Former US Rep. Bob Davis dies at 77

Former U.S. Rep. Bob Davis, an ex-funeral home owner who represented northern Lower Michigan and the Upper Peninsula for seven terms in Congress, died Friday. He was 77.

Davis "had been sick for a while" and suffered kidney and heart failure before dying in a hospice in Arlington, Va., said Mark Ruge, the congressman's former chief of staff.

"He was a great man who just cared very much for the people of
his district," Ruge said. "He was a people guy."

Davis served in Congress from 1979 to 1993 and in recent years
worked as a lobbyist in the Washington, D.C., area. He served as the top Republican on the House Merchant Marine and Fisheries Committee, which oversaw federal Great Lakes policy, and championed the process that eventually led to the establishment of
the Thunder Bay National Marine Sanctuary near Alpena.

In his last act in Congress, Davis helped create the Keweenaw National Historical Park, a part of the National Park Service.

Davis' congressional district was one of the largest in the nation, extending from Ironwood in the western Upper Peninsula to cities well into the Lower Peninsula.

Davis also served two terms in the Michigan House and two terms
in the state Senate, where he was the Republican leader from 1974
to 1978. He won 11 consecutive general election races.

In 1968, he teamed with then-Gov. George Romney on legislation
to reduce the tolls on the Mackinac Bridge from the then-$7.50 per
round trip for autos. Davis' amendment dropped the toll to $1.50
each way.

Davis, who was born in Marquette and attended school in St. Ignace, lived in Gaylord for much of his time in Congress.

The post office in St. Ignace is named in his honor, and it was in that Upper Peninsula community that he owned and operated a funeral home with his father.

Davis is survived by his wife, Brook, and five children: Rob, Lisa, George, Alexandra and Hannah.

Memorial contributions can be made to the Bob Davis Fund at
Northern Michigan University, which he attended.