1933
  32. Harold L. Ickes 1933-1946
  33. Julius A. Krug 1946-1949
  34. Oscar L. Chapman 1949-1953
  35. Douglas McKay 1953-1956
  36. Fred A. Seaton 1956-1961
  37. Stewart L. Udall 1961-1969
  38. Walter Hickel 1969-1970
  39. Rogers C. B. Morton 1971-1975
  40. Stanley K. Hathaway 1975
  41. Thomas S. Kleppe 1975-1977
  42. Cecil B. Andrus 1977-1981
  43. James G. Watt 1981-1983
  44. William P. Clark 1983-1985
  45. Donald P. Hodel 1985-1989
  46. Manuel Lujan, Jr. 1989-1993
  47. Bruce Babbitt 1993-2001
  48. Gale A. Norton 2001-2006
  49. Dirk Kempthorne 2006-2009
  50. Ken Salazar 2009-2013
  51. Sally Jewell 2013-2017
  52. Ryan Zinke 2017-2019
  53. David Bernhardt 2019-2021

Thomas Ewing
Born: December 28, 1789, in West Liberty, Ohio County, Virginia
Appointed from: Ohio
Nominated: Unknown
Confirmed: Unknown
Took Office: March 8, 1849
Served Under: President Zachary Taylor; President Millard Fillmore
Left Office: July 22, 1850
Length of Service: 1 year, 4 months, 15 days
Died: October 26, 1871
Interment: St. Mary's Cemetery, Lancaster, Ohio

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Thomas McKean Thompson McKennan
Born: December 31, 1794, in New Castle, Delaware
Appointed from: Pennsylvania
Nominated: Unknown
Confirmed: Unknown
Took Office: August 15, 1850
Served Under: President Millard Fillmore
Left Office: August 26, 1850
Length of Service: 12 days
Died: July 9, 1852
Interment: Washington Cemetery, Washington, Pennsylvania

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Alexander Hugh Holmes Stuart
Born: April 2, 1807, in Staunton, Virginia
Appointed from: Virginia
Nominated: Unknown
Confirmed: Unknown
Served Under: President Millard Fillmore
Left Office: March 7, 1853
Length of Service: 2 years, 5 months, 21 days
Died: February 13, 1891
Interment: Thornrose Cemetery, Staunton, Virginia


Robert McClelland
Born: August 1, 1807, in Franklin County, Pennsylvania
Appointed from: Michigan
Nominated: Unknown
Confirmed: Unknown
Took Office: March 8, 1853
Served Under: President Franklin Pierce
Left Office: March 9, 1857
Length of Service: 4 years, 2 days
Died: August 30, 1880
Interment: Elwood Cemetery, Detroit, Michigan


Jacob Thompson
Born: May 15, 1810, Leasburg, in Caswell County, North Carolina
Appointed from: Mississippi
Nominated: Unknown
Confirmed: Unknown
Took Office: March 10, 1857
Served Under: President James Buchanan
Left Office: January 8, 1861
Length of Service: 3 years, 9 months, 29 days
Died: March 24, 1885
Interment: Elmwood Cemetery, Memphis, Tennessee

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Caleb Blood Smith
Born: April 16, 1808, in Boston, Massachusetts
Appointed from: Indiana
Nominated: Unknown
Confirmed: Unknown
Took Office: March 5, 1861
Served Under: President Abraham Lincoln
Left Office: December 31, 1862
Length of Service: 1 year, 9 months, 26 days
Died: January 7, 1864
Interment: City Cemetery, Connersville, Indiana

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John Palmer Usher
Born: January 9, 1816, in Brookfield, Madison County, New York
Appointed from: Indiana
Nominated: Unknown
Confirmed: Unknown
Took Office: January 1, 1863
Served Under: President Abraham Lincoln
Left Office: May 15, 1865
Length of Service: 2 years, 4 months, 15 days
Died: April 13, 1889
Interment: Oak Hill Cemetery, Lawrence, Kansas

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James Harlan
Born: August 26, 1820, in Clark County, Illinois
Appointed from: Iowa
Nominated: Unknown
Confirmed: Unknown
Took Office: May 16, 1865
Served Under: President Andrew Johnson
Left Office: August 31, 1866
Length of Service: 1 year, 3 months, 15 days
Died: October 5, 1899
Interment: Forest Home Cemetery, Henry County, Iowa

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Orville Hickman Browning
Born: February 10, 1806, in Cynthiana, Harrison County, Kentucky
Appointed from: Illinois
Nominated: Unknown
Confirmed: Unknown
Took Office: September 1, 1866
Served Under: President Andrew Johnson
Left Office: March 4, 1869
Length of Service: 2 years, 6 months, 4 days
Died: August 10, 1881
Interment: Woodland Cemetery, Quincy, Illinois

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Jacob Dolson Cox
Born: October 27, 1828, in Montreal, Canada
Appointed from: Ohio
Nominated: Unknown
Confirmed: Unknown
Took Office: March 5, 1869
Served Under: President Ulysses S. Grant
Left Office: October 31, 1870
Length of Service: 1 year, 7 months, 26 days
Died: August 4, 1900
Interment: Grove Cemetery, Cincinnati, Ohio

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Columbus Delano
Born: June 5, 1809, in Shoreham, Vermont
Appointed from: Ohio
Nominated: Unknown
Confirmed: Unknown
Took Office: November 1, 1870
Served Under: President Ulysses S. Grant
Left Office: September 30, 1875
Length of Service: 4 years, 11 months
Died: October 23, 1896
Interment: Mt. Vernon Cemetery, Mt. View, Ohio

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Zachariah Chandler
Born: December 10, 1813, in Bedford, New Hampshire
Appointed from: Michigan
Nominated: Unknown
Confirmed: Unknown
Took Office: October 19, 1875
Served Under: President Ulysses S. Grant
Left Office: March 11, 1877
Length of Service: 1 year, 4 months, 23 days
Died: November 1, 1879
Interment: Elmwood Cemetery, Detroit, Michigan

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Carl Schurz
Born: March 2, 1829, in Liblar, near Cologne, Germany
Appointed from: Missouri
Nominated: Unknown
Confirmed: Unknown
Took Office: March 12, 1877
Served Under: President Rutherford B. Hayes
Left Office: March 7, 1881
Length of Service: 3 years, 11 months, 26 days
Died: May 14, 1906
Interment: Sleepy Hollow Cemetery, Tarrytown, New York

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Samuel Jordan Kirkwood
Born: December 20, 1813, in Harford County, Maryland
Appointed from: Iowa
Nominated: Unknown
Confirmed: Unknown
Took Office: March 8, 1881
Served Under: President James A. Garfield; President Chester A. Arthur
Left Office: April 17, 1882
Length of Service: 1 year, 1 month, 9 days
Died: September 1, 1894
Interment: Oakland Cemetery, Iowa City, Iowa

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Henry Moore Teller
Born: May 23, 1830, in Granger, Allegany County, New York
Appointed from: Colorado
Nominated: Unknown
Confirmed: Unknown
Took Office: April 18, 1882
Served Under: President Chester A. Arthur
Left Office: March 3, 1885
Length of Service: 2 years, 10 months, 16 days
Died: February 23, 1914
Interment: Fairmount Cemetery, Denver, Colorado

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Lucius Quintus Cincinnatus Lamar
Born: September 17, 1825, in Eatonton, Putnam County, Georgia
Appointed from: Mississippi
Nominated: Unknown
Took Office: March 6, 1885
Served Under: President Grover Cleveland
Left Office: January 10, 1888
Length of Service: 2 years, 10 months, 5 days
Died: January 23, 1893
Interment: St. Peter's Cemetery, Oxford, Mississippi

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William Freeman Vilas
Born: July 9, 1840, in Chelsea, Orange County, Vermont
Appointed from: Wisconsin
Nominated: December 12, 1887
Confirmed: January 10, 1888
Took Office: January 16, 1888
Served Under: President Grover Cleveland
Left Office: March 6, 1889
Length of Service: 1 year, 1 month, 21 days
Died: August 28, 1908
Interment: Forest Hill Cemetery, Madison, Wisconsin

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John Willock Noble
Born: October 26, 1831, in Lancaster, Ohio
Appointed from: Missouri
Nominated: March 5, 1889
Confirmed: March 5, 1889
Took Office: March 7, 1889
Served Under: President Benjamin Harrison
Left Office: March 6, 1893
Length of Service: 4 years
Died: March 22, 1912, St. Louis, Missouri
Interment: Bellefontaine Cemetery, St. Louis, Missouri

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Michael Hoke Smith
Born: September 2, 1855, in Newton, Catawba County, North Carolina
Appointed from: Georgia
Nominated: March 6, 1893
Confirmed: March 6, 1893
Took Office: March 6, 1893
Served Under: President Grover Cleveland
Left Office: September 1, 1896
Length of Service: 3 years, 5 months, 26 days
Died: November 22, 1931
Interment: Oakland Cemetery, Atlanta, Georgia

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David Rowland Francis
Born: October 1850, in Richmond, Kentucky
Appointed from: Missouri
Nominated: December 9, 1896
Confirmed: January 18, 1897
Took Office: September 3, 1896
Served Under: President Grover Cleveland
Left Office: March 5, 1897
Length of Service: 6 months, 3 days
Died: January 15, 1927
Interment: Bellefontaine Cemetery, St. Louis, Missouri

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Cornelius Newton Bliss
Born: January 26, 1833, in Fall River, Massachusetts
Appointed from: New York
Nominated: March 5, 1897
Confirmed: March 5, 1897
Took Office: March 6, 1897
Served Under: President William McKinley
Left Office: February 19, 1899
Length of Service: 1 year, 11 months, 14 days
Died: October 9, 1911
Interment: Woodlawn Cemetery, Bronx, New York

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Ethan Allen Hitchcock
Born: September 19, 1835, in Mobile, Alabama
Appointed from: Missouri
Nominated: December 21, 1898
Confirmed: December 21, 1898
Took Office: February 20, 1899
Served Under: President William McKinley; President Theodore Roosevelt
Left Office: March 4, 1907
Length of Service: 8 years, 14 days
Died: April 9, 1909, Washington, D.C.
Interment: Bellefontaine Cemetery, St. Louis, Missouri

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James Rudolph Garfield
Born: October 17, 1865, in Hiram, Ohio
Appointed from: Ohio
Nominated: December 3, 1906
Confirmed: January 15, 1907
Took Office: March 5, 1907
Served Under: President Theodore Roosevelt; President William H. Taft
Left Office: March 5, 1909
Length of Service: 2 years, 1 day
Died: March 24, 1950
Interment: Mentor Municipal Cemetery, Mentor, Ohio

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Richard Achilles Ballinger
Born: July 9, 1858, in Boonesboro, Iowa
Appointed from: Washington
Nominated: March 5, 1909
Confirmed: March 5, 1909
Took Office: March 6, 1909
Served Under: President William H. Taft
Left Office: March 12, 1911
Length of Service: 2 years, 7 days
Died: June 6, 1922, Seattle, Washington
Interment: Lake View Cemetery, Seattle, Washington

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Walter Lowrie Fisher
Born: July 4, 1862, in Wheeling, Virginia (now West Virginia)
Appointed from: Illinois
Nominated: April 13, 1911
Confirmed: April 17, 1911
Took Office: March 13, 1911
Served Under: President William H. Taft
Left Office: March 5, 1913
Length of Service: 1 year, 11 months, 23 days
Died: November 9, 1935
Interment: Hanover, Indiana

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Franklin Knight Lane
Born: July 15, 1864, in DeSable Prince Edward Island, Canada
Appointed from: California
Nominated: March 5, 1913
Confirmed: March 5, 1913
Took Office: March 6, 1913
Served Under: President Woodrow Wilson
Termination: February 29, 1920
Length of Service: 6 years, 11 months, 24 days
Died: May 18, 1921, Rochester, Minnesota
Interment: Ashes scattered over Yosemite

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John Barton Payne
Born: January 26, 1855, in Pruntytown, Virginia (now West Virginia)
Appointed from: Illinois
Nominated: February 14, 1920
Confirmed: February 28, 1920
Took Office: March 15, 1920
Served Under: President Woodrow Wilson
Left Office: March 4, 1921
Length of Service: 11 months, 20 days
Died: January 24, 1935
Interment: Oak Hill Cemetery, Washington, D.C.

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Albert Bacon Fall
Born: November 26, 1861, in Frankfort, Kentucky
Appointed from: New Mexico
Nominated: March 4, 1921
Confirmed: March 4, 1921
Took Office: March 5, 1921
Served Under: President Warren G. Harding
Left Office: March 4, 1923
Length of Service: 2 years
Died: November 30, 1944
Interment: Evergreen Cemetery, Three Rivers, New Mexico

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Hubert Work
Born: July 3, 1860, in Marion Center, Indiana County, Pennsylvania
Appointed from: Colorado
Nominated: February 27, 1923
Confirmed: February 27, 1923
Took Office: March 5, 1923
Served Under: President Warren G. Harding; President Calvin Coolidge
Left Office: July 24, 1928
Length of Service: 5 years, 4 months, 20 days
Died: December 14, 1942
Interment: Arlington National Cemetery, Arlington, Virginia

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Roy Owen West
Born: October 27, 1868, Georgetown, Illinois
Appointed from: Illinois
Nominated: December 6, 1928
Confirmed: July 20, 1928
Took Office: July 25, 1928
Served Under: Pres. Calvin Coolidge
Left Office: March 4, 1929
Length of Service: 7 months, 9 days
Died: November 29, 1958
Interment: Rosehill Cemetery, Chicago, Illinois

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Ray Lyman Wilbur
Born: April 13, 1875, Boonesboro, Iowa
Appointed from: California
Nominated: March 5, 1929
Confirmed: March 5, 1929
Took Office: March 5, 1929
Served Under: Pres. Herbert C. Hoover
Left Office: March 4, 1933
Length of Service: 4 years
Died: June 26, 1949
Interment: Alta Mesa Memorial Park, Palo Alto, California

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Harold LeClair Ickes
Born: March 15, 1874, in Frankstown Township, Blair County, Pennsylvania
Appointed from: Illinois
Nominated: March 4, 1933
Confirmed: March 4, 1933
Took Office: March 4, 1933
Served Under: President Franklin D. Roosevelt; President Harry S. Truman
Left Office: February 15, 1946
Length of Service: 12 years, 11 months, 12 days
Died: February 3, 1952
Interment: Sandy Springs, Maryland

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Julius Albert Krug
Born: November 23, 1907, in Madison, Wisconsin
Appointed from: Wisconsin
Nominated: February 26, 1946
Confirmed: March 5, 1946
Took Office: March 18, 1946
Served Under: President Harry S. Truman
Left Office: December 1, 1949
Length of Service: 3 years, 8 months, 14 days
Died: March 26, 1970
Interment: Arlington National Cemetery, Arlington, Virginia

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Oscar Littleton Chapman
Born: October 22, 1896, in Omega, Halifax County, Virginia
Appointed from: Colorado
Nominated: January 5, 1950
Confirmed: January 18, 1950
Took Office: December 1, 1949
Served Under: Pres. Harry S. Truman
Left Office: January 20, 1953
Length of Service: 3 years, 1 month, 20 days
Died: February 8, 1978
Interment: Arlington National Cemetery, Arlington, Virginia

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Douglas McKay
Born: June 24, 1893, in Portland, Oregon
Appointed from: Oregon
Nominated: January 20, 1953
Confirmed: January 21, 1953
Took Office: January 21, 1953
Served Under: President Dwight D. Eisenhower
Left Office: April 15, 1956
Length of Service: 3 years, 2 months, 25 days
Died: July 22, 1959
Interment: Bellcrest Memorial Cemetery, Salem, Oregon

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Fred Andrew Seaton
Born: December 11, 1909, in Washington, D.C.
Appointed from: Nebraska
Nominated: May 28, 1956
Confirmed: June 5, 1956
Took Office: June 8, 1956
Served Under: President Dwight D. Eisenhower
Left Office: January 20, 1961
Length of Service: 4 years, 7 months, 13 days
Died: January 16, 1974
Interment: Parkview Memorial Cemetery, Hastings, Nebraska

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Stewart Lee Udall
Born: January 31, 1920, in St. Johns, Arizona
Appointed from: Arizona
Nominated: January 21, 1961
Confirmed: January 21, 1961
Took Office: January 21, 1961
Served Under: President John F. Kennedy; President Lyndon B. Johnson
Left Office: January 20, 1969
Length of Service: 8 years
Interment: March 20, 2010

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Walter J. Hickel
Born: August 18, 1919, in Ellinwood, Kansas
Appointed from: Alaska
Nominated: December 11, 1968
Confirmed: January 23, 1969
Took Office: January 24, 1969
Served Under: President Richard M. Nixon
Termination: November 25, 1970
Length of Service: 1 year, 10 months, 2 days
Died: May 7, 2010
Interment: Anchorage Memorial Park Cemetery, Anchorage, Alaska

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Rogers Clark Ballard Morton
Born: September 19, 1914, in Louisville, Kentucky
Appointed from: Maryland
Nominated: January 25, 1971
Confirmed: January 28, 1971
Took Office: January 29, 1971
Served Under: President Richard M. Nixon; President Gerald R. Ford
Termination: April 30, 1975
Length of Service: 4 years, 3 months, 2 days
Died: April 19, 1979
Interment: Wye Church Churchyard, Talbot County, Maryland

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Stanley K. Hathaway
Born: July 19, 1924, in Osceola, Nebraska
Appointed from: Wyoming
Nominated: April 4, 1975
Confirmed: June 11, 1975
Took Office: June 12, 1975
Served Under: President Gerald R. Ford
Left Office: October 9, 1975
Length of Service: 3 months, 26 days
Died: October 4, 2005
Interment: Valley View Cemetery, Goshen County, Wyoming

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Thomas S. Kleppe
Born: July 1, 1919, in Kintyre, North Dakota
Appointed from: North Dakota
Nominated: September 9, 1975
Confirmed: October 9, 1975
Took Office: October 17, 1975
Served Under: President Gerald R. Ford
Left Office: January 20, 1977
Length of Service: 1 year, 3 months, 4 days
Died: March 2, 2007
Interment: Arlington National Cemetery, Arlington, Virginia

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Cecil D. Andrus
Born: August 25, 1931, in Hood River, Oregon
Appointed from: Idaho
Nominated: December 18, 1976
Confirmed: January 20, 1977
Took Office: January 23, 1977
Served Under: President Jimmy Carter
Left Office: January 20, 1981
Length of Service: 3 years, 11 months, 28 days
Died: August 24, 2017

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James G. Watt
Born: January 31, 1938, in Lusk, Wyoming
Appointed from: Colorado
Nominated: January 20, 1981
Confirmed: January 22, 1981
Took Office: January 23, 1981
Served Under: President Ronald Reagan
Left Office: November 8, 1983
Length of Service: 2 years, 9 months, 16 days
Died: May 27, 2023

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William Patrick Clark
Born: October 23, 1931, in Oxnard, California
Appointed from: California
Nominated: October 13, 1983
Confirmed: November 18, 1983
Took Office: November 18, 1983
Served Under: President Ronald Reagan
Left Office: February 7, 1985
Length of Service: 1 year, 2 months, 20 days
Died: August 10, 2013

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Donald Paul Hodel
Born: May 23, 1935, in Portland, Oregon
Appointed from: Oregon
Nominated: January 10, 1985
Confirmed: February 6, 1985
Took Office: February 8, 1985
Served Under: President Ronald Reagan
Left Office: January 20, 1989
Length of Service: 3 years, 11 months, 12 days

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Manuel Luján, Jr.
Born: May 12, 1928, in San Ildefonso Pueblo, New Mexico
Appointed from: New Mexico
Nominated: December 22, 1988
Confirmed: February 2, 1989
Took Office: February 3, 1989
Served Under: President George H. W. Bush
Left Office: January 20, 1993
Length of Service: 3 years, 11 months, 17 days
Died: April 25, 2019
Interment: Gate of Heaven Catholic Cemetery, Albuquerque, New Mexico

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Bruce Babbitt
Born: June 27, 1938, in Flagstaff, Arizona
Appointed from: Arizona
Nominated: December 27, 1992
Confirmed: January 22, 1993
Took Office: January 22, 1993
Served Under: President William J. Clinton
Left Office: January 2, 2001
Length of Service: 8 years

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Gale A. Norton
Born: March 11, 1954, in Wichita, Kansas
Appointed from: Colorado
Nominated: December 29, 2000
Confirmed: January 30, 2001
Took Office: January 31, 2001
Served Under: President George W. Bush
Left Office: March 31, 2006
Length of Service: 5 years, 2 months

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Dirk Kempthorne
Born: October 29, 1951, in San Diego, California
Appointed from: Idaho
Nominated: December 29, 2000
Confirmed: May 26, 2006
Took Office: May 29, 2006
Served Under: President George W. Bush
Left Office: January 19, 2009
Length of Service: 2 years, 7 months

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Ken Salazar
Born: March 2, 1955, in Alamosa, Colorado
Appointed from: Colorado
Nominated: January 20, 2009
Confirmed: January 20, 2009
Took Office: January 20, 2009
Served Under: President Barack Obama
Left Office: April 12, 2013
Length of Service: 4 years, 2+ months

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Sally Jewell
Born: February 21, 1956, in London, UK
Appointed from: Washington
Nominated: February 6, 2013
Confirmed: April 10, 2013
Took Office: April 12, 2013
Served Under: President Barack Obama
Left Office: January 20, 2017
Length of Service: 3 years, 9+ months

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Ryan Zinke
Born: November 1, 1961, in Bozeman, Montana
Appointed from: Montana
Nominated: December 13, 2016
Confirmed: March 1, 2017
Took Office: March 2, 2017
Served Under: President Donald J. Trump
Left Office: January 2, 2019
Length of Service: 1 year, 10 months

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David Bernhardt
Born: August 17, 1969, in Rifle, Colorado
Appointed from: Colorado
Nominated: February 4, 2019
Confirmed: April 11, 2019
Took Office: April 11, 2019
Served Under: President Donald J. Trump
Left Office: January 20, 2021
Length of Service: 1 year, 9+ months

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