Jump to content

D. Woodrow Bird

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

D. Woodrow Bird
Member of the Virginia Senate
from the 17th district
In office
January 12, 1966 – January 12, 1972
Preceded byDon McGlothlin
Succeeded byJames T. Edmunds
Member of the Virginia Senate
from the 18th district
In office
January 8, 1964 – January 12, 1966
Preceded byGeorge F. Barnes
Succeeded byHale Collins
Member of the Virginia Senate
from the 19th district
In office
January 11, 1956 – January 8, 1964
Succeeded byHale Collins
Member of the Virginia House of Delegates for Bland and Giles
In office
January 14, 1948 – January 11, 1956
Preceded byE. Dewey Coburn
Succeeded byMaury C. Newton Sr.
Personal details
Born
Daniel Woodrow Bird

(1912-07-06)July 6, 1912
Bland, Virginia, U.S.
DiedNovember 16, 1995(1995-11-16) (aged 83)
Bland, Virginia, U.S.
Political partyDemocratic
Spouse
Elizabeth Kegley Dunn
(m. 1936)
[citation needed]
Children4, including Daniel

Daniel Woodrow Bird Sr. (July 6, 1912 – November 16, 1995) was an American politician who served in both houses of the Virginia General Assembly. He is best remembered for his pioneering work in establishing community colleges in Virginia which became a model for the rest of the United States.

Career

[edit]

Bird was a member of the Democratic Party and was first elected to the Virginia House of Delegates in 1947.[1] He remained in that position until January 1956 when he became a state senator. He worked as a senator for the next 15 years; ending his career in 1971 when he chose not to seek reelection.[1] He served as chairman of the Higher Education Study Commission from 1964 through 1966. In that position he played an instrumental role in establishing Virginia's statewide system of community colleges; a success that became a national model.[1]

In the 1950s Bird served as chairman of the Virginia Senate Education Committee during the era of desegregation in the United States.[1] The Washington Post stated, that he "once cast the swing vote to keep the state's public schools open and allow integration to move forward, rather than risk the complete shutdown of the system."[1] He was chairman of the commission for economy of government affairs (later the JLAC commission).[1][2] At the time of his retirement in 1971, he was chairman of the Senate's agriculture committee.[3]

Bird was directory of Dairymen Inc. and served as chairman of the executive committee of the Great Lakes to Florida Highway Association. He was regional director of the First Virginia Bank Board.[2]

Personal life

[edit]

Bird married Elizabeth Kegley Dunn. They had two daughters and two sons, Janet, Judith, Daniel W. Jr. and George Thomas II.[2] He was a Mason and a member of Bland United Methodist Church.[2]

Bird died on November 16, 1995, at his home in Bland.[1]

Awards

[edit]

In 1971, Bird was awarded the Distinguished Service to Agriculture Award by the Virginia Farm Bureau Federation.[3] In 1994, he received the Bland County Oustanding Citizenship Award.[2]

References

[edit]
  1. ^ a b c d e f g "DANIEL BIRD DIES". The Washington Post. November 18, 1995.
  2. ^ a b c d e "Daniel W. Bird, Former State Senator, is Dead". Bristol Herald Courier/Virginia-Tennessean. November 18, 1995. p. 2. Retrieved September 27, 2024 – via Newspapers.com.Open access icon
  3. ^ a b "State Farm Bureau Presents Service Award to Sen. Bird". Daily Press. November 19, 1971. p. 56. Retrieved May 17, 2020 – via Newspapers.com.
[edit]
  • D. Woodrow Bird at The Virginia Elections and State Elected Officials Database Project, 1776-2007