Senator Joseph Tydings Dies At Age 90

MARYLAND — U.S. Senator Joseph Davies Tydings has died at the age of 90. Tydings, a Harford County Democrat, was known for his progressive policies, including a stance on gun control that contributed to the end of his senatorial career.

Maryland lawmakers who responded to the news of his death have described Tydings as "one of Maryland's great civic leaders" who was "fearless," "a man of principle" and "courageous."

Tydings was born on May 4, 1928, in North Carolina, to Eleanor Davies and Thomas Cheeseborough. After his mother divorced his father when he was 6, she married U.S. Senator Millard Tydings, who adopted him.

He took on the Tydings name and grew up on the family’s duck farm in Oakington between Aberdeen and Havre de Grace, where he and his father hunted together, according to Capital News Service. The property where he grew up became Father Martin's Ashley, now Ashley Addiction Treatment, on Tydings Lane.

Tydings went to public schools in Aberdeen, graduated from McDonogh School in 1946, University of Maryland in 1950 and the University of Maryland Law School in 1953.

He was in the Army and practiced law before his election to Maryland's House of Delegates from 1955 to 1961.

After working on John F. Kennedy's 1960 presidential campaign, Kennedy appointed him U.S. Attorney for Maryland, a position Tydings held from 1961 to 1963.

Next, Tydings was elected to the U.S. Senate in 1964 and served from 1965 to 1971.

When his friend Senator Robert F. Kennedy was shot and killed in 1968, he joined lawmakers who introduced the Firearms Registration and Licensing Act. It was believed that Tydings lost his re-election bid in part due to his support for gun control.

"I had probably done more hunting than most of the members of the board of the National Rifle Association,” Tydings, a hunter who owned seven shotguns, told Capital News Service in 2013, reflecting on his political career.

Current lawmakers say that they looked up to Tydings for his vision and conviction.

"His progressive battles cost him his Senate seat in 1970, but his display of political courage was an inspiration to me and many others," U.S. Senator Chris Van Hollen said in a statement Monday after Tydings passed away. "He cut against the grain and had the courage of his convictions to fight for civil rights, equality, and sensible gun laws in the turbulent 1960s...In these difficult times, he serves as a powerful example of the best in public service."

In 1971, Tydings returned to practicing law and went on to serve on state educational commissions. He was a member of the Board of Regents of the University System of Maryland from 2000 to 2005 and was senior counsel at the law firm of Dickstein, Shapiro, Morin and Oshinsky in Washington, D.C. He continued advocating for measures supported by environmental advocacy groups.

His autobiography — My Life in Progressive Politics: Against the Grain — was released in April. Former Vice President Joe Biden wrote the forward to the book.

Tydings died of cancer on Monday, Sept. 8, at a hospital in Washington, D.C., where he was surrounded by his family and cloaked in a University of Maryland blanket, according to The Baltimore Sun, which reports he is survived by his sister, five children and nine grandchildren.

Flags will fly at half-staff in honor of Senator Joseph Tydings, Gov. Larry Hogan ordered.

We are saddened to hear of the passing of Jospeh Tydings, #UMDAlum, former U.S. Senator, and lifelong servant of the University and the State of Marylandhttps://t.co/ncT7w4GHHn
— UMD Govt Affairs (@UMDgovtaffairs) October 9, 2018

Joe Tydings and I were both inspired by JFK & RFK and their call to service. In the Senate, he lived up to their example with an ironclad commitment to fight the abuse of power and work to ensure that every American gets a fair shot. Joe made America better—he will be missed.
— Joe Biden (@JoeBiden) October 9, 2018

Rest In Peace, Joe Tydings. Maryland has lost one of its most fearless and courageous U.S. Senators. https://t.co/BZoxEIuvsN
— Martin O'Malley (@MartinOMalley) October 9, 2018

From his early days in the Maryland House of Delegates, to his youthful years as a Kennedy-appointed United States Attorney, and finally in the US Senate - Joe Tydings was a man of principle who loved and served his country. https://t.co/MSoZHERguJ
— Anthony G. Brown (@RepAnthonyBrown) October 9, 2018

Photo of Senator Joseph Tydings. Courtesy U.S. Senate Historical Office.