William Venroe Chappell Jr. (February 3, 1922 – March 30, 1989) was an American Democratic politician from

Florida Florida is a state located in the Southeastern region of the United States. Florida is bordered to the west by the Gulf of Mexico, to the northwest by Alabama, to the north by Georgia, to the east by the Bahamas and Atlantic Ocean, and to ...

who served in the

U.S. House of Representatives The United States House of Representatives, often referred to as the House of Representatives, the U.S. House, or simply the House, is the lower chamber of the United States Congress, with the Senate being the upper chamber. Together they ...

from 1969 to 1989.

Early life, education and military service

Born in Kendrick, Florida, Chappell graduated from the

University of Florida The University of Florida (Florida or UF) is a public land-grant research university in Gainesville, Florida. It is a senior member of the State University System of Florida, traces its origins to 1853, and has operated continuously on its ...

with a

Bachelor of Arts Bachelor of arts (BA or AB; from the Latin ', ', or ') is a bachelor's degree awarded for an undergraduate program in the arts, or, in some cases, other disciplines. A Bachelor of Arts degree course is generally completed in three or four years ...

in 1947 and a

Bachelor of Laws Bachelor of Laws ( la, Legum Baccalaureus; LL.B.) is an undergraduate law degree in the United Kingdom and most common law jurisdictions. Bachelor of Laws is also the name of the law degree awarded by universities in the People's Republic of Chi ...

in 1949. The

was exchanged for a

Juris Doctor The Juris Doctor (J.D. or JD), also known as Doctor of Jurisprudence (J.D., JD, D.Jur., or DJur), is a graduate-entry professional degree in law and one of several Doctor of Law degrees. The J.D. is the standard degree obtained to practice law ...

in 1967. He served in the

United States Navy The United States Navy (USN) is the maritime service branch of the United States Armed Forces and one of the eight uniformed services of the United States. It is the largest and most powerful navy in the world, with the estimated tonnage ...

, aviator from 1942 to 1946. He retired as a captain from

United States Navy Reserve The United States Navy Reserve (USNR), known as the United States Naval Reserve from 1915 to 2005, is the Reserve Component (RC) of the United States Navy. Members of the Navy Reserve, called Reservists, are categorized as being in either the Sele ...

in 1983.

Legal career and government service

Chappell began his legal career as a prosecuting attorney in Marion County from 1950 to 1954. He later was a member of the law firm of Chappell and Rowland in Ocala. Chappell represented Marion County in the

Florida House of Representatives The Florida House of Representatives is the lower house of the Florida Legislature, the state legislature of the U.S. state of Florida, the Florida Senate being the upper house. Article III, Section 1 of the Constitution of Florida, adopted ...

from 1954 to 1964, and served as

Speaker of the House The speaker of a deliberative assembly, especially a legislative body, is its presiding officer, or the chair. The title was first used in 1377 in England. Usage The title was first recorded in 1377 to describe the role of Thomas de Hungerf ...

from 1961 to 1963. He did not seek reelection in 1964 but was elected again in 1966 from a district encompassing Marion,

Citrus ''Citrus'' is a genus of flowering plant, flowering trees and shrubs in the rue family, Rutaceae. Plants in the genus produce citrus fruits, including important crops such as Orange (fruit), oranges, Lemon, lemons, grapefruits, pomelos, and lim ...

, Hernando, and Sumter Counties.

Congressional career

When incumbent Congressman Syd Herlong retired in 1968, Chappell ran for and was elected to

Florida's 4th congressional district Florida's 4th congressional district is a congressional district in northeastern Florida, encompassing Nassau and parts of Duval and St. Johns counties. The district is currently represented by Republican Aaron Bean. As part of the 2020 redi ...

. He was re-elected nine times. Chappell was a moderate to conservative Democrat and served on the

United States House Appropriations Committee The United States House Committee on Appropriations is a committee of the United States House of Representatives that is responsible for passing appropriation bills along with its Senate counterpart. The bills passed by the Appropriations Comm ...

. At the time of his defeat he was serving as chairman of the United States House Appropriations Subcommittee on Defense. He was defeated in the 1988 general election by Republican Craig James, losing narrowly 50.2–49.8%.

Personal life and legacy

Chappell married the former Jeane Brown on September 28, 1985. He was a resident of

Ocala, Florida Ocala ( ) is a city in and the county seat of Marion County within the northern region of Florida, United States. As of the 2020 United States Census, the city's population was 63,591, making it the 54th most populated city in Florida. Home to ...

, until his death in

Bethesda, Maryland Bethesda () is an unincorporated, census-designated place in southern Montgomery County, Maryland. It is located just northwest of Washington, D.C. It takes its name from a local church, the Bethesda Meeting House (1820, rebuilt 1849), which in ...

, on March 30, 1989 from bone cancer. The

Port Orange Causeway The Port Orange Causeway, commonly called the ''Port Orange Bridge'' or the ''Dunlawton Bridge'', spans the Halifax River and Intracoastal Waterway in Port Orange, Volusia County, Florida. The bridge carries approximately 29,000 vehicles per day a ...

, spanning the Halifax River, in

Port Orange, Florida Port Orange is a city in Volusia County, Florida. The city's population was estimated at 64,842 in 2019 by the U.S. Census Bureau. The city is part of the Deltona–Daytona Beach–Ormond Beach metropolitan area; the metropolitan area's populati ...

, was named the ''Congressman William V. Chappell Jr. Memorial Bridge'' by the Florida Legislature in 1989. The U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs Outpatient Clinic in

Daytona Beach, Florida Daytona Beach, or simply Daytona, is a coastal Resort town, resort-city in east-central Florida. Located on the eastern edge of Volusia County, Florida, Volusia County near the East Coast of the United States, Atlantic coastline, its population ...

was posthumously named after him.

References

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Chappell, Bill 1922 births 1989 deaths People from Marion County, Florida Democratic Party members of the Florida House of Representatives Speakers of the Florida House of Representatives University of Florida alumni Florida lawyers Democratic Party members of the United States House of Representatives from Florida United States Navy officers United States Navy reservists Deaths from bone cancer 20th-century American politicians Fredric G. Levin College of Law alumni Deaths from cancer in Maryland United States Navy pilots of World War II 20th-century American lawyers