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CHARLESTON, W.Va. -- For decades, West Virginia benefited from efforts by U.S. Sen. Robert C. Byrd to send thousands of jobs to the state. Byrd worked to provide money to pave interstate highways, build hospitals, courthouses and office buildings and expand National Guard bases across the state.

The impact of Byrd's efforts might become even more obvious after the loss of his voice in the U.S. Senate.

"You sometimes don't know what you had until it is gone," said Adjutant General Allen Tackett, head of the state's National Guard. "I think the people of West Virginia will discover what they had. The goose who laid the golden egg is gone."

Since 1995, when Tackett became head of the West Virginia National Guard, Byrd directed $786 million in federal funds for military construction work in West Virginia.

"The C-130 airplanes would not be here in Charleston had it not been for Senator Byrd protecting them," Tackett said. "I don't think there is anybody who can fill his shoes in helping the military in West Virginia.

"He sat on the Senate Appropriations, Authorization and Armed Services committees. No one else wielded that kind of power."

"Last night, West Virginia lost the best friend it ever had," Tackett said.

"Byrd once said he would be the 'billion-dollar man' for West Virginia, including projects like the new FBI center, medical schools and roads. He ended up getting a billion dollars just for highways," said Fred VanKirk, an engineer and longtime head of the state's highways and transportation departments.

"Without the relationships he had in Congress, his know-how and his seniority, it will be a sad day for West Virginia," VanKirk said. "We will be hard-pressed to come up with funding, or 'pork,' or whatever you want to call it.

"He always had the economic development of the state of West Virginia at heart. ... He will never be replaced and the state of West Virginia will be in dire straits for a while."

U.S. Rep. Nick J. Rahall called Byrd's death "an enormous loss personally and for our state." He said the state's congressional delegation would continue to push to bring projects to West Virginia.

"But we all know times will be much different than the times during which Senator Byrd was so effective. So our hurdles will be higher," Rahall said.

Getting money to fund the federal Mine Safety and Health Administration will be harder now that Byrd is gone, said Cecil Roberts, president of the United Mine Workers.

"People who don't understand Congress think if some person just comes into Congress and works hard, everything will be OK," Roberts said. "It is going to be really hard."

Roberts also said that 152,000 miners and retired miners and their dependents continue getting union health benefits because of laws that Byrd helped pass. "Senator Byrd was the best friend coal miners ever had," he said.

Steve Capozzola of the Alliance for American Manufacturing -- a coalition of the United Steelworkers union, U.S. Steel and other major steel producers -- said Byrd always worked to protect American jobs, particularly manufacturing jobs.

Capozzola praised the Byrd Amendment, which set tariffs on imports produced by cheap foreign labor working for companies often subsidized by their own governments.

"Senator Byrd was also a staunch supporter of investing in infrastructure who frequently championed the use of domestic supply chains. He will be remembered as a true champion of fair trade who fought tirelessly for U.S. manufacturing," Capozzola said.

"He stood up for workers in the steel, aluminum and other metal industries," said Larry Matheney, secretary-treasurer of the West Virginia AFL-CIO. "He supported fair trade, but not free trade. He did not want to see the exploitation of any worker in any country."

"I doubt I will ever see anyone who will be as revered as Senator Byrd," Matheney said. "Labor can look at him and say 'thank you' for the respect he always showed to workers, particularly those who mine coal."

Leo Gerard, president of the United Steelworkers, called Byrd "a giant among his fellow legislators and one of the greatest friends working families have ever had."

"From his humble beginning as the son of a miner who had to scratch out a living for his family during the Great Depression, he never forgot where he came from and the people he represented," Gerard said.

Reach Paul J. Nyden at pjny...@wvgazette.com or 304-348-5164.