Robert Darias Bailey Sr. (July 26, 1883 – October 24, 1961), better known as R. D. Bailey or "Judge Bailey," was a Democratic politician in

West Virginia West Virginia is a mountainous U.S. state, state in the Southern United States, Southern and Mid-Atlantic (United States), Mid-Atlantic regions of the United States.The United States Census Bureau, Census Bureau and the Association of American ...

. Bailey was a

lawyer A lawyer is a person who is qualified to offer advice about the law, draft legal documents, or represent individuals in legal matters. The exact nature of a lawyer's work varies depending on the legal jurisdiction and the legal system, as w ...

who represented

timber Lumber is wood that has been processed into uniform and useful sizes (dimensional lumber), including beams and planks or boards. Lumber is mainly used for construction framing, as well as finishing (floors, wall panels, window frames). ...

and

railroad Rail transport (also known as train transport) is a means of transport using wheeled vehicles running in railway track, tracks, which usually consist of two parallel steel railway track, rails. Rail transport is one of the two primary means of ...

companies before he was elected

judge A judge is a person who wiktionary:preside, presides over court proceedings, either alone or as a part of a judicial panel. In an adversarial system, the judge hears all the witnesses and any other Evidence (law), evidence presented by the barris ...

, then a part-time position. He presided over the trials of the

coal miners People have worked as coal miners for centuries, but they became increasingly important during the Industrial Revolution when coal was burnt on a large scale to fuel stationary and locomotive engines and heat buildings. Owing to coal's strategic ...

involved in the

Battle of Matewan The Battle of Matewan (also known as the Matewan Massacre) was a shootout in the town of Matewan in Mingo County and the Pocahontas Coalfield mining district, in southern West Virginia. It occurred on May 19, 1920 between local coal miners an ...

, the events of which are depicted in the movie '' Matewan''. His diaries and notes formed the basis for the movie script. He was appointed by Governor

Matthew M. Neely Matthew Mansfield Neely (November 9, 1874January 18, 1958) was an American Democratic politician from West Virginia. He is the only West Virginian to serve in both houses of the United States Congress and as the 21st governor of West Virginia. H ...

to serve the remaining two years of Ward Wylie's term in the

West Virginia Senate The West Virginia Senate is the upper house of the West Virginia Legislature. There are seventeen senatorial districts. Each district has two senators who serve staggered four-year terms. Although the West Virginia Democratic Party, Democratic P ...

after Wylie resigned to enter military service in

World War II World War II or the Second World War (1 September 1939 – 2 September 1945) was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War II, Allies and the Axis powers. World War II by country, Nearly all of the wo ...

. He later served for a time on the

West Virginia Board of Education The West Virginia Department of Education is the state education agency of West Virginia. It is headquartered in Charleston, West Virginia, Charleston. History The original West Virginia Constitution of 1863 established a system of free publi ...

and as chair of the

West Virginia Democratic Party The West Virginia Democratic Party is the affiliate of the Democratic Party in the U.S. state of West Virginia. Although West Virginia was historically one of the most Democratic-voting states in the nation, the party has rapidly lost ground in ...

. In 1928 and 1948, he ran for

governor A governor is an politician, administrative leader and head of a polity or Region#Political regions, political region, in some cases, such as governor-general, governors-general, as the head of a state's official representative. Depending on the ...

but lost the

primary election Primary elections or primaries are elections held to determine which candidates will run in an upcoming general election. In a partisan primary, a political party selects a candidate. Depending on the state and/or party, there may be an "open pr ...

on both occasions. He died in 1961. R. D. Bailey Lake is named for him. His son, Robert D. Bailey Jr., served as

Secretary of State of West Virginia The secretary of state of West Virginia is an elected office within the U.S. state of West Virginia state government. The secretary of state is responsible for overseeing the state's election process, including voter registration and election ...

from 1965 to 1969.

References

1883 births 1961 deaths 20th-century members of the West Virginia Legislature People from Wyoming County, West Virginia West Virginia Democrats West Virginia lawyers Members of the West Virginia Board of Education {{WestVirginia-politician-stub