West Virginia Sen. Robert C. Byrd , the longest-serving member of the U.S. Senate, died early this morning. He was 92.
West Virginia Senator Robert Byrd served for more than 50 years.Byrd was admitted to a Washington area hospital a week ago, suffering from what was believed to be heat exhaustion and severe dehydration as a result of the extreme temperatures in the nation's capital. By Sunday afternoon other conditions developed, and Byrd's health took a turn for the worse.
Born Nov. 20, 1917, in North Wilkesboro, North Carolina, Byrd was orphaned as a 1-year-old when his mother died. He was raised by his aunt and uncle in a rural community near the coalfields of West Virginia.
The life lessons he learned while growing up in a coal-mining family helped him shape his political career; he ultimately achieved the distinction of being a three-term congressman and a nine-term senator.
"I served with him for 36 years. We sat in the same row," Sen. Patrick Leahy, D-Vermont, said on "Good Morning America" today. "He was a senator's senator. He was a keeper of our traditions, a keeper of the rules and the kind of senator who always kept his word. ... I will miss Bob Byrd."
