Daniel J. Evans (born November 11, 1925) served three terms as governor of the state of Washington from 1965 to 1977, and represented the state in the United States Senate from 1983 to 1989. As a young man, Evans was an Eagle Scout and recipient of the Distinguished Eagle Scout Award from the Boy Scouts of America. He also served as a staff member at Camp Parsons, a well known Boy Scout camp in Washington State. Gov. Evans graduated from the University of Washington with degrees in civil engineering (BS, 1948, MS, 1949). A structural engineer by profession, Evans served in the Washington State House of Representatives from 1956 to 1965 before being elected governor. A Republican, Evans became known for his administration's liberal policies on environmental protection and strong support of the state's higher education system. He was a keynote speaker at the 1968 Republican National Convention. He served as governor from 1965 through 1977, still the only three term governor in Washington state history. This fact is made even more amazing by the fact that Washington is a highly democratic state. He declined to run for a fourth term.
From 1977 to 1983 Evans served as the second president of The Evergreen State College in Olympia, Washington, which Evans had created in 1967 by signing a legislative act authorizing the formation of the college. The largest building on the Evergreen campus is named the Daniel J. Evans Library in his honor. In 1983, Governor John Spellman appointed Evans to the United States Senate to fill a seat left vacant by the death of longtime senator Henry M. "Scoop" Jackson. Evans won a special election later that year and filled the remainder of Jackson's unexpired term, retiring from politics after the 1988 elections.
After leaving the Senate in 1989, Evans founded his own consulting firm, Daniel J. Evans Associates. Governor Mike Lowry appointed him to the Board of Regents of the University of Washington in 1993; Evans served as the board's president from 1996 to 1997, and in 1999 the Daniel J. Evans School of Public Affairs at the University was named for him. He is generally remembered as a popular and influential governor and statesman whose strong leadership helped improve Washington during a time of economic and political turmoil.
