Representative Edgar Willard Hiestand

Edgar Willard Hiestand (December 3, 1888 – August 19, 1970) was an American businessman and Republican politician who served as a Representative from California in the United States Congress from 1953 to 1963. A staunch anti-communist and member of the John Birch Society, he contributed to the legislative process during five terms in office, serving ten years in the House of Representatives and representing California’s 21st congressional district during a significant period in American political and social history.

Hiestand was born in Chicago, Illinois, on December 3, 1888. He pursued higher education at Dartmouth College in Hanover, New Hampshire, and graduated in 1910. His Dartmouth education provided the foundation for a career in business and later in public service, positioning him within the emerging professional and managerial class of the early twentieth century.

Following his graduation, Hiestand embarked on a career in retailing that ultimately brought him to California. He became associated with Sears, Roebuck and Co., concluding his business career with the company in Glendale, California. His experience in retail management and business operations informed his later legislative interests, particularly in matters involving labor, management, and the regulation of business practices.

Hiestand entered electoral politics as a Republican and, in 1952, won election to the United States House of Representatives from California’s 21st congressional district. He took office on January 3, 1953, and served continuously until January 3, 1963. The 21st district at that time covered the northern two-thirds of Los Angeles County, extending from the cities of Pasadena and Sierra Madre on the east to Burbank and the San Fernando Valley on the west, and northward to the Antelope Valley, including Edwards Air Force Base. As a member of the House of Representatives, Hiestand participated in the democratic process and represented the interests of his constituents during a decade marked by the Cold War, the growth of the defense industry in Southern California, and the early stages of the modern civil rights movement.

During his congressional service, Hiestand was known as a firm anti-communist and aligned himself with conservative elements within the Republican Party, including membership in the John Birch Society. He served on the U.S. House Committee on Education and Labor, where he sponsored and supported revisions to business-labor statutes, reflecting his background in retail and management. His expertise in labor and management issues led to his role as an advisor to President Dwight D. Eisenhower on questions involving labor relations and business policy. In the area of civil rights, Hiestand voted in favor of the Civil Rights Act of 1957 and the Civil Rights Act of 1960, supporting early federal efforts to protect voting rights and address racial discrimination, but he voted against the 24th Amendment to the U.S. Constitution, which prohibited the use of poll taxes in federal elections.

Hiestand’s congressional career came to an end following redistricting by the Democratic-majority California Legislature in 1962. The redrawn lines placed him into the western section of his old 21st district, an area that was more heavily Democratic in its voting patterns. In the 1962 election, this shift contributed to his defeat by Democrat Everett G. Burkhalter, a Los Angeles city councilman, bringing his ten-year tenure in Congress to a close on January 3, 1963.

After leaving Congress, Hiestand remained associated with the Pasadena area of California, where he had long resided. He died in Pasadena on August 19, 1970, at the age of 81. His ashes were interred at San Gabriel Cemetery in San Gabriel, California, marking the final resting place of a businessman-turned-legislator whose career spanned the worlds of retail commerce, Cold War politics, and mid-twentieth-century congressional service.