Dan Rylance's biography of North Dakota Sen. Quentin Burdick is in bookstores. I began reading it last week, and thus far the book is as fascinating as was the man.
"Quentin Burdick; The Gentle Warrior" (North Dakota Institute for Regional Studies) has been years in the making. Rylance, a Fargo native with deep roots in North Dakota, taught American history at the University of North Dakota, headed the Elwyn B. Robinson Department of Special Collections at UND, and has authored several books, including a biography of Chester Fritz, one of UND's major benefactors. In a detour from academia, he worked four years as editorial page editor of the Grand Forks Herald. He lives in Wisconsin, where he's special events coordinator at an Oshkosh elementary school.
Since I'm only just into the biography, this is not a review or critique. Rather, I recommend North Dakotans who knew the senator and those who know of him spend time with the book. It looks to be a perceptive, enlightening look at the life and times of one of the most influential state politicians of the 20th century.
Rylance conducted hundreds of hours of interviews with Burdick's contemporaries, including political figures, friends, family and journalists. I was among the journalists the author interviewed and some of my observations about the late senator made it into the book. By the time I came to the state Burdick was a household name by virtue of his father's (Usher) public life and his own upset election to the U.S. Senate over Gov. John Davis in 1960. The senator's personal political success changed North Dakota from a one-party Republican state to a place where Democrats would be on the ascendency.
Rylance's work covers Burdick's life from humble beginnings to his last re-election to the Senate, and finally the last few years of his life as his physical health failed and mental acuity diminished.
ADVERTISEMENT
So far, only one disagreement with the author: the title. My experiences with Burdick don't fit the "gentle warrior" description. The man had a temper and wasn't reluctant to let fly. For example: In the 1970s I covered a meeting in McClusky of area farmers who had aligned with environmental groups to oppose the Garrison Diversion Project. They were livid about losing their lands to one of the project's canals. The senator listened to a litany of complaints from the farmers and a blistering critique from the leader of the environmental opponents. Then he blew.
I don't remember his exact words, but he punctuated his ire with expletives that underscored his rock-solid commitment to the project. "I'm not going to see this thing go down because of you bunch of (expletive deleted). I've worked too (expletive deleted) hard!" Or something like that.
Gentle warrior? Maybe. But he knew how to be anything but gentle when he needed to press a point.
Rylance's work is a must-read for fans of North Dakota's political history. Burdick was one of the giants of his era. The
party-building he did and his accomplishments in the U.S. Senate helped develop the state we enjoy today.
Pick up the book. Let me know what you think.
Readers can reach Zaleski at (701) 241-5521 or Email jzaleski@forumcomm.com
