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Herbert Brown Maw (1893-1990) was born in Ogden, Utah. His family later moved to Salt Lake City where he attended LDS High School and the University of Utah Law School. During World War I (1917-1919) he served as a Mormon chaplain in the military. He married Florence Buehler in 1921, and they had four children. He later received a master's degree and a doctor of law degree from Northwestern University.

Maw taught at LDS Business College from 1916-1917 and in 1919-1923. He was a Professor of Speech and Political Science at the University of Utah from 1927 until 1940. Maw also acted as Dean of Men at the University of Utah from 1928 until 1936. Maw served 10 years in the Utah State Senate and was its president during 1934-38. As a state senator he advocated direct primary elections, old-age assistance programs, and government control of public utilities. A member of the Democratic party's liberal wing, he failed in three attempts to win his party's gubernatorial nomination against conservatives, including Governor Henry Blood.

In 1940, Maw defeated Republican Don B. Colton and began his first term as Governor of Utah. Maw's first act as governor was to reorganize the executive branch. He cut many commissions, boards, and bureaus and replaced them with fewer departments. Under this reorganization the Publicity and Industrial Development Department was created. The department built access roads to scenic attractions for movie makers and built a natural history museum in Vernal, Utah. Response to World War II was a major issue during Maw's terms. He succeeded in bringing military facilities and related industries to Utah. The much needed jobs and activity helped Utah end a decade-long economic slump. Governor Maw's stance on Japanese relocation was more ambiguous. He opposed resettlement of voluntary West Coast evacuees on the Wasatch Front, but vetoed legislation prohibiting some Topaz residents from acquiring land in Utah or leaving the internment camp. However, he did approve a bill prohibiting Japanese aliens from owning or leasing land on a long-term basis.

In 1944 Maw was narrowly re-elected over Republican J. Bracken Lee in one of the closest gubernatorial elections in Utah History. During Maw's second term, he sponsored a major highway building program and approved creation of a state water and power board to oversee development of Colorado River water in Utah. Maw directed funding for the Pioneer Centennial celebration in 1947 and completion of the "This Is the Place Monument" at the mouth of Emigration Canyon. The state's handling of welfare, a highly publicized case against two state liquor system employees, and a backfired campaign letter to Mormon leaders seeking support helped lead to Maw's defeat by Republican J. Bracken Lee in 1948.

Maw sought a U.S. Senate seat in 1956 but was defeated in the primary. He was a faithful member of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints and served as a mission president after his terms as Governor. He then retired to private law practice until his nineties. He died in 1990.