Burr Powell Harrison (July 2, 1904 – December 29, 1973) was a Virginia lawyer, judge and
Democratic politician who was a member of the
Byrd Organization
The Byrd machine, or Byrd organization, was a political machine of the Democratic Party led by former Governor and U.S. Senator Harry F. Byrd (1887–1966) that dominated Virginia politics for much of the 20th century. From the 1890s until the l ...
and served as
U.S. Congressman
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 ...
representing
Virginia's 7th congressional district
Virginia's 7th congressional district is a United States congressional district in the Commonwealth of Virginia. The district is currently represented by Democrat Abigail Spanberger, first elected in 2018.
2016 redistricting
The Virginia ...
(as had his father).
Early and family life
Born in
Winchester, Virginia
Winchester is the most north western independent city in the Commonwealth of Virginia. It is the county seat of Frederick County, although the two are separate jurisdictions. The Bureau of Economic Analysis combines the city of Winchester wit ...
to Virginia lawyer and soon-to-be Congressman
Thomas W. Harrison
Thomas Walter Harrison (August 5, 1856 – May 9, 1935) was a Virginia lawyer, judge and politician. He served in the Senate of Virginia and in the United States House of Representatives.
Early and family life
Born in Leesburg, Loudoun County, ...
and his wife, Burr Harrison was descended from the
First Families of Virginia
First Families of Virginia (FFV) were those families in Colonial Virginia who were socially prominent and wealthy, but not necessarily the earliest settlers. They descended from English colonists who primarily settled at Jamestown, Williamsburg ...
and named for his great-great grandfather Burr William Harrison (1793-1865) who represented
Loudoun County
Loudoun County () is in the northern part of the Commonwealth of Virginia in the United States. In 2020, the census returned a population of 420,959, making it Virginia's third-most populous county. Loudoun County's seat is Leesburg. Loudoun C ...
in the
Virginia General Assembly
The Virginia General Assembly is the legislative body of the Commonwealth of Virginia, the oldest continuous law-making body in the Western Hemisphere, the first elected legislative assembly in the New World, and was established on July 30, 161 ...
in the 1840s and great-great-great-great grandfather
Burr Harrison (patriot)
Burr Harrison (June 16, 1734 – August 2, 1790) was a Virginia planter, soldier and politician who served in the Virginia militia during American Revolutionary War, then two terms in the Virginia House of Delegates representing Prince William C ...
(1734-1790), who represented
Prince William County
Prince William County is located on the Potomac River in the U.S. state of Virginia. As of the 2020 census, the population sits at 482,204, making it Virginia's second-most populous county. Its county seat is the independent city of Manassas ...
and fought in the
American Revolutionary War
The American Revolutionary War (April 19, 1775 – September 3, 1783), also known as the Revolutionary War or American War of Independence, was a major war of the American Revolution. Widely considered as the war that secured the independence of t ...
. This Burr Harrison attended the public schools, then
Woodberry Forest School
Woodberry Forest School is a private, all-male boarding school located in Woodberry Forest, Madison County, Virginia, in the United States. Woodberry's current enrollment is 405. Students come from 28 U.S. states (plus the District of Columbia ...
,
Virginia Military Institute
la, Consilio et Animis (on seal)
, mottoeng = "In peace a glorious asset, In war a tower of strength""By courage and wisdom" (on seal)
, established =
, type = Public senior military college
, accreditation = SACS
, endowment = $696.8 mill ...
,
Hampden-Sydney College
Hampden Sydney is a census-designated place (CDP) in Prince Edward County, Virginia, United States. The population was 1,450 at the 2010 census.
Hampden Sydney is the home of Hampden–Sydney College, a private all-male college that is the tenth- ...
, and the
University of Virginia
The University of Virginia (UVA) is a Public university#United States, public research university in Charlottesville, Virginia. Founded in 1819 by Thomas Jefferson, the university is ranked among the top academic institutions in the United S ...
. He graduated from
Georgetown University
Georgetown University is a private university, private research university in the Georgetown (Washington, D.C.), Georgetown neighborhood of Washington, D.C. Founded by Bishop John Carroll (archbishop of Baltimore), John Carroll in 1789 as Georg ...
Law School,
Washington, D.C.
)
, image_skyline =
, image_caption = Clockwise from top left: the Washington Monument and Lincoln Memorial on the National Mall, United States Capitol, Logan Circle, Jefferson Memorial, White House, Adams Morgan, ...
, in 1926.
Career
Harrison was admitted to the Virginia bar the same year and commenced practice in
Winchester, Virginia
Winchester is the most north western independent city in the Commonwealth of Virginia. It is the county seat of Frederick County, although the two are separate jurisdictions. The Bureau of Economic Analysis combines the city of Winchester wit ...
with his father (who died in 1935). Harrison was the attorney for Frederick County in 1932–1940. During the years 1940–1943, Harrison represented Frederick County (part-time) in
Senate of Virginia
The Senate of Virginia is the upper house of the Virginia General Assembly. The Senate is composed of 40 senators representing an equal number of single-member constituent districts. The Senate is presided over by the lieutenant governor of Virg ...
. His colleagues elected him as judge of the seventeenth judicial circuit and the corporation court of Winchester in 1943–1946.
Voters of
Virginia's 7th congressional district
Virginia's 7th congressional district is a United States congressional district in the Commonwealth of Virginia. The district is currently represented by Democrat Abigail Spanberger, first elected in 2018.
2016 redistricting
The Virginia ...
(which his father had represented during World War I and before the
Great Depression
The Great Depression (19291939) was an economic shock that impacted most countries across the world. It was a period of economic depression that became evident after a major fall in stock prices in the United States. The economic contagio ...
) elected Harrison as a
Democrat
Democrat, Democrats, or Democratic may refer to:
Politics
*A proponent of democracy, or democratic government; a form of government involving rule by the people.
*A member of a Democratic Party:
**Democratic Party (United States) (D)
**Democratic ...
to the Seventy-ninth and to the Eightieth Congress, initially by special election to fill the vacancy caused by the resignation of
United States Representative
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 ...
A. Willis Robertson
Absalom Willis Robertson (May 27, 1887 – November 1, 1971) was an American politician from Virginia who served in public office for over 50 years. A member of the Democratic Party and lukewarm ally of the Byrd Organization led by fellow U.S. Se ...
(who successfully ran for election as U.S. Senator). Voters reelected Harrison to the seven succeeding Congresses (November 5, 1946 – January 3, 1963). He was a member of the
House Un-American Activities Committee
The House Committee on Un-American Activities (HCUA), popularly dubbed the House Un-American Activities Committee (HUAC), was an investigative committee of the United States House of Representatives, created in 1938 to investigate alleged disloy ...
during the McCathy era. Like his father, Harrison was a member of the
Byrd Organization
The Byrd machine, or Byrd organization, was a political machine of the Democratic Party led by former Governor and U.S. Senator Harry F. Byrd (1887–1966) that dominated Virginia politics for much of the 20th century. From the 1890s until the l ...
led by Virginia's U.S. Senator
Harry F. Byrd
Harry Flood Byrd Sr. (June 10, 1887 – October 20, 1966) was an American newspaper publisher, politician, and leader of the Democratic Party (United States), Democratic Party in Virginia for four decades as head of a political faction that becam ...
(of Winchester) and accordingly supported
Massive Resistance
Massive resistance was a strategy declared by U.S. Senator Harry F. Byrd Sr. of Virginia and his brother-in-law James M. Thomson, who represented Alexandria in the Virginia General Assembly, to get the state's white politicians to pass laws and p ...
to the U.S. Supreme Court decisions in ''
Brown v. Board of Education
''Brown v. Board of Education of Topeka'', 347 U.S. 483 (1954), was a landmark decision by the U.S. Supreme Court, which ruled that U.S. state laws establishing racial segregation in public schools are unconstitutional, even if the segregat ...
''. He signed the 1956
Southern Manifesto
The Declaration of Constitutional Principles (known informally as the Southern Manifesto) was a document written in February and March 1956, during the 84th United States Congress, in opposition to racial integration of public places. The manife ...
that opposed the desegregation of public schools. Harrison did not seek his party's renomination to the Eighty-eighth Congress in 1962, but instead resumed his legal practice in Winchester, Virginia. Fellow Democrat
John O. Marsh, Jr. succeeded to the Congressional seat.
Death and legacy
Harrison died in Winchester on December 29, 1973, and was interred in Winchester's
Mount Hebron Cemetery.
Electoral history
*1946; Harrison was elected to the U.S. House of Representatives in a special election with 62.53% of the vote, defeating Republican Karl Jenkins. He was simultaneously elected in the general election with 62.32% of the vote, defeating Republican Jenkins.
*1948; Harrison was re-elected with 60.43% of the vote, defeating Republican Stephen D. Timberlake.
*1950; Harrison was re-elected with 69.41% of the vote, defeating Republican Jacob A. Garber.
*1952; Harrison was re-elected with 79.09% of the vote, defeating Republican Glenn W. Ruebush.
*1954; Harrison was re-elected with 74.17% of the vote, defeating Republican John P. Ruddick.
*1956; Harrison was re-elected with 69.04% of the vote, defeating Republican A.R. Dunning.
*1958; Harrison was re-elected with 76.64% of the vote, defeating Independent Henry A. Oder.
*1960; Harrison was re-elected unopposed.
See also
*
List of members of the House Un-American Activities Committee
This list of members of the House Un-American Activities Committee details the names of those members of the United States House of Representatives who served on the House Un-American Activities Committee (HUAC) from its formation as the "Special ...
Sources
{{DEFAULTSORT:Harrison, Burr Powell
1904 births
1973 deaths
Georgetown University Law Center alumni
Virginia lawyers
Democratic Party Virginia state senators
Virginia state court judges
Politicians from Winchester, Virginia
Democratic Party members of the United States House of Representatives from Virginia
20th-century American lawyers
20th-century American politicians
Woodberry Forest School alumni
20th-century American judges
Burials at Mount Hebron Cemetery (Winchester, Virginia)
Virginia circuit court judges