Walter O. Bigby
Encyclopedia
Walter Oliver Bigby, Sr. (April 10, 1927 – January 2, 1980), was a Democratic
member of the Louisiana House of Representatives
from Bossier Parish, having served from 1968 until 1979. Often called the "Dean of the House" because of his reputation for integrity, fairness, and hard work, Bigby was a son-in-law of banker and former State Senator
V.V. Whittington
of Benton
, the seat of Bossier Parish.
, Louisiana
, Bigby moved to Bossier Parish in 1941, where thereafter he graduated from Benton High School
. He attended Louisiana State University
in Baton Rouge, having been a member of Phi Delta Phi
at the time of his graduation in 1951. He also received his Juris Doctor
degree from the Louisiana State University Law Center in Baton Rouge. Bigby practiced law for sixteen years. In September 1979, Bigby resigned from the legislature to begin serving as a Second Circuit Court of Appeal
judge
in Shreveport
for what turned out to have been the last four months of his life.
. Long after Bigby's death, Flo, a businesswoman in her own right, married in 1997 the widower Oscar E. Price, who served as a Second Circuit judge from 1969-1985. The marriage lasted for nine years until Price's death.
Mrs. Bigby Price graduated from Benton High School and LSU, where she obtained a degree in home economics
. She worked for Delta Air Lines
and taught at Haughton High School for two years before she became co-owner of Whittington and Myers Insurance
Agency, an association that she maintained for three decades. She was also involved in her father's since defunct Bossier Bank and Trust Company, and she served on the board of the Bank of Benton. Her real estate
career involved the development of the Greenacres and Palmetto subdivisions in Bossier Parish. She was also active in the establishment of the Kroger
grocery store
on the Benton Road in Bossier City and the Graybar Electric Company in Shreveport. A civic as well as a business leader, Mrs. Price was a patron of the Shreveport Regional Arts Council, the Shreveport Club, the Shreveport Symphony, the Palmetto Country Club, the Young Men's Christian Association, the Shreveport Little Theater, Goodwill Industries
, Salvation Army
, Providence House, American Cancer Society
, and the Methodist Children's Home. First a Presbyterian, she later became a United Methodist.
(1914–1989) as one of two representatives from Bossier Parish. Stinson had been the only Bossier Parish representative from 1940–1944 and again from 1952-1968. In 1972, Bigby began serving for the rest of his tenure with Jesse C. Deen as the other Bossier Parish representative, for Stinson was defeated in the first primary held in November 1971. Then on February 1, 1972, Democrats Deen and Bigby faced a single Republican
opponent, Glenn E. Clark (1924-2011), a Kentucky
native, United States Air Force
non-commissioned officer, and a businessman in Bossier City. Clark polled fewer than a third of the ballots, as Deen and Bigby were handily elected on their own.
Bigy described Governor Edwin Washington Edwards, under whose administration Bigby served the bulk of his time as a representative, accordingly: "Edwin and I have a philosophical difference over the role of government. He honestly believes that government exists solely to take care of those who can't take care of themselves."
Prior to Bigby's death from cancer
at the age of fifty-two, voters elected Democrat Robert Roy Adley
, who held the then single-member District 9 seat from 1980–1996, when he stepped down to run unsuccessfully for governor. Adley returned to the legislature in 2003, when he won the special election held to determine a successor for Foster Campbell
of Bossier City
, who resigned the position upon election to the Louisiana Public Service Commission
. After his 2007 reelection to the state Senate, Adley switched to Republican affiliation.
Bigby is honored through the Walter O. Bigby Endowed Scholarship, a monetary award given to students at public or private colleges who either demonstrate high academic achievement or are actively involved in their school or community.
Democratic Party (United States)
The Democratic Party is one of two major contemporary political parties in the United States, along with the Republican Party. The party's socially liberal and progressive platform is largely considered center-left in the U.S. political spectrum. The party has the lengthiest record of continuous...
member of the Louisiana House of Representatives
Louisiana State Legislature
The Louisiana State Legislature is the state legislature of the U.S. state of Louisiana. It is bicameral body, comprising the lower house, the Louisiana House of Representatives with 105 representatives, and the upper house, the Louisiana Senate with 39 senators...
from Bossier Parish, having served from 1968 until 1979. Often called the "Dean of the House" because of his reputation for integrity, fairness, and hard work, Bigby was a son-in-law of banker and former State Senator
Louisiana State Legislature
The Louisiana State Legislature is the state legislature of the U.S. state of Louisiana. It is bicameral body, comprising the lower house, the Louisiana House of Representatives with 105 representatives, and the upper house, the Louisiana Senate with 39 senators...
V.V. Whittington
V.V. Whittington
Volney Voss Whittington, known as V.V. Whittington or Voss Whittington , was a banker from Bossier Parish in northwestern Louisiana who served as a Democratic member of the Louisiana State Senate from 1928 to 1932.Whittington was born in Ivan in Bossier Parish but resided most of his life in the...
of Benton
Benton, Louisiana
The town of Benton is the parish seat of Bossier Parish, in the US state of Louisiana. The population was 2,035 at the 2000 census. The larger Bossier City is located south of Benton...
, the seat of Bossier Parish.
Background
A native of Vernon ParishVernon Parish, Louisiana
Vernon Parish is a parish located in the U.S. state of Louisiana. The parish seat is Leesville and as of 2000, the population was 52,531....
, Louisiana
Louisiana
Louisiana is a state located in the southern region of the United States of America. Its capital is Baton Rouge and largest city is New Orleans. Louisiana is the only state in the U.S. with political subdivisions termed parishes, which are local governments equivalent to counties...
, Bigby moved to Bossier Parish in 1941, where thereafter he graduated from Benton High School
Benton High School (Louisiana)
Benton High School is a public high school located in Benton, Louisiana, United States. The school, part of Bossier Parish School Board, serves about 675 students in grades 9 to 12....
. He attended Louisiana State University
Louisiana State University
Louisiana State University and Agricultural and Mechanical College, most often referred to as Louisiana State University, or LSU, is a public coeducational university located in Baton Rouge, Louisiana. The University was founded in 1853 in what is now known as Pineville, Louisiana, under the name...
in Baton Rouge, having been a member of Phi Delta Phi
Phi Delta Phi
Phi Delta Phi, ΦΔΦ, is the world's second largest legal fraternity. Phi Delta Phi is the second oldest legal organization in continuous existence in the United States and third oldest in North America...
at the time of his graduation in 1951. He also received his Juris Doctor
Juris Doctor
Juris Doctor is a professional doctorate and first professional graduate degree in law.The degree was first awarded by Harvard University in the United States in the late 19th century and was created as a modern version of the old European doctor of law degree Juris Doctor (see etymology and...
degree from the Louisiana State University Law Center in Baton Rouge. Bigby practiced law for sixteen years. In September 1979, Bigby resigned from the legislature to begin serving as a Second Circuit Court of Appeal
Louisiana Circuit Courts of Appeal
The Louisiana Circuit Courts of Appeal are the intermediate appellate courts for the state of Louisiana.There are five circuits, each covering a different group of parishes...
judge
Judge
A judge is a person who presides over court proceedings, either alone or as part of a panel of judges. The powers, functions, method of appointment, discipline, and training of judges vary widely across different jurisdictions. The judge is supposed to conduct the trial impartially and in an open...
in Shreveport
Shreveport, Louisiana
Shreveport is the third largest city in Louisiana. It is the principal city of the fourth largest metropolitan area in the state of Louisiana and is the 109th-largest city in the United States....
for what turned out to have been the last four months of his life.
Family
Bigby married Florence "Flo" Whittington (1923–2009), one of two daughters of V.V. Whittington and his wife, the former Anna Harris, of Benton. The Bigbys had a son, Walter O. "Walt" Bigby, Jr. (born 1964), a business consultant in Bossier CityBossier City, Louisiana
Bossier City is a city in Bossier Parish, Louisiana, United States.As of the 2010 Census, the city had a total population of 61,315. Bossier City is closely tied to its larger sister city Shreveport, located on the western bank of the Red River. The Shreveport-Bossier City metropolitan area is the...
. Long after Bigby's death, Flo, a businesswoman in her own right, married in 1997 the widower Oscar E. Price, who served as a Second Circuit judge from 1969-1985. The marriage lasted for nine years until Price's death.
Mrs. Bigby Price graduated from Benton High School and LSU, where she obtained a degree in home economics
Home Economics
Home economics is the profession and field of study that deals with the economics and management of the home and community...
. She worked for Delta Air Lines
Delta Air Lines
Delta Air Lines, Inc. is a major airline based in the United States and headquartered in Atlanta, Georgia. The airline operates an extensive domestic and international network serving all continents except Antarctica. Delta and its subsidiaries operate over 4,000 flights every day...
and taught at Haughton High School for two years before she became co-owner of Whittington and Myers Insurance
Insurance
In law and economics, insurance is a form of risk management primarily used to hedge against the risk of a contingent, uncertain loss. Insurance is defined as the equitable transfer of the risk of a loss, from one entity to another, in exchange for payment. An insurer is a company selling the...
Agency, an association that she maintained for three decades. She was also involved in her father's since defunct Bossier Bank and Trust Company, and she served on the board of the Bank of Benton. Her real estate
Real estate
In general use, esp. North American, 'real estate' is taken to mean "Property consisting of land and the buildings on it, along with its natural resources such as crops, minerals, or water; immovable property of this nature; an interest vested in this; an item of real property; buildings or...
career involved the development of the Greenacres and Palmetto subdivisions in Bossier Parish. She was also active in the establishment of the Kroger
Kroger
The Kroger Co. is an American supermarket chain founded by Bernard Kroger in 1883 in Cincinnati, Ohio. It reported US$ 76.7 billion in sales during fiscal year 2009. It is the country's largest grocery store chain and its second-largest grocery retailer by volume and second-place general retailer...
grocery store
Grocery store
A grocery store is a store that retails food. A grocer, the owner of a grocery store, stocks different kinds of foods from assorted places and cultures, and sells these "groceries" to customers. Large grocery stores that stock products other than food, such as clothing or household items, are...
on the Benton Road in Bossier City and the Graybar Electric Company in Shreveport. A civic as well as a business leader, Mrs. Price was a patron of the Shreveport Regional Arts Council, the Shreveport Club, the Shreveport Symphony, the Palmetto Country Club, the Young Men's Christian Association, the Shreveport Little Theater, Goodwill Industries
Goodwill Industries
Goodwill Industries International is a not-for-profit organization that provides job training, employment placement services and other community-based programs for people who have a disability, lack education or job experience, or face employment challenges...
, Salvation Army
Salvation Army
The Salvation Army is a Protestant Christian church known for its thrift stores and charity work. It is an international movement that currently works in over a hundred countries....
, Providence House, American Cancer Society
American Cancer Society
The American Cancer Society is the "nationwide community-based voluntary health organization" dedicated, in their own words, "to eliminating cancer as a major health problem by preventing cancer, saving lives, and diminishing suffering from cancer, through research, education, advocacy, and...
, and the Methodist Children's Home. First a Presbyterian, she later became a United Methodist.
Legislative service
In his first term in the legislature from 1968–1972, Bigby served with Ford E. StinsonFord E. Stinson
Ford Edwards Stinson, Sr. , was a member of the Louisiana House of Representatives from 1940–1944 and again from 1952-1972. In his last legislative term from 1968–1972, he served in a two-member district covering Bossier Parish with fellow Democrat Walter O. Bigby...
(1914–1989) as one of two representatives from Bossier Parish. Stinson had been the only Bossier Parish representative from 1940–1944 and again from 1952-1968. In 1972, Bigby began serving for the rest of his tenure with Jesse C. Deen as the other Bossier Parish representative, for Stinson was defeated in the first primary held in November 1971. Then on February 1, 1972, Democrats Deen and Bigby faced a single Republican
Republican Party (United States)
The Republican Party is one of the two major contemporary political parties in the United States, along with the Democratic Party. Founded by anti-slavery expansion activists in 1854, it is often called the GOP . The party's platform generally reflects American conservatism in the U.S...
opponent, Glenn E. Clark (1924-2011), a Kentucky
Kentucky
The Commonwealth of Kentucky is a state located in the East Central United States of America. As classified by the United States Census Bureau, Kentucky is a Southern state, more specifically in the East South Central region. Kentucky is one of four U.S. states constituted as a commonwealth...
native, United States Air Force
United States Air Force
The United States Air Force is the aerial warfare service branch of the United States Armed Forces and one of the American uniformed services. Initially part of the United States Army, the USAF was formed as a separate branch of the military on September 18, 1947 under the National Security Act of...
non-commissioned officer, and a businessman in Bossier City. Clark polled fewer than a third of the ballots, as Deen and Bigby were handily elected on their own.
Bigy described Governor Edwin Washington Edwards, under whose administration Bigby served the bulk of his time as a representative, accordingly: "Edwin and I have a philosophical difference over the role of government. He honestly believes that government exists solely to take care of those who can't take care of themselves."
Prior to Bigby's death from cancer
Cancer
Cancer , known medically as a malignant neoplasm, is a large group of different diseases, all involving unregulated cell growth. In cancer, cells divide and grow uncontrollably, forming malignant tumors, and invade nearby parts of the body. The cancer may also spread to more distant parts of the...
at the age of fifty-two, voters elected Democrat Robert Roy Adley
Robert Adley (Louisiana politician)
Robert Roy Adley , is a businessman and politician from Benton, Louisiana, who is a Republican member of the Louisiana State Senate...
, who held the then single-member District 9 seat from 1980–1996, when he stepped down to run unsuccessfully for governor. Adley returned to the legislature in 2003, when he won the special election held to determine a successor for Foster Campbell
Foster Campbell
Foster L. Campbell, Jr. , is a Democratic member of the Louisiana Public Service Commission, a former 26-year member of the Louisiana State Senate, and an unsuccessful candidate for governor in the October 20, 2007, jungle primary. Campbell polled 161,425 votes and won two parishes: Red River and...
of Bossier City
Bossier City, Louisiana
Bossier City is a city in Bossier Parish, Louisiana, United States.As of the 2010 Census, the city had a total population of 61,315. Bossier City is closely tied to its larger sister city Shreveport, located on the western bank of the Red River. The Shreveport-Bossier City metropolitan area is the...
, who resigned the position upon election to the Louisiana Public Service Commission
Louisiana Public Service Commission
Louisiana Public Service Commission is an independent regulatory agency which manages public utilities and motor carriers in Louisiana. The commission has five elected members chosen in single-member districts for staggered six-year terms...
. After his 2007 reelection to the state Senate, Adley switched to Republican affiliation.
Bigby is honored through the Walter O. Bigby Endowed Scholarship, a monetary award given to students at public or private colleges who either demonstrate high academic achievement or are actively involved in their school or community.