Hanson, William Byrd, 1940-2005

William "Bill" Byrd Hanson was born November 15, 1940 in Washington, D.C. to Jesse Byrd Hanson and Margaret Ludwig Hanson. Hanson attended Marietta College and received his B.A. in 1964. He pursued his doctoral studies in medical sociology at Brown University and completed his Ph.D. in 1971. On November 28, 1968, Hanson married Roxane "Rocky" Scharry. The couple had two children together: a daughter, Megan, and a son, Jesse. Hanson served as an assistant professor at Providence College and later as associate professor at California State University at Bakersfield. In 1981, Hanson joined the faculty at the University of Mary Washington. He became a tenured professor of sociology and briefly served as chair for the Department of Sociology and Anthropology. Hanson authored a number of academic publications and in 1985 co-edited Life with Heroin: Voices from the Inner City .

Hanson was known within the Mary Washington and Fredericksburg community for his social activism. Locally, he acted as board member of the Fredericksburg Area Food Relief Clearinghouse and participated in the Central Virginia Housing Coalition, Thurman Brisben Homeless Shelter, and a nuclear freeze alliance. Hanson was also involved in "Project SOAR", a program offering college preparation classes for minority students. At times his advocacy was deeply personal; as a recipient of organ donation, Hanson was a steadfast supporter of the procedure. On-campus, he campaigned for disability rights and living wages for college employees. His admiration for the Civil Rights Movement further shaped his involvement at UMW. Hanson helped to develop the Martin Luther King Day celebration committee at the university and taught a class called "Civil Rights in the New Millennium".

Hanson became close to Dr. James Farmer, Jr. during the Civil Rights leader's professorship at the University of Mary Washington. The friendship deepened as Farmer's health failed and Hanson became an advocate for Farmer, securing adequate medical care and campaigning for a larger retirement stipend. In his later years, Farmer came to rely upon Hanson for assistance in navigating his financial and personal matters. When Farmer was presented the Presidential Medal of Freedom in 1998, Hanson and his son Jesse both attended the ceremony and reception.

Following Farmer's death in 1999, Hanson and his son were invited to a private memorial service at the Farmer home. Hanson became a strong supporter for commemoration of Farmer and was heavily involved in the University of Mary Washington James Farmer tributes, including the Farmer bust on Campus Walk. He also contributed to the establishment of the James Farmer Multicultural Center and fought attempts to relocate or defund the center.

Hanson was diagnosed with idiopathic pulmonary fibrosis and received a lung transplant in 1996. The same year, he started teaching part-time at the University of Mary Washington. Hanson passed away January 31, 2005 in Fredericksburg, Virginia after battling with the disease for nearly ten years.

Dr. James Leonard Farmer, Jr. was born on January 12, 1920 in Marshall, Texas to James L. Farmer, Sr., theologian and first African American Ph.D. in Texas, and Pearl Houston. At the age of 14, Farmer enrolled in Wiley College and received a B.S. in 1938. He continued his education at Howard University, receiving a Bachelor of Divinity in 1941, but refused ordination in the Methodist Church due to segregation of the denomination in the South.

During the period of 1941 to 1945, Farmer acted as a race relations secretary for the pacifist Fellowship of Reconciliation. He founded the Congress of Racial Equality (CORE) in Chicago in 1942 and chapters of the organization soon formed in New York, Philadelphia, Detroit, Seattle, and Los Angeles. In 1961, as CORE's National Director, Farmer organized and participated in the "Freedom Rides" as a trial of the 1960 Supreme Court decision Boynton v. Virginia.

Farmer retired as National Director in 1966 - though he continued volunteer work for CORE. After a failed bid for the United States Congress in 1968, he was selected by President Richard Nixon to serve as Assistant Secretary of the U.S. Department of Health, Education, and Welfare between 1969 and 1970.

During the 1970s, Farmer exited the political stage, focusing his energies on lecturing and serving in organizations and committees. In 1985, Farmer published his autobiography, Lay Bare the Heart, recounting his early life, education, and activities in the Civil Rights Movement. The same year, Farmer joined the faculty of Mary Washington College as a Distinguished Professor of History and American Studies. He was awarded the Presidential Medal of Freedom from President Clinton in 1998, earning national recognition for his contribution to civil rights.

In the 1990s Farmer's health slowly deteriorated and he lost considerable use of his sight, hearing, and mobility. By 1998, Farmer was too ill to continue teaching and retired to his home in Spotsylvania County. Farmer passed away on July 9, 1999 in Fredericksburg, Virginia, due to complications from diabetes. His professorship at the university was memorialized in the renaming of Mary Washington College's Multicultural Center to the James Farmer Multicultural Center in 1998 and the dedication of his bust on Campus Walk in 2001.

From the guide to the William B. Hanson Faculty Records, 1909-2005, (Special Collections, Simpson Library, University of Mary Washington)