Omer Lee Hirst (July 13, 1915 – July 29, 2003) was an American real estate broker, investor and Democratic politician who represented
Falls Church
Falls Church is an independent city in the Commonwealth of Virginia. As of the 2020 census, the population was 14,658. Falls Church is included in the Washington metropolitan area.
Taking its name from The Falls Church, an 18th-century Churc ...
and
Fairfax, Virginia
The City of Fairfax ( ), colloquially known as Fairfax City, Downtown Fairfax, Old Town Fairfax, Fairfax Courthouse, FFX, or simply Fairfax, is an independent city (United States), independent city in the Commonwealth (U.S. state), Commonwealth ...
part-time in the
Virginia House of Delegates
The Virginia House of Delegates is one of the two parts of the Virginia General Assembly, the other being the Senate of Virginia. It has 100 members elected for terms of two years; unlike most states, these elections take place during odd-numbe ...
from 1954 to 1959. He later represented Annandale and Fairfax in the Virginia Senate, from 1964 to 1979.
Early and family life
Omer Hirst was born in
Annandale, Virginia
Annandale () is a census-designated place (CDP) in Fairfax County, Virginia.Lee-Jackson High School in Alexandria, and received a B.S. degree in commerce in 1936 from
Washington and Lee University
, mottoeng = "Not Unmindful of the Future"
, established =
, type = Private liberal arts university
, academic_affiliations =
, endowment = $2.092 billion (2021)
, president = William C. Dudley
, provost = Lena Hill
, city = Lexingto ...
, and was invited to join the
Phi Beta Kappa
The Phi Beta Kappa Society () is the oldest academic honor society in the United States, and the most prestigious, due in part to its long history and academic selectivity. Phi Beta Kappa aims to promote and advocate excellence in the liberal a ...
society. He married Ann Palmer, and they had three children but later divorced. He married Nancy Hand in 1972, and she survived him.
He served as a lieutenant in the U.S. Marines during
World War II
World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposin ...
, and upon returning to Virginia was active in his Methodist Church, as well as the Lions,
American Legion
The American Legion, commonly known as the Legion, is a non-profit organization of U.S. war
War is an intense armed conflict between states, governments, societies, or paramilitary groups such as mercenaries, insurgents, and militi ...
,
Marine Corps League
The Marine Corps League is the only congressionally chartered United States Marine Corps-related veterans organization in the United States. Its congressional charter was approved by the 75th U.S. Congress and signed by President Franklin D. Roo ...
, Fairfax Historical Society, Boy Scouts, Fairfax High School Parent Teacher Association and various business and community associations in his native Annandale.
Career
After graduating from college, Hirst reluctantly joined his father's real estate business, and later came to live in
McLean, Virginia
McLean ( ) is an unincorporated community and census-designated place (CDP) in Fairfax County in Northern Virginia. McLean is home to many diplomats, military, members of Congress, and high-ranking government officials partially due to its proxim ...
. In 1938, the Fairfax Chamber of Commerce put him on a committee to develop a county mapping system and update land records. As a smart and reserved real estate investor in residential, industrial and commercial property, Hirst became rich. His companies, Omer L. Hirst Inc., and O.C. Builders Inc. developed Landmark Shopping Center, the first three-department-store shopping mall in the area. First American Bank, a local bank he founded in
Herndon
Herndon may refer to:
People
* Herndon (surname), an American surname
* Herndon Davis (1901–1962), American artist, journalist, illustrator, and painter
Places in the United States Communities
* Herndon, California, an unincorporated commun ...
(and on whose board of directors he served for two decades) later merged with the Arlington Trust Company, and then into
Wachovia Bank
Wachovia was a diversified financial services company based in Charlotte, North Carolina. Before its acquisition by Wells Fargo and Company in 2008, Wachovia was the fourth-largest bank holding company in the United States, based on total asse ...
.
A "Roosevelt Democrat", Hirst was active in local politics, and Fairfax County's transition from a rural form of government to a county executive system. In 1953, he and John C. Webb were elected to represent Falls Church and Fairfax in northern Virginia 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 ...
, a part-time position. They replaced
Edwin Lynch
Edwin D. Lynch (August 20, 1860 – April 18, 1941) was a politician in Manitoba, Canada. He served in the Legislative Assembly of Manitoba from 1903 to 1910, as a member of the Conservative Party.
Lynch was born in Middlesex County, Canad ...
, who was the only delegate elected to represent fast-growing Fairfax County between 1946 and 1951. Both often criticized 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 ...
, which considered them "Young Turks" for actions such as Hirst's attempt to repeal the poll tax. He and Webb were soon embroiled in the
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 ...
crisis whereby 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 ...
fought desegregation of Virginia's schools despite the U.S. Supreme Court's decision 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 ...
. After both the Virginia Supreme Court and a three judge federal panel on January 19, 1959, massive resistance became more passive, but Hirst declined to seek re-election. Fellow real estate broker
Dorothy S. McDiarmid
Dorothy Shoemaker McDiarmid (October 22, 1906 – June 8, 1994) was a teacher, real estate broker, Quaker activist, and Virginia legislator for nearly 26 years.
Early and family life
Born in Waco, Texas to U.S. Department of Agriculture employe ...
, who ran against the Byrd Organization's school closing strategy, won the Democratic primary and was elected in November, 1959.
In 1963, Hirst ran for the Virginia state senate seat. He was elected, and re-elected in 1965, 1967, 1971, and 1975. By the time he retired, Hirst had become the third most senior state senator, and chairman of the Privileges and Elections Committee. Although Hirst had not joined Webb and John A. K. Donovan) as named plaintiffs in the reapportionment case ultimately decided (in Northern Virginia's favor) by the U.S. Supreme Court in
Davis v. Mann
''Davis v. Mann'', 377 U.S. 678 (1964), was a United States Supreme Court which was one of a series of cases decided in 1964 that ruled that state legislature districts had to be roughly equal in population.
David J. Mays and Robert McIlwaine a ...
(1963), he later worked on reapportionments in its aftermath, as well as subsequent censuses.
Two of his legislative priorities were education and roads. Hirst helped create George Mason University Law School as well as enable the university to award graduate degrees, and served on its board of directors for 13 years. His wife also served on the university's board of visitors from 1983 to 1991 and later on the College of Arts and Sciences Advisory Board. Hirst also extended Interstate 66 inside the
Capital Beltway
The Capital Beltway is a Interstate Highway in the Washington metropolitan area that surrounds Washington, D.C., the capital of the United States, and its inner suburbs in adjacent Maryland and Virginia. It is the basis of the phrase "inside th ...
and helped create the
Dulles Toll Road
State Route 267 (SR 267) is a primary state highway in the US state of Virginia. It consists of two end-to-end toll roads – the Dulles Toll Road and Dulles Greenway – as well as the non-tolled Dulles Access Road, which lies in the ...
, which officially is named after him and fellow legislator Adelard Brault. Hirst chaired the Senate Welfare Committee (1968–1971), which recommended reforms adopted in 1970, and the Commission on Mental, Indigent and Geriatric Patients (1972–79). He helped pass a liquor by the drink law, which allowed Virginia restaurants to serve alcoholic beverages. Hirst declined to seek re-election in 1979 and was replaced by Richard L. Saslaw in 1980.
Death and legacy
Hirst died of natural causes at what became Virginia Hospital Center in Arlington at age 89. He is buried at the National Memorial Park in Falls Church.