Stewart McKinney
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Stewart Brett McKinney (January 30, 1931-May 7, 1987) was an American politician who represented the fourth congressional district of Connecticut in the House of Representatives from 1971 until his death.
McKinney was born in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, but by the time he graduated high school, his family was living in Connecticut, where he would live for the rest of his life. After attending Princeton University from 1949-1951, he dropped out and enlisted in the U.S. Air Force, where he attained the rank of sergeant. After leaving the Air Force in 1955, he went back to college, receiving a B.A. from Yale University in 1958.
In 1966, McKinney was elected as a Republican to the Connecticut State House of Representatives, where he served two 2-year terms, including a stint as minority leader in his second term (1969-1970). In Congress, he served on the House Select Committee on Assassinations. During this time, he also served as a director of Bridgeport hospital.
In 1970, McKinney ran for the U.S. House and won. He served in the House as a moderate Republican until his death in Washington, DC. McKinney was a resident of Green's Farms, Connecticut, which is a part of Westport.
His death in 1987 was brought about by complications of AIDS. His physician believed he became infected with HIV in 1979 from blood transfusions during heart surgery. Posthumous claims that McKinney engaged in a same-sex relationship, however, raise the possibility of another transmission route. [1]
He was the first U.S. congressman to die of the disease. After his death, the Congress renamed the Salt Meadow National Wildlife Refuge in Connecticut to the Stewart B. McKinney National Wildlife Refuge. He is also widely known for the McKinney-Vento Homeless Assistance Act of 1986 that provides federal money for shelter programs.
His son John McKinney is now the State Senator from Fairfield and is rumored to be a future congressional candidate from the Fourth District.
