Donald Ray "Billy" Matthews (October 3, 1907 – October 26, 1997) was an American educator, World War II veteran and politician who served seven terms as a U.S. Representative from Florida from 1953 to 1967.
He served as a member of the State house of representatives in 1935 was a member of the administrative staff of the University of Florida from 1936 to 1952.
He served as assistant State 4-H agent in the summers of 1928–1938.
World War II
He served in the United States Army from 1942 to 1946 and was discharged as a captain of Infantry.
Congress
Matthews was elected as a Democrat to the Eighty-third and to the six succeeding Congresses (January 3, 1953 – January 3, 1967), during which time he was a signatory to the 1956 Southern Manifesto that opposed the desegregation of public schools ordered by the Supreme Court in Brown v. Board of Education.
He was an unsuccessful candidate for reelection to the Ninetieth Congress in 1966, defeated in the Democratic primary by Don Fuqua.
Later career
In his post-congressional years, Matthews worked as a consultant and administrator for the Rural Community Development Service of the United States Department of Agriculture from 1967 to 1969. He was also an instructor of political science at Santa Fe Community College (Gainesville, Florida) from 1969 to 1977.
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