Most people from Idaho know Cecil Andrus for his two terms as governor of the state or as Secretary of the Interior during the Carter Administration. Many do not know that he lived in Orofino and worked in the timber industry for a number of years. He was also active in the local Veterans of Foreign Wars Post #3296 and served as Post Commander from 1959-1960.

Andrus was born in Hood River, OR and attended Oregon State University. He served in the United States Naval Reserves from 1951 to 1955. After being discharged from the U.S. Navy, Andrus moved to Orofino.

He got involved in politics because he was upset over the local Republican state senator's stance on education, in 1960 while living in Orofino, Andrus filed as a Democrat to run against him for the Idaho State Senate and won. He was re-elected in 1962 and 1964.

Andrus ran for governor in 1966 but was narrowly defeated in the Democratic primary by Salmon attorney Charles Herndon. Andrus was appointed the replacement nominee after Herndon died in a plane crash while en route from Twin Falls to Coeur d'Alene in September 1966. Andrus lost the general election to Republican Don Samuelson, earning him the distinction of losing a gubernatorial primary and general election in the same year. He was re-elected to the Idaho State Senate in 1968.

He later was elected and served as governor from 1971-77, served as Secretary of the Interior from 1977-80 and was again elected as governor and served from 1987-95. Natural resource issues such as the impacts of molybdenum mining and disposal of nuclear waste were important to him.

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