Arthur Ravenel Jr. facts for kids
Quick facts for kids
Arthur Ravenel Jr.
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| Member of the U.S. House of Representatives from South Carolina's 1st district |
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| In office January 3, 1987 – January 3, 1995 |
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| Preceded by | Thomas F. Hartnett |
| Succeeded by | Mark Sanford |
| Member of the South Carolina Senate | |
| In office January 3, 1997 – January 3, 2005 |
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| Preceded by | Greg Smith |
| Succeeded by | Raymond E. Cleary III |
| Constituency | 34th district |
| In office January 13, 1981 – January 3, 1987 |
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| Preceded by | Allen Ruffin Carter Arnold Samuel Goodstein Thomas Forbes Hartnett |
| Succeeded by | Sherry Shealy Martschink |
| Constituency | 16th district (1981–1985) 44th district (1985–1987) |
| Member of the South Carolina House of Representatives from Charleston County | |
| In office January 13, 1953 – January 13, 1959 |
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| Preceded by | Multi-member district |
| Succeeded by | Multi-member district |
| Personal details | |
| Born | March 29, 1927 Charleston, South Carolina, U.S. |
| Died | January 16, 2023 (aged 95) Charleston, South Carolina, U.S. |
| Resting place |
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| Political party | Democratic (until 1960s) Republican (after 1960s) |
Arthur Ravenel Jr. (March 29, 1927 – January 16, 2023) was an American businessman and a Republican politician from Charleston, South Carolina. From 1987 to 1995, he served four terms in the U.S. House of Representatives.
Early life
Ravenel was born on March 29, 1927, to Arthur Ravenel, Sr. and Mary Allen Boykin.
During the waning days of World War II, the Charleston-born Ravenel enlisted in the United States Marine Corps, serving from 1945 to 1946. He received a bachelor of science degree from the College of Charleston in 1950, then became realtor and general contractor.
Political career
First elected at age 25, he was a Democratic member of the South Carolina House of Representatives from 1953 to 1959.
Ravenel became a Republican in 1960 and ran many times for office. He lost elections for the South Carolina State Senate three times (1962, 1974, and 1976), for the United States House of Representatives (in a 1971 special election), and for mayor of Charleston (also 1971).
Ravenel was elected as a Republican to the South Carolina Senate in 1980. He served until 1986, when he was elected to the U.S. Congress from the Charleston-based 1st District that became open when incumbent Tommy Hartnett ran for Lt. Governor.
During his four terms in Congress, he focused his attention on constituent services, rarely sponsoring legislation.
He was reelected three more times without serious opposition. He did not run for reelection in 1994, but instead ran for governor. He finished second in the Republican primary to then State Representative David Beasley, but lost the runoff. Beasley, considered more conservative than Ravenel, went on to win the general election. In 1996, Ravenel was elected to his old seat in the state Senate, where he served until 2005.
Ravenel staged a comeback in 2006, having been elected at the age of 79 to a seat on the school board of Charleston County. Only a year earlier, he had suffered a bout of Guillain–Barré syndrome. In the same election, his son Thomas Ravenel, also a Republican, was elected state treasurer. The younger Ravenel resigned from the office after only six months following serious legal allegations.
Personal life and death
Ravenel died in Charleston on January 16, 2023, at the age of 95. He was buried at the cemetery of Huguenot Church in Charleston.
