Rockefeller, Nelson

Rockefeller, Nelson (Aldrich)

(born July 8, 1908, Bar Harbor, Maine, U.S.—died Jan. 26, 1979, New York, N.Y.) U.S. politician. A grandson of John D. Rockefeller, he worked for several family enterprises, including Creole Petroleum in Venezuela (1935–40). He became coordinator of inter-American affairs at the U.S. State Department (1940–44), assistant secretary of state (1944–45), and undersecretary of health, education, and welfare (1953–55). As governor of New York (1959–73), he oversaw expansion of the state's fiscal, cultural, and educational systems. He sought the Republican Party presidential nomination in 1964 and 1968. He served as U.S. vice president (1974–77) under Gerald Ford. A major art patron, he founded the Museum of Primitive Art (later incorporated into the Metropolitan Museum of Art).