Harry F. Byrd Jr.

Harry F. Byrd Jr.
Byrd in 1966
United States Senator from Virginia
In office November 12, 1965 – January 3, 1983
Preceded by	Harry F. Byrd Sr.
Succeeded by	Paul Trible
Member of the Virginia Senate from the 24th district
In office January 8, 1958 – November 12, 1965
Preceded by	George S. Aldhizer II
Succeeded by	J. Kenneth Robinson (redistricting)
Member of the Virginia Senate from the 25th district
In office January 14, 1948 – January 8, 1958
Preceded by	Burgess E. Nelson
Succeeded by	Edward O. McCue Jr.
Personal details
Born	Harry Flood Byrd Jr. (1914-12-20)December 20, 1914 Winchester, Virginia, U.S.
Died	July 30, 2013(2013-07-30) (aged 98) Winchester, Virginia, U.S.
Resting place	Mount Hebron Cemetery
Political party	Democratic (before 1970) Independent Democrat (1970–2013)
Spouse	Gretchen Bigelow Thomson ​ ​ (m. 1941; died 1989)​
Relations	Harry Flood Byrd Sr. (father) James M. Thomson (brother-in-law)
Children	Harry III Thomas Beverley
Alma mater	Virginia Military Institute University of Virginia
Military service
Branch/service	United States Navy
Years of service	1941–1945
Rank	Lieutenant Commander
Battles/wars	World War II

Harry Flood Byrd Jr. (December 20, 1914 – July 30, 2013) was an American orchardist, newspaper publisher and politician. He served in the Senate of Virginia and then represented Virginia in the United States Senate, succeeding his father, Harry F. Byrd Sr. His public service spanned thirty-six years, while he was a publisher of several Virginia newspapers.^[1] After the decline of the Byrd Organization due to its massive resistance to racial integration of public schools, he abandoned the Democratic Party in 1970, citing concern about its leftward tilt. He rehabilitated his political career, becoming the first independent in the history of the U.S. Senate to be elected by a majority of the popular vote.