Senator James Strom Thurmond (1902–2003), a master politician and WWII D-Day veteran, was born on this day in Edgefield, South Carolina. His long public life stretched across a century of American change.

Before entering politics, Thurmond worked as a farmer, teacher, school superintendent, and lawyer. He first held public office in 1932 as a Democrat. In 1948, he ran for president as a “Dixiecrat” and segregationist— a chapter later understood within the wider, turbulent history of race in America. In 1964, he became a Republican to support Barry Goldwater.

“Nothing awes me,” he once joked. “Presidents come and go, but I remain.”

Known as “Ol’ Strom,” he earned a reputation for standing firm in what he believed and speaking the common man’s language. A lifelong teetotaler and fitness devotee, he famously performed 100 pushups for reporters on his 65th birthday—and continued the tradition into his 90s.

“None of us has ever seen a senator like Senator Thurmond,” said West Virginia Democrat Robert Byrd. “He is a true legend in this institution.”

Elected to his eighth term in 1997, Thurmond became the longest-serving senator in U.S. history. When his term ended in January 2003, he had just turned 100. As the Senate’s Senior Republican and president pro tempore, he often reflected on duty: “I can say without equivocation I am proud of the work I’ve done.”

“People ask me how I want to be remembered,” he said late in life. “Honest, patriotic, and helpful.”