Billy Dean Burlison (March 15, 1931 – March 17, 2019) was an American lawyer and politician who held office in the states of

Missouri Missouri (''see #Etymology and pronunciation, pronunciation'') is a U.S. state, state in the Midwestern United States, Midwestern region of the United States. Ranking List of U.S. states and territories by area, 21st in land area, it border ...

and

Maryland Maryland ( ) is a U.S. state, state in the Mid-Atlantic (United States), Mid-Atlantic region of the United States. It borders the states of Virginia to its south, West Virginia to its west, Pennsylvania to its north, and Delaware to its east ...

Biography

Burlison, the son of John Ivy "J.I." and Lillie (née Marler) Burlison, was born and died in

Wardell, Missouri Wardell is a city in Pemiscot County, Missouri, Pemiscot County, Missouri, United States. The population was 310 at the 2020 United States census, 2020 census. It annexed North Wardell, Missouri, North Wardell in 2007. History A post office call ...

. He attended

Southeast Missouri State University Southeast Missouri State University (Southeast or SEMO) is a public university in Cape Girardeau, Missouri. In addition to the main campus, the university has four regional campuses offering full degree programs and a secondary campus housing t ...

and earned his law degree from the

University of Missouri The University of Missouri (Mizzou or MU) is a public university, public Land-grant university, land-grant research university in Columbia, Missouri, United States. It is Missouri's largest university and the flagship of the four-campus Univers ...

. Burlison was admitted to practice law in the District of Columbia, Maryland, and Missouri courts. He served in the

United States Marine Corps The United States Marine Corps (USMC), also referred to as the United States Marines or simply the Marines, is the maritime land force service branch of the United States Department of Defense. It is responsible for conducting expeditionar ...

. Burlison was a

Democrat Democrat, Democrats, or Democratic may refer to: Politics *A proponent of democracy, or democratic government; a form of government involving rule by the people. *A member of a Democratic Party: **Democratic Party (Cyprus) (DCY) **Democratic Part ...

. He represented Missouri as a member of the U. S. Congress starting with the

Ninety-first United States Congress The 91st United States Congress was a meeting of the legislative branch of the United States federal government, composed of the United States Senate and the United States House of Representatives. It met in Washington, D.C., from January 3, 19 ...

in 1969 until he was defeated in a bid for a seventh-term by

Bill Emerson Norvell William Emerson (January 1, 1938 – June 22, 1996) was an American politician. He served as a member of the United States House of Representatives from Missouri from 1981 until his death from lung cancer in Bethesda, Maryland in 19 ...

in 1980. He moved to Maryland shortly after his congressional defeat. Burlison was an unsuccessful candidate for the

Maryland House of Delegates The Maryland House of Delegates is the lower house of the Maryland General Assembly, legislature of the U.S. state of Maryland. It consists of 141 delegates elected from 47 districts. The House of Delegates Chamber is in the Maryland State House ...

in 1986 and 1990. He was elected to the

County Council A county council is the elected administrative body governing an area known as a county. This term has slightly different meanings in different countries. Australia In the Australian state of New South Wales, county councils are special purpose ...

Anne Arundel County, Maryland Anne Arundel County (; ), also notated as AA or A.A. County, is located in the U.S. state of Maryland. As of the 2020 United States census, its population was 588,261, an increase of just under 10% since 2010. Its county seat is Annapolis, Mar ...

County Council in 1998 and re-elected to a second and final term in 2002. Four months after entering the race for

Congress A congress is a formal meeting of the representatives of different countries, constituent states, organizations, trade unions, political parties, or other groups. The term originated in Late Middle English to denote an encounter (meeting of ...

in the 3rd District in the 2006 election, he withdrew his candidacy on November 3, 2005. After Burlison returned to his native Missouri, he settled in

Advance, Missouri Advance is a town located at the intersection of State Highway 25 and State Highway 91/Route C in northern Stoddard County, Missouri, United States. The population was 1,349 at the 2020 census. Advance was founded ''circa'' 1882. The town is pro ...

, he ran for election to the 159th Missouri legislative district in 2008 and 2010. He lost overwhelmingly both times to Billy Pat Wright. Campaign literature states that he was

student body president in 1952, was a veteran Marine, and was the only person in the country with 7 academic degrees. Burlison moved to his birthplace of Wardell, Missouri, to run for the 149th district in 2014 as state representative

Steve Hodges James Stephen Hodges Sr. (February 2, 1949 – October 9, 2024) was an American politician, educator, and former small business owner from the state of Missouri. Hodges served as a member of the Missouri House of Representatives since being elect ...

was facing a term limit. He lost to Republican Don Rone, 2,770 (42.15%) to 3,802 (57.85%). On February 23, 2016, he filed to run for the

Missouri Senate The Missouri Senate is the upper chamber of the Missouri General Assembly. It has 34 members, representing districts with an average population of 181,000. Its members serve four-year terms, with half the seats being up for election every two yea ...

against incumbent Republican

Doug Libla Doug Libla (born 1952) is a former Republican member of the Missouri Senate, representing the southeasternmost part of the state. He was first elected to that position in 2012, receiving 56% of the vote over Democratic candidate Terry Swinger. ...

, and was unopposed in the Democratic primary. On November 8, 2016, Libla won re-election with 69.35% of the vote. Burlison married Barbara Humphreys in 1955; they had three children and divorced in 1983. He married Michal Sue Mickey Prosser in 1995 and they remained married until his death. Burlison died on March 17, 2019, at age 88.

References

External links

Bill D. Burlison County Council BioBurlison Biography from Congressional BioguideCounty Councilman Burlison runs again for Congress
Annapolis Capital, 7/6/2005 {{DEFAULTSORT:Burlison, Bill 1931 births 2019 deaths American prosecutors Democratic Party members of the United States House of Representatives from Missouri Maryland Democrats Maryland lawyers Members of Anne Arundel County Council Military personnel from Missouri Missouri lawyers People from Pemiscot County, Missouri People from Stoddard County, Missouri Southeast Missouri State University alumni United States Marines University of Missouri alumni 20th-century American lawyers 20th-century members of the United States House of Representatives