Carl Beverly "Bev" Bledsoe (October 6, 1923 – June 5, 2012) was an American politician in the state of

Colorado Colorado (, other variants) is a state in the Mountain states, Mountain West subregion of the Western United States. It encompasses most of the Southern Rocky Mountains, as well as the northeastern portion of the Colorado Plateau and the wes ...

, representing the Eastern Plains counties of Colorado in the state House of Representatives. He served as Speaker of the Colorado House of Representatives from 1981 to 1991, making the longest tenured speaker ever in the state's history. Bledsoe was born in

Aroya, Colorado Aroya is a small, rural, unincorporated community in Cheyenne County, Colorado, United States at the eastern end of State Highway 94 near its junction with U.S. Highway 40/ U.S. Highway 287. The name Arroyo appears on some older maps. The to ...

, to Carl and Josie Bledsoe. After attending public schools and the

University of Colorado Boulder The University of Colorado Boulder (CU Boulder, CU, or Colorado) is a public research university in Boulder, Colorado. Founded in 1876, five months before Colorado became a state, it is the flagship university of the University of Colorado sy ...

, he served in

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 opposing ...

, attaining the rank of sergeant. Upon his return, he studied for a

Bachelor of Science A Bachelor of Science (BS, BSc, SB, or ScB; from the Latin ') is a bachelor's degree awarded for programs that generally last three to five years. The first university to admit a student to the degree of Bachelor of Science was the University o ...

degree in animal husbandry from Colorado State University and began ranching near

Hugo Hugo or HUGO may refer to: Arts and entertainment * ''Hugo'' (film), a 2011 film directed by Martin Scorsese * Hugo Award, a science fiction and fantasy award named after Hugo Gernsback * Hugo (franchise), a children's media franchise based on ...

. Prior to his election to the Colorado House of Representatives in 1973, Bledsoe sat on and chaired many county political, school, and veterinarian committees. He served nine consecutive terms in the house and led the legislative audit and finance committees. He retired in 1991. He died at his home in Hugo in 2012 at the age of 88.

References

1923 births 2012 deaths Republican Party members of the Colorado House of Representatives Ranchers from Colorado People from Cheyenne County, Colorado People from Lincoln County, Colorado Speakers of the Colorado House of Representatives American military personnel of World War II American non-commissioned personnel {{Colorado-politician-stub