Barbara Snelling

Barbara W. Snelling
78th Lieutenant Governor of Vermont
In office
January 7, 1993 – January 9, 1997
GovernorHoward Dean
Preceded byHoward Dean
Succeeded byDoug Racine
Member of the Vermont State Senate from the Chittenden district
In office
1999–2002
Succeeded byDiane B. Snelling
First Lady of Vermont
In role
January 10, 1991 – August 13, 1991
GovernorRichard A. Snelling
Preceded byArthur Kunin (as First Gentleman)
Succeeded byJudith Steinberg Dean
In role
January 6, 1977 – January 10, 1985
GovernorRichard A. Snelling
Preceded byMadge Salmon
Succeeded byArthur Kunin (as First Gentleman)
Personal details
BornBarbara Tuttle Weil
(1928-03-22)March 22, 1928
DiedNovember 2, 2015(2015-11-02) (aged 87)
PartyRepublican
Spouse
​
​
(m. 1947; died 1991)​
Children4, including Diane
EducationSmith College
Radcliffe College

Barbara Tuttle Snelling (née Weil; March 22, 1928 – November 2, 2015) was an American politician who served as the 78th lieutenant governor of Vermont from 1993 to 1997. She suffered a cerebral hemorrhage in 1996 while campaigning for governor. She was elected to the Vermont State Senate in 1998, where she served until she suffered a second stroke; she resigned in 2002. The wife of governor Richard A. Snelling, she served as the First Lady of Vermont from 1977 to 1985 and again for 215 days in 1991.

Life and career

Snelling was born Barbara Tuttle Weil in 1928 in Fall River, Massachusetts, the daughter of Hazel (née Russell) and The Reverend F. Taylor Weil. She attended Smith College for two years before transferring to Radcliffe College, from which she received her Bachelor of Arts degree Magna Cum Laude in 1950.

She served as chair of the Shelburne School Board; as Founding Chair of Champlain Valley Union High School Board. She was member of the State Board of Education; President of the Vermont State School Boards Association; Vermont Commission on Alcohol and Drug Rehabilitation; Chair of the Chittenden County United Way.

She was a founding trustee of the Vermont Community Foundation; a trustee of Champlain College and Radcliffe College. She was a trustee of the Shelburne Museum.

She was Vice President of the University of Vermont and later was President of Snelling and Kolb, a national fundraising consulting firm focused of development work for educational institutions.

On June 14, 1947, at age 19, she married 20-year-old Richard A. Snelling, who would later served four full terms as governor of Vermont and died in office during his fifth term on August 13, 1991. Their children included Jacqueline, Mark, Andrew, and Diane, who was appointed to Snelling's seat in the State Senate.

Richard's death sparked Barbara's decision to enter politics herself. She was elected Lieutenant Governor of Vermont in 1992, and re-elected in 1994. She announced her candidacy for Governor of Vermont in 1996, but withdrew from the race in June after suffering a cerebral hemorrhage in April of that year. Democratic incumbent Howard Dean, who assumed the office after Richard Snelling's death, won election to his third full term.

Snelling died at her home in South Burlington, Vermont on November 2, 2015.

See also

Notes

  1. ↑ "Vermont Legislative Directory and State Manual". January 19, 2007. Retrieved November 2, 2015.
  2. ↑ "Former Lt. Gov. Barbara Snelling dies at 87". Burlington Free Press. Retrieved March 13, 2018.
  3. ↑ Annual Report 2012: Radcliffe Institute for Advanced Study (PDF). Cambridge, MA: Harvard University. 2012. p. 49. Archived from the original (PDF) on June 14, 2018. Retrieved November 29, 2020.
  4. ↑ "Celebration of Barbara Snelling's life is Nov. 13 at Statehouse". Vermont Seven Days. Burlington, VT. November 5, 2015.
  5. ↑ Archived August 28, 2008, at the Wayback Machine
  6. 1 2 Vermont politician stricken. The Telegraph-Herald. April 15, 1996.
  7. ↑ "Snelling drops out". Bennington Banner. June 13, 1996. p. 1. Retrieved October 16, 2026.
  8. ↑ Gram, Dave (November 2, 2015). "Former Lt. Gov. Barbara Snelling dies at 87". Burlingtonfreepress.com. Retrieved November 2, 2015.