| Edward Beard | |
| Image Name: | Edward Beard.png |
| State: | Rhode Island |
| District: | 2nd |
| Preceded: | Robert Tiernan |
| Succeeded: | Claudine Schneider |
| Term Start: | January 3, 1975 |
| Term End: | January 3, 1981 |
| Office2: | Member of the Rhode Island House of Representatives |
| Term Start2: | 1972 |
| Term End2: | 1974 |
| Birth Date: | 20 January 1940 |
| Birth Place: | Providence, Rhode Island, U.S. |
| Death Place: | Providence, Rhode Island, U.S. |
| Party: | Democratic |
| Parents: | Thomas J. Beard and Anne Beard |
| Profession: | Businessman politician |
Edward Peter Beard (January 20, 1940 – January 11, 2021) was an American businessman and politician from Rhode Island. He served in the Rhode Island House of Representatives and was a member of the United States House of Representatives.
Born in Providence, Rhode Island, Beard attended Assumption Elementary School and Hope High School in Providence.[1] He served in the Rhode Island National Guard from 1960 to 1966, where he completed high school as well as a college-level course in agriculture.[2] Beard was one of only a few members of Congress in the late 20th century who was not a college graduate. Beard worked as a house painter before entering politics.[3]
Beard began his political career as a member of the Rhode Island House of Representatives, serving from 1972 to 1974. In 1976, he was a delegate to the Democratic National Convention.
Elected as a Democrat to the Ninety-fourth Congress, he was re-elected to the Ninety-fifth and Ninety-sixth Congresses.[4] Beard served in the U. S. House of Representatives from January 3, 1975, to January 3, 1981, and was chairman on the House Committee on Labor Standards.[5] His bid for re-election to the Ninety-seventh Congress in 1980 was unsuccessful.
His complete Congressional record of sponsored and co sponsored legislation can be found at:[6]
After leaving Congress, he owned and operated a tavern and hosted a short lived radio talk show. He served as director of elderly affairs for the City of Providence, Rhode Island, from 1986 to 2002.[7] He was an unsuccessful candidate for the Democratic nomination to the One Hundred and Second Congress in 1990.[8]
He was a resident of Providence, Rhode Island.[9]