What's in a Name? | Lesner Bridge

It's a Virginia Beach bridge, but its namesake was a Norfolk man all the way. He also threw fantastic parties.

State Sen. John A. Lesner, a Democrat who represented first Norfolk County then Norfolk City starting in 1908, was a champion for better roads and bridges. For almost two decades, from 1914 to 1932, Lesner also headed the Tidewater Automobile Association.

"He was responsible for building the first concrete roads in Norfolk County, perhaps the first in Virginia," The Virginian-Pilot wrote after Lesner's death in 1938.

The first John A. Lesner Bridge over the Lynnhaven River, a drawbridge, was built in 1928, providing a crucial link to the beach resort area. But the span was "raised so often to allow pleasure craft to pass that lengthy backups occurred on both sides of the bridge," wrote author Amy Waters Yarsinske in her book "Lost Virginia Beach."

Residents of Princess Anne County, which would later become Virginia Beach, objected to the name.

"A rally was held at the Ocean Park Casino to protest the name, and the County Board of Supervisors went on record preferring a Princess Anne name, such as 'Lynnhaven,' " historian Stephen Mansfield wrote in his book "Princess Anne County and Virginia Beach, A Pictorial History."

A new, bigger Lesner Bridge - the one that exists today - was built in 1958, and plans are now in the works to build a third one.

Lesner took a break from the state senate to serve seven years as Norfolk's postmaster, an appointee of President Woodrow Wilson. He was elected to the state Senate again in 1923, where he served until his death.

Lesner had a national reputation for dinner parties at his Ocean View cottage.

"Every Governor of Virginia for the past 30 or 35 years had been his guest and practically all members of the General Assembly in which he served," according to The Pilot. "He was never happier than when entertaining friends."

His cottage was destroyed by a hurricane in 1933, but it was quickly rebuilt and the celebrations continued.

One of his last big parties came after the 1936 state Democratic Convention in Norfolk. About 30 of the state's 40 senators attended. After dinner, "The guests repaired to the veranda, overlooking the Chesapeake Bay, and formally convened a session of the Senate of Virginia," the newspaper wrote.

The politicians made speeches and adopted resolutions praising their host's hospitality.

Aaron Applegate, (757) 222-5122, aaron.applegate@pilotonline.com