Byron Giles Rogers (August 1, 1900 – December 31, 1983) was an American lawyer, politician, and

World War I World War I or the First World War (28 July 1914 – 11 November 1918), also known as the Great War, was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War I, Allies (or Entente) and the Central Powers. Fighting to ...

veteran from

Colorado Colorado is a U.S. state, state in the Western United States. It is one of the Mountain states, sharing the Four Corners region with Arizona, New Mexico, and Utah. It is also bordered by Wyoming to the north, Nebraska to the northeast, Kansas ...

. From 1951 to 1971, he served ten consecutive terms in the

U.S. House of Representatives The United States House of Representatives is a chamber of the bicameral United States Congress; it is the lower house, with the U.S. Senate being the upper house. Together, the House and Senate have the authority under Article One of th ...

Early life

Rogers was the son of Peter and Minnie May Rogers. Born in

Greenville, Texas Greenville ( ) is the county seat of and the most populous city in Hunt County, Texas, United States, located in Northeast Texas approximately northeast of Dallas, Texas, Dallas and northwest of Canton, Texas, Canton. As of the 2020 United Stat ...

, he moved with his parents to

Oklahoma Oklahoma ( ; Choctaw language, Choctaw: , ) is a landlocked U.S. state, state in the South Central United States, South Central region of the United States. It borders Texas to the south and west, Kansas to the north, Missouri to the northea ...

in April 1902. He attended the public schools of Checotah, Oklahoma.

World War I

During the

First World War World War I or the First World War (28 July 1914 – 11 November 1918), also known as the Great War, was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War I, Allies (or Entente) and the Central Powers. Fighting to ...

, he served as a

private Private or privates may refer to: Music * "In Private", by Dusty Springfield from the 1990 album ''Reputation'' * Private (band), a Denmark-based band * "Private" (Ryōko Hirosue song), from the 1999 album ''Private'', written and also recorded ...

in the

Infantry Infantry, or infantryman are a type of soldier who specialize in ground combat, typically fighting dismounted. Historically the term was used to describe foot soldiers, i.e. those who march and fight on foot. In modern usage, the term broadl ...

United States Army The United States Army (USA) is the primary Land warfare, land service branch of the United States Department of Defense. It is designated as the Army of the United States in the United States Constitution.Article II, section 2, clause 1 of th ...

Education

He attended the

University of Arkansas The University of Arkansas (U of A, UArk, or UA) is a Public university, public Land-grant university, land-grant research university in Fayetteville, Arkansas, United States. It is the Flagship campus, flagship campus of the University of Arkan ...

in 1918, the

University of Oklahoma The University of Oklahoma (OU) is a Public university, public research university in Norman, Oklahoma, United States. Founded in 1890, it had existed in Oklahoma Territory near Indian Territory for 17 years before the two territories became the ...

from 1919 to 1922, and the

University of Colorado The University of Colorado (CU) is a system of public universities in Colorado. It consists of four institutions: the University of Colorado Boulder, the University of Colorado Colorado Springs, the University of Colorado Denver, and the U ...

in 1923 and 1924. He earned his LL.B. at

Sturm College of Law The Sturm College of Law ("Denver Law") is the professional graduate law school of the University of Denver. It is one of two law schools in the state of Colorado. Founded in 1892, the Sturm College of Law was one of the first in America's Mount ...

University of Denver The University of Denver (DU) is a private research university in Denver, Colorado, United States. Founded in 1864, it has an enrollment of approximately 5,700 undergraduate students and 7,200 graduate students. It is classified among "R1: D ...

, 1925, and commenced the practice of law in Las Animas, Colorado.

Family

He married his secretary, Helen Kepler, in 1933, and they had two children, Shirley Ann and Byron Jr.

Legal career

Rogers served as city attorney of Las Animas from 1929 to 1933. He was a member of the

Colorado House of Representatives The Colorado House of Representatives is the lower house of the Colorado General Assembly, the state legislature of the U.S. state of Colorado. The House is composed of 65 members from an equal number of constituent districts, with each distri ...

from 1932 to 1935, serving as speaker in 1933. He served as

county attorney In the United States, a district attorney (DA), county attorney, county prosecutor, state attorney, state's attorney, prosecuting attorney, commonwealth's attorney, or solicitor is the chief prosecutor or chief law enforcement officer represen ...

Bent County, Colorado Bent County is a county located in the U.S. state of Colorado. As of the 2020 United States census, 2020 census, its population was 5,650. The county seat and only Colorado municipalities, incorporated municipality is Las Animas, Colorado, Las ...

, in 1933, and was later on the legal staff of

Agricultural Adjustment Administration The Agricultural Adjustment Act (AAA) was a United States federal law of the New Deal era designed to boost agricultural prices by reducing surpluses. The government bought livestock for slaughter and paid farmers subsidies not to plant on part ...

and

National Recovery Administration The National Recovery Administration (NRA) was a prime agency established by U.S. president Franklin D. Roosevelt (FDR) in 1933. The goal of the administration was to eliminate "cut throat competition" by bringing industry, labor, and governmen ...

Washington, D.C. Washington, D.C., formally the District of Columbia and commonly known as Washington or D.C., is the capital city and federal district of the United States. The city is on the Potomac River, across from Virginia, and shares land borders with ...

, in 1933 and 1934. He served as assistant

United States Attorney United States attorneys are officials of the U.S. Department of Justice who serve as the chief federal law enforcement officers in each of the 94 U.S. federal judicial districts. Each U.S. attorney serves as the United States' chief federal ...

for Colorado 1934 to 1936, and

Attorney General of Colorado The Attorney General of the State of Colorado is the chief legal officer for the U.S. State of Colorado and the head of the Colorado Department of Law, a principal department of the Colorado state government. It is an elected position with a fou ...

1936 to 1941. In November 1942, Rogers was defeated in a bid for a seat on the state supreme court by Republican Frank B. Goudy. He was a public member of the War Labor Board from 1942 to 1945.

Congressional career

Rogers was elected as a Democrat to the Eighty-second and to the ten succeeding Congresses (January 3, 1951 – January 3, 1971). In 1970, due to his support of the

Vietnam War The Vietnam War (1 November 1955 – 30 April 1975) was an armed conflict in Vietnam, Laos, and Cambodia fought between North Vietnam (Democratic Republic of Vietnam) and South Vietnam (Republic of Vietnam) and their allies. North Vietnam w ...

, he was challenged in the primary by attorney Craig Barnes. Barnes, a tall, well-groomed, progressive 34-year old attorney, stood in marked contrast to 70-year old Rogers. Barnes ran an aggressive campaign, attacking Rogers on many issues, including the war, and actively recruited new, young voters. In the primary, Barnes would defeat Rogers by a mere 30 votes (27,218 to 27,188). Rogers alleged foul that Barnes' staff had registered

students who were non-residents from other states. Had Barnes won, Rogers planned to challenge the general election in the House, however, instead many of Rogers' supporters, especially in Northwest Denver, bolted to the Republican candidate, Denver County

District Attorney In the United States, a district attorney (DA), county attorney, county prosecutor, state attorney, state's attorney, prosecuting attorney, commonwealth's attorney, or solicitor is the chief prosecutor or chief law enforcement officer represen ...

Mike McKevitt, who would defeat Barnes by more than 10,000 votes. He voted in favor of the Civil Rights Act of 1957.

Death and legacy

Rogers was a resident of

Denver, Colorado Denver ( ) is a List of municipalities in Colorado#Consolidated city and county, consolidated city and county, the List of capitals in the United States, capital and List of municipalities in Colorado, most populous city of the U.S. state of ...

until his death there December 31, 1983. He was interred in Mount Lindo Cemetery near Tiny Town, Colorado. The

Byron G. Rogers Federal Building and United States Courthouse The Byron G. Rogers Federal Building and U.S. Courthouse is a historic building on Stout Street in downtown Denver, Colorado, which serves as a courthouse of the United States District Court for the District of Colorado. Completed in 1965, the bui ...

was named in his honor in 1984.

References

* Retrieved on 2009-02-20

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Rogers, Byron G. 1900 births 1983 deaths Colorado attorneys general District attorneys in Colorado Assistant United States attorneys People from Greenville, Texas People from Las Animas, Colorado Politicians from Denver Sturm College of Law alumni Democratic Party members of the Colorado House of Representatives Democratic Party members of the United States House of Representatives from Colorado Speakers of the Colorado House of Representatives United States Army soldiers United States Army personnel of World War I 20th-century American lawyers 20th-century members of the United States House of Representatives 20th-century members of the Colorado General Assembly