George W. Palmer (Virginia)
Encyclopedia
George W. Palmer was a Democratic State Senator from Prince Edward County, Virginia
and was a school board member during the period of his county's massive resistance
opposition to racial integration of the public schools.
, upon the death of Senator W. Dennis Kendig
. He was later reelected to a full term from 1952 - 1956.
By 1959, Palmer was on the Prince Edward County School Board when it was faced with an order to desegregate
its public schools. The Prince Edward County school board closed the entire school system in September 1959 rather than integrate. Prince Edward County was the only school district in the country to resort to such extreme measures. In 1963, Palmer was the Chair of the School Board who reopened the public schools under federal court order.
Prince Edward County, Virginia
Prince Edward County is a county located in the Commonwealth of Virginia. As of 2010, the population was 23,368. Its county seat is Farmville.-Formation and County Seats:...
and was a school board member during the period of his county's massive resistance
Massive resistance
Massive resistance was a policy declared by U.S. Senator Harry F. Byrd, Sr. on February 24, 1956, to unite other white politicians and leaders in Virginia in a campaign of new state laws and policies to prevent public school desegregation after the Brown v. Board of Education Supreme Court decision...
opposition to racial integration of the public schools.
Political career
Palmer was first elected to the Virginia Senate in a special election in 1948 representing the 9th districtVirginia Senate, District 9
District 9 of the Virginia Senate is a senatorial district that encompasses all of Charles City County and portions of the City of Richmond, Henrico County and Hanover County in the U.S. state of Virginia...
, upon the death of Senator W. Dennis Kendig
W. Dennis Kendig
Walter Dennis Kendig was a Virginia physician and briefly a Democratic State Senator.-Early life:Kendig was born in Spotsylvania County, Virginia on his father's farm on May 29, 1880 to Samuel E. Kendig and Miverva Eudora Fleming. He had a twin brother, Benjamin, and they were the eldest of 8...
. He was later reelected to a full term from 1952 - 1956.
By 1959, Palmer was on the Prince Edward County School Board when it was faced with an order to desegregate
Desegregation
Desegregation is the process of ending the separation of two groups usually referring to races. This is most commonly used in reference to the United States. Desegregation was long a focus of the American Civil Rights Movement, both before and after the United States Supreme Court's decision in...
its public schools. The Prince Edward County school board closed the entire school system in September 1959 rather than integrate. Prince Edward County was the only school district in the country to resort to such extreme measures. In 1963, Palmer was the Chair of the School Board who reopened the public schools under federal court order.