Norman Rond Hamilton (November 13, 1877 – March 26, 1964) was an American businessman and politician who served one term as a

U.S. 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 c ...

from Virginia from 1937 to 1939.

Early and family life

Born in

Portsmouth, Virginia Portsmouth is an independent city in southeast Virginia and across the Elizabeth River from Norfolk. As of the 2020 census, the population was 97,915. It is part of the Hampton Roads metropolitan area. The Norfolk Naval Shipyard and Naval M ...

, Hamilton attended the public and high schools.

Career

Hamilton began his publishing career as a newspaper reporter in Norfolk (1895–1914). He became publisher of the ''Portsmouth (Virginia) Star'' from 1917 until it merged with the ''Norfolk Ledger'' in 1955.

Early political career

He became involved in the local

Democratic Party Democratic Party most often refers to: *Democratic Party (United States) Democratic Party and similar terms may also refer to: Active parties Africa *Botswana Democratic Party *Democratic Party of Equatorial Guinea *Gabonese Democratic Party *Demo ...

. Hamilton became collector of customs for Virginia during the Wilson administration, and served from 1914 until 1922. Before the United States entered World War I, Hamilton became the port's neutrality enforcement officer. He then served as chairman of the Port War Board of Hampton Roads (1916–1918). Hamilton was a delegate to the Democratic National Conventions in 1924, 1928, 1932, 1952, and 1960. He also served as Trustee of Virginia State Teachers' College in 1922–1926. During the Franklin D. Roosevelt administration, Hamilton, in 1933, Hamilton was appointed as receiver at Washington, D.C., of five District of Columbia insolvent banks, a position he resigned in June 1936 to run for Congress.

Congress

Hamilton defeated incumbent (and

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 ...

loyalist) Colgate Darden in the Democratic primary, then won election to the seat in the general election. He thus served in the Seventy-fifth Congress (January 3, 1937 – January 3, 1939). However, Darden defeated his renomination attempt in 1938, and also failed to win election in 1941 to fill a vacancy in the Seventy-seventh Congress. Executive of the Norfolk-Portsmouth Newspapers, Inc..

Death and legacy

Hamilton died in

Norfolk, Virginia Norfolk ( ) is an independent city in the Commonwealth of Virginia in the United States. Incorporated in 1705, it had a population of 238,005 at the 2020 census, making it the third-most populous city in Virginia after neighboring Virginia Be ...

, March 26, 1964. He was interred in Oak Grove Cemetery,

Electoral history

1936

Hamilton was elected to the U.S. House of Representatives defeating Republican Gerould M. Rumble and Communist Alexander Wright, winning 88.68% of the vote.

Sources

{{DEFAULTSORT:Hamilton, Norman Rond 1877 births Democratic Party members of the United States House of Representatives from Virginia 1964 deaths Politicians from Norfolk, Virginia Politicians from Portsmouth, Virginia 20th-century American newspaper publishers (people) American male journalists Journalists from Virginia