William Howard Harsha Jr. (January 1, 1921 – October 11, 2010) was an American politician who represented Ohio as a Republican in the United States House of Representatives from January 3, 1961, to January 3, 1981.[1]

Bill Harsha
Member of the U.S. House of Representatives
from Ohio's 6th district
In office
January 3, 1961 – January 3, 1981
Preceded byWard Miller
Succeeded byBob McEwen
Personal details
Born(1921-01-01)January 1, 1921
Portsmouth, Ohio, U.S.
DiedOctober 11, 2010(2010-10-11) (aged 89)
Portsmouth, Ohio, U.S.
Resting placeGreenlawn Cemetery, Portsmouth
Political partyRepublican
Spouse
Rosemary L. Spellerberg
(m. 1946)
Alma materKenyon College
Case Western Reserve University School of Law
Military service
AllegianceUnited States
Branch/serviceUnited States Marine Corps
Years of service1942–1944
Battles/warsWorld War II

Biography

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Born in Portsmouth, Ohio, he graduated from Portsmouth High School in 1939. He received his B.A. from Kenyon College in Gambier, Ohio, in 1943, where he was initiated into Sigma Pi fraternity, and his LL.B. from Western Reserve University in Cleveland, Ohio, in 1947. From 1942 to 1944, he was in the United States Marine Corps.

After his admission to the bar on March 6, 1947, he was the city of Portsmouth's assistant solicitor until 1951, when he was elected Scioto County Prosecuting Attorney. He served one four-year term. In 1961, he was elected to Congress and served twenty years there. He was succeeded by Bob McEwen, who had managed two of his re-election campaigns. After his retirement from Congress, he was a consultant in Washington, D.C., from 1981 to 1986, when he returned to Portsmouth and resumed his law practice. [citation needed]

Death

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He died in 2010 in Portsmouth, Ohio, aged 89.[2]

Legacy

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An artificial lake on the East Fork of the Little Miami River in Clermont County near Batavia is named for him (see East Fork State Park), as is the William H. Harsha Bridge, which spans the Ohio River between Ohio and Kentucky.

Family

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Harsha married Rosemary L. Spellerberg on June 24, 1946.[3] Their son, William H. Harsha III, is a judge of the Ohio Court of Appeals for the Fourth Appellate District.

Notes

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  1. ^ Notice of death of Bill Harsha
  2. ^ Harsha obituary in the Chillicothe Gazette[permanent dead link]
  3. ^ "Ohio, County Marriages, 1789–2013", FamilySearch, retrieved April 17, 2018

References

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U.S. House of Representatives
Preceded by Member of the U.S. House of Representatives
from Ohio's 6th congressional district

1961–1981
Succeeded by