Herbert Covington Bonner (May 16, 1891 – November 7, 1965) was a Democratic U.S. Congressman from

North Carolina North Carolina () is a state in the Southeastern region of the United States. The state is the 28th largest and 9th-most populous of the United States. It is bordered by Virginia to the north, the Atlantic Ocean to the east, Georgia and ...

between 1940 and 1965. Born in

Washington, North Carolina Washington is a city in Beaufort County, North Carolina, United States, located on the northern bank of the Pamlico River. The population was 9,744 at the 2010 census. It is the county seat of Beaufort County. It is commonly known as "Original W ...

, Bonner attended school in Warrenton. He served in the

United States Army The United States Army (USA) is the land warfare, land military branch, service branch of the United States Armed Forces. It is one of the eight Uniformed services of the United States, U.S. uniformed services, and is designated as the Army o ...

during

World War I World War I (28 July 1914 11 November 1918), often abbreviated as WWI, was one of the deadliest global conflicts in history. Belligerents included much of Europe, the Russian Empire, the United States, and the Ottoman Empire, with fightin ...

, and worked as a salesman, a farmer, and then as secretary to Congressman

Lindsay Warren Lindsay Carter Warren (December 16, 1889 – December 28, 1976) was a Democratic politician who served as a U.S. Congressman from North Carolina between 1925 and 1940 and the third Comptroller General of the United States from 1940 to 1954. E ...

from 1924 to 1940. Upon Warren's resignation from Congress in 1940, Bonner was elected simultaneously to complete the unexpired term, and was elected to the

77th Congress The 77th United States Congress was a meeting of the legislative branch of the United States federal government, composed of the United States Senate and the United States House of Representatives. It met in Washington, DC from January 3, 1941, ...

for a full term. He served for twelve full terms, from November 5, 1940 until his death from cancer in Washington, D.C. on November 7, 1965. During the

79th Congress The 79th United States Congress was a meeting of the legislative branch of the United States federal government, composed of the United States Senate and the United States House of Representatives. It met in Washington, DC from January 3, 1945, ...

, he chaired the Committee on Election of President, Vice President, and Representatives in Congress, and in the 84th through 89th Congresses, he chaired the Committee on Merchant Marine and Fisheries. He was a signatory to the 1956 Southern Manifesto that opposed the desegregation of public schools ordered by the Supreme Court 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 segrega ...

''. Bonner died in office in 1965 in

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, ...

; he is buried in Washington, N.C.

Legacy

A former bridge spanning

Oregon Inlet Oregon Inlet is an inlet along North Carolina's Outer Banks. It joins the Pamlico Sound with the Atlantic Ocean and separates Bodie Island from Pea Island, which are connected by the 2.8 mile Marc Basnight Bridge that spans the inlet. As one of th ...

on the

Outer Banks The Outer Banks (frequently abbreviated OBX) are a string of barrier islands and spits off the coast of North Carolina and southeastern Virginia, on the east coast of the United States. They line most of the North Carolina coastline, separating ...

was named in honor of him and his service to the state of North Carolina. When the bridge was replaced in 2019, 1,000 ft of the Bonner bridge was left to be used a pier and retains the Bonner name. The M/V Herbert C. Bonner, a 25 car ferry was also named for him. The 112 ft. vessel was built in 1970 for the North Carolina Department of Transportation Ferry Division to cross

Hatteras Inlet Hatteras Inlet is an estuary in North Carolina, located along the Outer Banks, separating Hatteras Island and Ocracoke Island. It connects the Atlantic Ocean to the Pamlico Sound. Hatteras Inlet is located entirely within Hyde County. History ...

between Hatteras and Ocracoke Islands on the outer banks of North Carolina. The ferry was taken out of service and sold by NCDOT. The Bonner was purchased by A&R Marine and now operates on

Narragansett Bay Narragansett Bay is a bay and estuary on the north side of Rhode Island Sound covering , of which is in Rhode Island. The bay forms New England's largest estuary, which functions as an expansive natural harbor and includes a small archipelago. Sm ...

where it crosses between

Bristol Bristol () is a city, ceremonial county and unitary authority in England. Situated on the River Avon, it is bordered by the ceremonial counties of Gloucestershire to the north and Somerset to the south. Bristol is the most populous city in ...

and

Prudence Island Prudence Island is the third-largest island in Narragansett Bay in the state of Rhode Island and part of the town of Portsmouth, Rhode Island, United States. It is located near the geographic center of the bay. It is defined by the United Sta ...

. Bonner was the namesake of the former Herbert C. Bonner Scout Reservation, commonly known as "Camp Bonner", located near Washington, NC. This is now known as the East Carolina Scout Reservation. The portion of the camp on the North side on the Pamlico River still bears the name Camp Bonner and is the regular site of the council camporee for the East Carolina Council of the Boy Scouts of America.

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{{DEFAULTSORT:Bonner, Herbert Covington 1965 deaths People from Washington, North Carolina 1891 births Democratic Party members of the United States House of Representatives from North Carolina 20th-century American politicians Deaths from cancer in Washington, D.C.

Legacy

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