Daniel J. Evans: An Autobiography

by Dan Evans, Legacy Washington (Editor), John Hughes (Editor)

In his long-awaited autobiography, Washington’s former three-term governor and U.S. senator begins by exploring his family’s pioneer roots, which run four generations deep in the Northwest. Born in Seattle in 1925, Evans was the son of the longest-serving chief engineer in King County History. Early on, Evans became an avid hiker and outdoorsman, achieving Eagle Scout rank at 16. He enlisted in the U.S. Navy at the outbreak of World War II and was selected for the V-12 naval officers training program, studying engineering at the University of Washington and UC Berkeley. Ensign Evans was in radar school when the war ended. He returned to Seattle and re-enrolled at the University of Washington on the GI Bill and received a master’s degree in civil engineering in 1949. Evans’ first professional job was with the City of Seattle Engineering Department, where he helped design the new Alaskan Way Viaduct. Called back to active duty in 1951 when the Korean War erupted, Evans served as navigator and operations officer on a destroyer. His ship was engaged in combat off the coast of North Korea. Next, Lt. Evans served as an admiral’s aide, and helped orchestrate the Military Armistice Commission proceedings. After joining the Jaycees, the Young Republicans and the Municipal League, Evans was elected to the State House of Representatives in 1956. He was chosen House Minority Leader only five years later, and in 1963 engineered a coalition with dissident Democrats to topple the reigning speaker of the House. In 1964, with a bold “Blueprint for Progress,” Evans won the GOP nomination for governor against long odds and went on to defeat two-term Democrat Al Rosellini in what was otherwise a landslide year nationally for Democrats. The hallmarks of Evans’ then-unprecedented three consecutive terms were educational reform, the creation of a Department of Ecology and advances in civil rights. A 1982 Harvard study ranked Evans as one of the 10 outstanding U.S. governors of the 20th century. He served as president of the innovative Evergreen State College, which his administration had helped create, before his election to the U.S. Senate in 1983. Opting to not seek a second term, Evans returned home to co-found the Washington Wildlife & Recreation Commission. He served as a regent of his alma mater from 1993-2005. The Daniel J. Evans School of Public Policy & Governance was founded at the UW in 2000.

437 pages, Hardcover

Published January 25, 2022