Education
Born in Pricetown, Ohio, Gossett attended public schools in Ohio.
Born in Pricetown, Ohio, Gossett attended public schools in Ohio.
He served as the 20th Governor of Idaho and a United States Senator, but was in both offices less than a year. He moved west to Cunningham, Washington, in 1907, to Ontario, Oregon, in 1910, and finally to Nampa, Idaho, in 1922. He engaged in the agriculture, livestock, feed and shipping businesses.
In 1932, Gossett was elected to the Idaho Legislature in the house.
In 1936, he was elected the 22nd and 24th Lieutenant Governor of Idaho, serving alongside Governor Barzilla Clark. Four years later Gossett returned as lieutenant governor under Governor Chase Clark, Barzilla Clark"s younger brother.
Gossett was elected governor in his own right in 1944, the last election for a two-year term, but served less than a year. He resigned in November 1945 to let his successor, Lieutenant Governor Arnold Williams, appoint him to the United States Senate to succeed the late John West. Thomas.
In the special election for the seat in 1946, Gossett was defeated in the Democratic primary in June by state senator George Donart, who in turn was defeated by Republican Congressman Henry Dworshak in the general election in November.
After the loss, Gossett returned to his former business pursuits. Gossett attempted a political comeback in 1954 in a run for governor. At the time, self-succession (re-election) was not allowed, and Len Jordan"s term was ending.
Gossett was defeated in the Democratic gubernatorial primary in August by state senator Clark Hamilton, who in turn lost to Republican Attorney General Robert Smylie in the general election.
Gossett was appointed to the Idaho Tax Commission by Smylie in 1956 and served until 1967. Following an extended illness, Gossett died at age 86 in Boise on September 20, 1974, and is interred at Kohlerlawn Cemetery in Nampa.