William Shane Beardsley (May 13, 1901 – November 21, 1954) was an American politician. He served in the

Iowa Senate The Iowa Senate is the upper house of the Iowa General Assembly. There are 50 seats in the Iowa Senate, representing 50 single-member districts across the Iowa, state of Iowa with populations of approximately 60,927 per constituency, . Each Senat ...

from 1933 to 1941, and was a member of the

Iowa House of Representatives The Iowa House of Representatives is the lower house of the Iowa General Assembly, the upper house being the Iowa Senate. There are 100 seats in the Iowa House of Representatives, representing 100 single-member districts across the state, formed ...

between 1947 and 1949. Beardsley was the 31st Governor of

Iowa Iowa ( ) is a U.S. state, state in the upper Midwestern United States, Midwestern region of the United States. It borders the Mississippi River to the east and the Missouri River and Big Sioux River to the west; Wisconsin to the northeast, Ill ...

from 1949 to 1954.

Early life

Beardsley was born in

Beacon, Iowa Beacon is a city in Mahaska County, Iowa, Mahaska County, Iowa, United States. The population was 445 at the 2020 United States census, 2020 census. History Coal miners in Beacon joined the United Mine Workers union in 1894, organizing local 17 ...

to William Beardsley, a pharmacist and Carrie Shane, and grew up in Birmingham, Iowa. He worked in his father's pharmacy after school until his father died in 1914. He attended pharmacy school at Bowen Institute of Pharmacy and Chemistry in

Brunswick, Missouri Brunswick is a city in Chariton County, Missouri, Chariton County, Missouri, United States. Its population was 801 at the 2020 United States census, 2020 census. Brunswick, by official state proclamation, is the Pecan Capital of Missouri. The Mi ...

and graduated in 1921. He then established a drugstore in

New Virginia, Iowa New Virginia is a city in Warren County, Iowa, United States. The population was 498 at the time of the 2020 census. It is part of the Des Moines– West Des Moines Metropolitan Statistical Area. History New Virginia was laid out in 1856. ...

in 1922. He attended Methodist Church. In June 1919, he married Charlotte Ellen Manning and had 5 children. One son, William Shane Beardsley Jr., died of

Polio Poliomyelitis ( ), commonly shortened to polio, is an infectious disease caused by the poliovirus. Approximately 75% of cases are asymptomatic; mild symptoms which can occur include sore throat and fever; in a proportion of cases more severe ...

in 1930 at age 11.

Political career

State Senate and House

He was elected to the

, and served from 1933 to 1941. In 1941, he retired from politics and he raised cattle and hogs on his farm in New Virginia and focused on his drugstore. He was appointed to the

in 1947 to fill the term of Harold Felton, who had died of a heart attack in December 1946. He became a prominent opponent of the labor and education policies of Governor Robert D. Blue, a fellow Republican.

Governorship

In June 1948, Beardsley successfully challenged Blue in the Republican

primary Primary or primaries may refer to: Arts, entertainment, and media Music Groups and labels * Primary (band), from Australia * Primary (musician), hip hop musician and record producer from South Korea * Primary Music, Israeli record label Work ...

, and went on to an easy victory in the general election. Beardsley was known for his advocacy of a balanced state budget, and his opposition to the Truman administration's

Brannan Plan The Brannan Plan was a failed United States farm bill from 1949. It called for "compensatory payments" to American farmers in response to the major problem of large agricultural surpluses stemming from price supports for farmers. The Brannan Plan ...

. He was reelected in 1950 and 1952, but chose not to run for a fourth term in 1954. During his tenure the following notable accomplishments were achieved: workmen's compensation benefits were increased; the highway patrol was expanded; anti-gambling laws were sanctioned; roads, schools, and institutions were all advanced; and a World War II veteran's bonus was authorized.

Death

On November 21, 1954, Beardsley was killed in a highway accident, where he came over a hill and hit the back end of a pickup truck that had slowed to help another motorist, on Iowa 60 just north of

Des Moines Des Moines is the List of capitals in the United States, capital and List of cities in Iowa, most populous city in the U.S. state of Iowa. It is the county seat of Polk County, Iowa, Polk County with parts extending into Warren County, Iowa, Wa ...

. He was returning, with his wife, from a visit to his son, Dan, a student at

Iowa State University Iowa State University of Science and Technology (Iowa State University, Iowa State, or ISU) is a Public university, public land-grant university, land-grant research university in Ames, Iowa, United States. Founded in 1858 as the Iowa Agricult ...

Ames, Iowa Ames () is a city in Story County, Iowa, United States, located approximately north of Des Moines, Iowa, Des Moines in central Iowa. It is the home of Iowa State University (ISU). According to the 2020 United States census, 2020 census, Ames ha ...

. Unfortunately, Dan was at the movies and did not get to visit with his parents. Dan heard about his father's death on the radio. Charlotte had been injured to the point of partial paralysis. President

Eisenhower Dwight David "Ike" Eisenhower (born David Dwight Eisenhower; October 14, 1890 – March 28, 1969) was the 34th president of the United States, serving from 1953 to 1961. During World War II, he was Supreme Commander of the Allied Expeditionar ...

released a statement the next day saying:

I WAS SHOCKED to hear of the tragic accident which took the life of Governor William S. Beardsley of the State of Iowa. The people of Iowa have lost a devoted public servant whom they elected three times as Chief Executive of their State. Mrs. Eisenhower and I extend to Mrs. Beardsley our deep sympathy in the great personal loss she has sustained.

He was interred at the New Virginia Cemetery in

. Charlotte died in 1995 of a heart issue in Des Moines, aged 93.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Beardsley, William S. 1901 births 1954 deaths Pharmacists from Iowa 20th-century American pharmacists Republican Party members of the Iowa House of Representatives Republican Party Iowa state senators Republican Party governors of Iowa Road incident deaths in Iowa People from Mahaska County, Iowa People from Birmingham, Iowa People from Warren County, Iowa 20th-century members of the Iowa General Assembly