Bill Dickinson (R-Ala.), 82
Posted: Monday, April 14th, 2008 3:42 pmFormer U.S. representative Bill Dickinson, who came to office in the election in which Barry Goldwater helped turn Alabama into a two-party state, died March 31. He was 82. … He had colon cancer.
Mr. Dickinson, a former judge in city, juvenile and circuit courts in Opelika, Ala., was one of several Democrats recruited to change parties in 1964 and run as Republicans for Congress in a state that had been solidly Democratic for a century.
In an election set against a Deep South backlash to the 1964 Civil Rights Act, Arizona Sen. Barry Goldwater, the Republican presidential nominee, carried Alabama and helped Republicans claim five of Alabama’s eight seats in the U.S. House. …
Mr. Dickinson was reelected every two years until he decided to retire in 1992 and settle in Montgomery. …
Mr. Dickinson served on the House Armed Services Committee, where he became the ranking Republican member. He was an ardent defender of military spending during the Vietnam War and protected military bases that were an important part of Alabama’s economy. … Read full obituary
