George William Andrews
Member of the U.S. House of Representatives from Alabama's 3rd district
In office March 14, 1944 – January 3, 1963
Preceded by	Henry B. Steagall
Succeeded by	District inactive
In office January 3, 1965 – December 25, 1971
Preceded by	District inactive
Succeeded by	Elizabeth B. Andrews
Member of the U.S. House of Representatives from Alabama's At-large district
In office January 3, 1963 – January 3, 1965
Preceded by	George M. Grant
Succeeded by	Kenneth A. Roberts
Personal details
Born	(1906-12-12)December 12, 1906 Clayton, Alabama, U.S.
Died	December 25, 1971(1971-12-25) (aged 65) Birmingham, Alabama, U.S.
Political party	Democratic
Spouse	Leslie Elizabeth Bullock ​ ​ (m. 1936)​
Children	2
Alma mater	University of Alabama at Tuscaloosa
Occupation	lawyer, politician, judge

George William Andrews (December 12, 1906 – December 25, 1971) was an American politician and a U.S. Representative from Alabama, and the husband of Elizabeth B. Andrews.

Andrews is known for objecting to the Supreme Court decision banning school prayer by saying, "They put the Negroes in the schools and now they've driven God out."^[1][2]

Biography

Andrews was born in Clayton, Alabama son of George William and Addie Bell (King) Andrews. He attended the public schools, and graduated from the University of Alabama at Tuscaloosa in 1928. He was admitted to the bar in 1928 and commenced practice in Union Springs, Alabama. On November 25, 1936, he married Leslie Elizabeth Bullock.

Career

He served as district attorney for the third judicial circuit of Alabama, from 1931 to 1943. During the Second World War, he served as a lieutenant (jg.) in the United States Naval Reserve from January 1943 until his election to Congress, at which time he was serving at Pearl Harbor, Hawaii.^[3]

Andrews was elected as a Democrat to the Seventy-eighth Congress to fill the vacancy caused by the death of Henry B. Steagall. He was reelected to the fourteen succeeding Congresses and served from March 14, 1944, until his death from complications following heart surgery in Birmingham, Alabama on December 25, 1971.

Andrews was a signatory to the 1956 Southern Manifesto^[4] that opposed the desegregation of public schools ordered by the Supreme Court in Brown v. Board of Education. Andrews voted against the Civil Rights Acts of 1957,^[5] 1960,^[6] 1964,^[7] and 1968^[8] as well as the 24th Amendment to the U.S. Constitution^[9] and the Voting Rights Act of 1965.^[10]

Death and legacy

Andrews died in Birmingham, Alabama on December 25, 1971, 13 days after turning 65. He is interred at Oak Hill Cemetery, Union Springs, Alabama.^[11] The George W. Andrews Lake and George W. Andrews Federal Building are named for him.