Hobson, David L., 1936-

David Lee Hobson was born in Cincinnati, Ohio, on October 17, 1936. Hobson graduated from Withrow High School in Cincinnati in 1954. He attended Ohio Wesleyan University, receiving his B.A. in 1958. As a member of the Ohio Air National Guard, he obtained the rank of Airman First Class, serving from 1958 to 1963, during which time he was on active duty in Europe throughout the Berlin Wall crisis. In 1963, Hobson graduated from the Ohio State College of Law, earning his J.D. and initially pursuing a career as a lawyer, with an emphasis in real estate law. Living in Springfield, Ohio, David Hobson worked as Resident Counsel for the Kissell Company, as well as being an attorney for the Union Central Life Insurance Company and a licensed real estate salesman in Springfield. Hobson married Carolyn Alexander Hobson, and the couple have three children: Susan Marie (1963), Lynn Martha (1965), and Douglas Lee (1968). During the 1970s, Hobson taught evening courses at Wittenberg University and Urbana College.

David Hobson's entrance into the political spectrum occurred in December 1982 when Ohio Republican State Senator Michael DeWine vacated his position after being elected as a congressman to the U.S. House of Representatives. Hobson was selected for the vacant state senate seat, and served in the Ohio Senate from 1982 to 1990. While a senator, Hobson held positions as the President Pro Tempore and the Republican Majority Whip. One of the positions which would bear a lasting mark on his life was his appointment as the Chairman of the Ohio Senate Health, Human Services and Aging Committee. His tenure in this position led Hobson to become a life-long political supporter of health care reform, as well as better treatment for the elderly and military veterans. One of his greatest successes in the Ohio Senate was securing the passage of the AIDS Bill in the Ohio legislature, for which he strongly fought from 1988 to 1990.

In 1990, Senator Hobson was elected to the U.S. House of Representatives again to replace Michael DeWine, who this time left his seat in the U.S. House of Representatives to become Lieutenant Governor of Ohio. Hobson served the Ohio 7th District, whose constituents were largely from Ohio's Miami Valley Region and the cities of Dayton, Springfield, and Xenia. In the U.S. House, Hobson was appointed primarily to serve on budget-related committees and subcommittees, including the following: House Appropriations Committee; Subcommittee on Military Construction; Subcommittee on Energy and Water Development; Committee on the Budget; and Subcommittee on Defense. With the presence of Wright-Patterson Air Force Base in his congressional district, Hobson became extremely involved in the appropriation and investigative actions of the Military Construction and Defense subcommittees. As a result, Congressman Hobson participated in a large number of congressional delegation trips around the world, touring U.S. military sites for inspections and reviews of military installations, their construction projects, and looking into the needs of soldiers and their families.

During President Clinton's time in the White House, Congressman Hobson's appropriations committee work led to his being deeply involved in the Balanced Budget debate and Kosovo military involvement of the mid to late 1990s. Another major issue which Congressman Hobson worked on in the 1990s was health care reform, one of President Clinton's major 1992 presidential campaign agenda items. Congressman Hobson continued a deep involvement and commitment to his constituents, making frequent visits and giving many talks to those in the Ohio 7th District during his 18 years in Washington, D.C. He assisted in acquiring large appropriations for Miami Valley military projects and installations, as well as regional improvement projects that benefitted the infrastructure and job creation of the region. His support of Wright-Patterson AFB ensured the growth of that institution, helping to fend off the potential for closure or job losses often reported in the local news at the time. Hobson was one of the major proponents for the National Aviation Heritage Area in southwest Ohio, meant to honor and preserve the legacy of the Wright Brothers' development of flight in the Dayton, Ohio, area. Casually known by his constituents as "Uncle Dave," Hobson served in the U.S. House of Representatives from 1991 to 2008, when he chose not to seek re-election for a tenth term in the House.

From the guide to the Congressman David Hobson Papers, 1982-2009, 1992-2006, (Wright State University, Special Collections and Archives)