Umstead, William Bradley, 1895-1954

William Bradley Umstead of Durham, N.C., served as a member of the United States House of Representatives from North Carolina, 1932-1938; as a United States senator, 1946-1948; and as governor of North Carolina, 1952-1954.

William Bradley Umstead

William Bradley Umstead served North Carolina as a United States representative, a United States senator, and as governor. Prior to his election as the first representative from the newly formed sixth North Carolina district (Durham, Orange, Guilford, and Alamance counties) in 1932, Umstead was a practicing lawyer in Durham, and he continued his legal work during the gaps in his political career. Umstead chose to leave Congress in 1938 after his third term. He returned to practicing law, and served in various Democratic Party posts until his appointment to the United States Senate in 1946 by Governor R. Gregg Cherry to fill the seat of Josiah Bailey, who had died in office. Umstead was defeated in his attempt to succeed himself by J. Melville Broughton in the Democratic primary in 1948. In both houses of Congress, Umstead was an advocate of farmers and the tobacco industry. He was a moderate Democrat, supporting most of Roosevelt's New Deal legislation, but opposing Truman-era civil rights initiatives.

Umstead chose not to run for the Senate in 1950, citing poor health. In 1952 he successfully campaigned for governor as a friend of the farmer and as an opponent of desegregation. He suffered a heart attack on his third day in office and remained in poor health throughout his administration. In 1954 he suffered a second heart attack and died on 7 November 1954 from pneumonia and other complications at Watts Hospital in Durham.

Merle Davis Umstead

Merle Davis Umstead spent much of her public life as a political wife, seeing to the social and charity duties of the wife of a congressman, senator, and governor. As first lady of North Carolina from 1953 to 1954, during her husband's convalescence, Merle Davis Umstead managed most of the social events at the Governor's Mansion.

Washburn Family and Washburn Family Stores

Originally from Worcestershire, England, the Washburn family settled in Rutherford County, N.C., in the early 1830s and set up a tavern and inn. After the Civil War, the youngest brother, Reverend Reuben Washburn (1829-1904), took over the family business. He ran it for about 35 years until his sons, Edgar Nollie Washburn (1874-1935) and William Adney Washburn (1868-1931), took over in 1904. By this time, the business had evolved into a dry goods store located in a large wood-framed building on Main Street in Bostic, N.C. The two brothers greatly expanded the family business, building in 1928 a brick store building and opening two other stores, one of which was located at Sunshine, N.C. Known as the Sunshine Cash Store and Service Station, this store was managed for many years by the parents of Merle Davis Umstead, Charles D. Davis (ca. 1880-1936) and Daisy Washburn Davis (1882-1961), sister of E. N. and W. A. Washburn.