Richard Lowell Roudebush (January 18, 1918 – January 28, 1995) was an American World War II veteran who served five terms as a U.S. Representative from Indiana from 1961 to 1971.

Richard Roudebush
Administrator of Veterans Affairs
In office
October 12, 1974 – January 20, 1977
PresidentGerald Ford
Preceded byDonald Johnson
Succeeded byMax Cleland
Member of the
U.S. House of Representatives
from Indiana
In office
January 3, 1961 – January 3, 1971
Preceded byFred Wampler
Succeeded byBud Hillis
Constituency6th district (1961–1967)
10th district (1967–1969)
5th district (1969–1971)
Personal details
Born
Richard Lowell Roudebush

(1918-01-18)January 18, 1918
Noblesville, Indiana, U.S.
DiedJanuary 28, 1995(1995-01-28) (aged 77)
Sarasota, Florida, U.S.
Political partyRepublican
EducationButler University (BA)

Early life and education

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Born on a farm in Hamilton County, near Noblesville, Indiana, Roudebush attended Hamilton County schools. He graduated from Butler University, Indianapolis, in 1941.

World War II

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He served in the United States Army from November 18, 1941, to August 12, 1944, as a demolition specialist for the Ordnance Department in Middle Eastern, North African, and Italian campaigns. He was a farmer and a partner in a livestock commission company. He served as National Commander of the Veterans of Foreign Wars in 1957–1958, and as chairman of the Indiana Veterans Commission from 1954 to 1960.

Congress

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Roudebush was elected as a Republican to the Eighty-seventh and to the four succeeding Congresses (January 3, 1961 – January 3, 1971). He was not a candidate in 1970 for reelection, but was an unsuccessful candidate for election to the United States Senate against incumbent Democrat Vance Hartke in the closest Senate election in Indiana history.[citation needed]

Later career and death

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He later served as the Administrator of Veterans Affairs, Veterans Administration from 1974 to 1977.

He died on January 28, 1995, and was buried in Arlington National Cemetery.[1] The Richard L. Roudebush V.A. Medical Center in Indianapolis was named in his honor.

See also

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References

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  1. ^ "Burial detail: Roudebush, Richard L". ANC Explorer. Retrieved April 15, 2023.

Sources

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U.S. House of Representatives
Preceded by Member of the U.S. House of Representatives
from Indiana's 6th congressional district

1961–1967
Succeeded by
Preceded by Member of the U.S. House of Representatives
from Indiana's 10th congressional district

1967–1969
Succeeded by
Preceded by Member of the U.S. House of Representatives
from Indiana's 5th congressional district

1969–1971
Succeeded by
Party political offices
Preceded by
D. Russell Bontranger
Republican nominee for U.S. Senator from Indiana
(Class 1)

1970
Succeeded by
Political offices
Preceded by Administrator of Veterans Affairs
1974–1977
Succeeded by

  This article incorporates public domain material from the Biographical Directory of the United States Congress