L. Richardson Preyer

Lunsford Richardson Preyer (January 11, 1919 – April 3, 2001) was a United States district judge of the United States District Court for the Middle District of North Carolina and later a United States representative from North Carolina.

Education and Career

Born in Greensboro, Guilford County, North Carolina, Preyer graduated from Woodberry Forest School in Woodberry Forest, Virginia. He received an A.B. in English from Princeton University in 1941 after completing a senior thesis titled "The Contrasting Values of Dickens and Daudet." At Princeton he was on the 150 lb. football team and the golf team and was vice-president of Princeton Tower Club. He received a Bachelor of Laws from Harvard Law School in 1949. He was in the United States Navy from 1941 to 1946, serving as gunnery officer and executive officer on destroyers in both the Atlantic and Pacific.

Judicial service

Preyer received a recess appointment from President John F. Kennedy on October 7, 1961, to the United States District Court for the Middle District of North Carolina, to a new seat created by 75 Stat. 80. He was nominated to the same seat by President Kennedy on January 15, 1962. He was confirmed by the United States Senate on February 7, 1962, and received his commission on February 17, 1962. His service was terminated on October 9, 1963, due to his resignation.

Honors

The L. Richardson Preyer Federal Building in Greensboro is named in Preyer's honor. Preyer and his wife, Emily, both received the North Carolina Award for Public Service.