Representative Le Roy Donnelly Downs

Le Roy Donnelly Downs (April 11, 1900 – January 18, 1970) was an American politician and newspaper publisher who served as a Democratic U.S. Representative from Connecticut’s 4th congressional district from 1941 to 1943. His single term in the United States House of Representatives coincided with the early years of American involvement in the Second World War, during which he represented his constituents in southwestern Connecticut and participated in the national legislative process.

Downs was born in Danbury, Connecticut, on April 11, 1900. He attended the public schools of his native city, receiving a basic education that prepared him for both military and civic service. On August 27, 1917, during the First World War, he enlisted in the United States Army. He served as a corporal and spent four months in France before being honorably discharged on December 21, 1918. This early experience in uniform, coming at a formative period of his life, informed his later involvement in veterans’ affairs and public administration.

After returning from military service, Downs entered the newspaper business. In 1923 he engaged as a newspaper publisher in South Norwalk, Connecticut, a role that placed him at the center of local civic life and public discourse. Through his work in publishing, he became well known in the community and developed an understanding of local concerns that would later shape his political career. He married Mabel Miller, and the couple had one son, William, establishing a family life in the Norwalk area while he built his professional and political profile.

Downs’s public service began in earnest during the early 1930s. He served as chairman and member of the Veterans’ Home Building Commission from 1931 to 1938, reflecting his continuing commitment to the welfare of former servicemembers. At the same time, he entered municipal government, serving as city clerk of Norwalk, Connecticut, from 1933 to 1940. In these roles he gained administrative experience and visibility in Democratic Party circles, laying the groundwork for his subsequent election to national office.

In 1940, Downs was elected as a Democrat to the Seventy-seventh Congress, representing Connecticut’s 4th congressional district. He served from January 3, 1941, to January 3, 1943. His tenure in the House of Representatives took place during a significant period in American history, encompassing the nation’s entry into World War II following the attack on Pearl Harbor. As a member of the House, Downs contributed to the legislative process, participated in the democratic governance of the country, and represented the interests of his constituents in Connecticut. He sought reelection in 1942 to the Seventy-eighth Congress but was unsuccessful, losing to Republican candidate Clare Boothe Luce.

Following his departure from Congress, Downs returned to his earlier profession in the newspaper publishing business. He also continued to hold important local and regional public offices. He served as Comptroller of the city of Norwalk from 1943 to 1944, overseeing aspects of the city’s financial administration during the wartime period. From 1944 to 1946 he was War Manpower Director for southwestern Connecticut, a position that involved coordinating labor and manpower resources to support the national war effort on the home front. He remained active in electoral politics, running unsuccessfully for mayor of Norwalk in 1949 and again in 1959, demonstrating his continued engagement with local government and the Democratic Party.

In his later years, Downs’s public service took on a broader regional dimension. He served as a regional representative for the Veterans’ Administration in New York, New Jersey, and Pennsylvania from 1961 until his death in 1970. In this capacity he worked on behalf of veterans across three states, drawing on his long experience with veterans’ issues dating back to his work on the Veterans’ Home Building Commission and his own World War I service. Le Roy Donnelly Downs died in Norwalk, Connecticut, on January 18, 1970. He was interred in Riverside Cemetery, leaving a record of service that spanned military duty, journalism, municipal administration, federal legislative office, and veterans’ advocacy.