Robert Burren Morgan
Robert Burren Morgan | |
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United States Senator from North Carolina | |
In office January 3, 1975 – January 3, 1981 | |
Preceded by | Sam Ervin |
Succeeded by | John P. East |
43rd Attorney General of North Carolina | |
In office January 3, 1969 – August 26, 1974 | |
Governor | Robert W. Scott James Holshouser |
Preceded by | T. Wade Bruton |
Succeeded by | James H. Carson, Jr. |
Member of the North Carolina Senate | |
In office 1955–1969 | |
Personal details | |
Born | Lillington, North Carolina, U.S. | October 5, 1925
Died | July 16, 2016 Buies Creek, North Carolina, U.S. | (aged 90)
Nationality | American |
Political party | Democratic |
Military service | |
Allegiance | ![]() |
Branch/service | ![]() |
Years of service | 1944–1946 1952–1955 (Active) 1955–1971 (Reserves) |
Battles/wars | World War II Korean War |
Robert Burren Morgan (October 5, 1925 – July 16, 2016) was an American politician. He was a Democratic United States Senator from the state of North Carolina, a position that he filled for a single term from 1975 until 1981.
Life and career[]
Born in Lillington, North Carolina, Morgan attended Lillington public schools and later East Carolina College and Wake Forest University School of Law.
Morgan's political career began early when political leaders in his home county of Harnett County, including highly respected Democratic stalwart Veneble Baggett, visited him at the Wake Forest Law School and urged him to run for Clerk of Court. Morgan did so and was elected. After building a reputation in that office, he went into the private practice of law. His skill as a trial lawyer caused his practice to grow, and he soon established a reputation that extended across the state. Personal injury, real property and antitrust law were among his specialties.
He next ran for the North Carolina State Senate and won. He rose to the Senate's highest office, President Pro Tempore, and chaired key committees.
In 1968, Morgan challenged long-time incumbent Attorney General Wade Bruton in the Democratic Party primary, defeated him, and then won the General Election. He served one four-year term and then was re-elected.[citation needed] Under Morgan, the office was split into five divisions each responsible to a deputy attorney general, with a sixth division later added.[1] He served two years of that term and then resigned to run for the U.S. Senate.
Early in his political career, Morgan was considered a supporter of segregation because of his allegiance to his former Wake Forest law professor, politician I. Beverly Lake, Sr., who ran an unsuccessful pro-segregation campaign for governor in 1960 against the progressive supporter of civil rights, Terry Sanford.[2] But later, as an influential state senator, as North Carolina attorney general from 1969 to 1974, and as the successful candidate to succeed Democratic U.S. Senator Sam Ervin, Morgan was considered a moderate.
After winning the Democratic primary for U.S. Senate in 1974, Morgan resigned as attorney general. He then won the general election over Republican William Stevens, garnering 63% of the vote.[3]
Morgan was defeated for re-election in 1980 by Republican John Porter East, an ally of the state's senior senator, Jesse Helms, in an extremely close race.[4] Morgan returned to the practice of law and also served as director of North Carolina's State Bureau of Investigation under Attorney General Lacy Thornburg.
From 2000 to 2003, Morgan served as founding president of the North Carolina Center for Voter Education, a Raleigh, North Carolina based nonprofit and nonpartisan organization that seeks to increase civic engagement in North Carolina. Morgan was president emeritus of that organization.[5][6]
Morgan died at the age of 90 at his home in Buies Creek, North Carolina on July 16, 2016 surrounded by family.[7][8][9][10]
References[]
- ^ Bell 1972, p. 113.
- ^ Drescher, John (2000). Triumph of Good Will: How Terry Sanford Beat a Champion of Segregation and Reshaped the South. ISBN 9781604738056.
- ^ 2008 North Carolina Election Primer
- ^ Our Campaigns – NC US Senate Race – Nov 04, 1980
- ^ NC Center for Voter Education History Archived 2009-10-17 at the Wayback Machine
- ^ NC Center for Voter Education Board and Staff Archived 2009-10-17 at the Wayback Machine
- ^ Former US Senator Robert Morgan Dies
- ^ Fayetteville Observer article: "Former U.S. Senator Robert B. Morgan dies at home in Lillington" by Michael Futch and Catherine Pritchard (16 Jul 2016)
- ^ WRAL-TV local news article and video: "Former US Senator, Lillington native Robert Morgan dies"
- ^ Charlotte Observer obituary for Robert Burren Morgan
Works cited[]
- Bell, Harold Leonard (1972). The Office of State Attorney General in the South (PhD thesis). University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign. OCLC 77774350.
External links[]
- United States Congress. "Robert Burren Morgan (id: M000956)". Biographical Directory of the United States Congress.
- Civil Rights Greensboro: Robert Morgan
- Robert Morgan Papers (#268), East Carolina Manuscript Collection, J. Y. Joyner Library, East Carolina University
- Historical Marker for Robert B. Morgan located in Lillington, North Carolina
- Appearances on C-SPAN
- 1925 births
- 2016 deaths
- People from Lillington, North Carolina
- East Carolina University alumni
- United States senators from North Carolina
- Wake Forest University School of Law alumni
- North Carolina Attorneys General
- North Carolina state senators
- Democratic Party United States senators
- North Carolina Democrats
- United States Navy personnel of the Korean War
- United States Navy personnel of World War II
- United States Air Force officers
- United States Air Force reservists
- United States Navy officers
- United States Navy reservists
- People from Buies Creek, North Carolina