Thomas L. Hayes

Thomas L. Hayes (May 30, 1926 – May 5, 1987) was the 71st lieutenant governor of Vermont and a Vermont Supreme Court Justice. He was appointed to the Supreme Court in 1985 by then-Governor Madeleine M. Kunin. Biography Thomas Lawlor Hayes was born in Fair Haven, Vermont, on May 30, 1926. He was educated in Fair Haven, and graduated from Bellows Falls High School. Hayes served in the Army from 1944 to 1946 as an Infantry and Signal Noncommissioned officer in the Pacific Theater. He graduated from the University of Vermont in 1950 and joined the staff of Winston Prouty, who served in the United States House of Representatives and as a United States senator. Hayes remained with Prouty for 15 years and advanced to the position of Administrative Assistant in his Washington office. He received a law degree from Georgetown University in 1955. In 1966 Hayes, then residing in Middlebury, ran unsuccessfully for governor, and lost the Republican nomination to Richard A. Snelling. He was the successful Republican nominee for lieutenant governor in 1968 and served one term, 1969 to 1971. Active in opposition to the Vietnam War, he made national headlines in 1970 when, as acting governor, he ordered Vermont flags lowered to half staff after the killing of four students at Kent State University by National Guard troops. In response Governor Deane Davis returned to Vermont from a conference and countermanded Hayes's directive.