Eugene B. Sydnor Jr.
| Eugene B. Sydnor Jr. | |
|---|---|
| Member of the Virginia Senate from the Richmond district |
|
|
In office 1955–1959 |
|
| Preceded by | Frank S. Richeson |
| Succeeded by | FitzGerald Bemiss |
| Member of the Virginia House of Delegates from Richmond | |
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In office January, 1953 – January, 1955 |
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| Preceded by | William Harrison Adams |
| Succeeded by | FitzGerald Bemiss |
| Personal details | |
| Born | September 25, 1917 Richmond, Virginia, Virginia, U.S. |
| Died | September 9, 2003 Richmond, Virginia |
| Political party | Democratic |
| Spouse(s) | Lucy Harvey Sydnor, Elaine Jantzen Wilis |
| Alma mater | Princeton University, Harvard Business School |
| Military service | |
| Allegiance |
 United States
|
| Service/branch | Navy |
| Years of service | 1940-45 |
Eugene Beauharnais Sydnor Jr. (September 25, 1917 – September 9, 2003) was a Richmond department store owner, Chamber of Commerce executive, and politician. A member of the Byrd Organization, Sydnor served briefly in both houses of the Virginia General Assembly: from 1953 to 1955 in the House of Delegates and from 1955 until 1959 in the Virginia Senate. Both occurred during the period of Massive Resistance to the United States Supreme Court's decision in Brown v. Board of Education.
A Richmond native, and son of businessman Eugene B. Sydnor and his wife, the former Sallie Belle Weller, Eugene was educated at St. Christopher's School in Richmond, and had a sister who became Mrs. Charles M. Carr of Williamsburg. Sydnor graduated from Princeton University in 1939 and was a member of Phi Beta Kappa. He then received a Master of Business Administration from the Harvard Business School.
Eugene Sydnor married Lucy Harvey (d. 2006) of Winnetka, Illinois, whom he met during his World War II naval service, and they had one daughter (Alice) who predeceased them, and three sons (William H., Eugene Jr. and Charles). They divorced. Sydnor later married Elaine Jantzen Willis, and she and her two daughters and three sons also survived him.
During World War II, Sydnor served in the United States Navy aboard three destroyers, last holding the position of First Lieutenant.
Sydnor was the president and significant stockholder of Southern Department Stores (now defunct but then with 20 retail locations in Virginia and North Carolina, including in Williamsburg, Gloucester, Petersburg, Rappahannock and Kilmarnock). In 1951, the National Labor Relations Board ruled against the family's Richmond Dry Goods Co., which was the target of unionization efforts. In 1956, he spun that company off to Philip Whitlock Klaus, who had founded it with Sydnor's father.
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