Sam Rayburn
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| Samuel Taliaferro Rayburn | |
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48th, 50th & 52nd Speaker of the United States House of Representatives
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| In office September 16, 1940 – January 3, 1947 January 3, 1949 – January 3, 1953 January 3, 1955 – November 16, 1961 |
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| President | Franklin D. Roosevelt Harry S. Truman Dwight D. Eisenhower John F. Kennedy |
| Preceded by | William B. Bankhead Joseph William Martin, Jr. (twice) |
| Succeeded by | Joseph William Martin, Jr. (twice) John W. McCormack |
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| In office March 4, 1913 – November 16, 1961 |
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| Preceded by | Choice B. Randell |
| Succeeded by | Ray Roberts |
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| Born | January 6, 1882 Kingston, Tennessee |
| Died | November 16, 1961 (aged 79) Bonham, Texas |
| Political party | Democratic |
| Alma mater | University of Texas at Austin |
| Profession | Law |
| Religion | Primitive Baptist |
Samuel Taliaferro Rayburn (January 6, 1882 – November 16, 1961) was a Democratic politician from Bonham, Texas. "Mr. Sam", as he was widely known, served as the Speaker of the United States House of Representatives for 17 years, and is regarded by some historians as the most effective Speaker in history.
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[edit] Background
He was born in Roane County, Tennessee, and graduated from Mayo College (now Texas A&M University-Commerce) in Commerce, Texas. After a year of teaching school, he won election to the Texas State Legislature. During his third two-year term in the Legislature, he was elected Speaker of the House at the age of 29. The next year, he won election to the United States House of Representatives in District 4. He entered Congress in 1913 at the beginning of Woodrow Wilson's presidency and served in office for more than 48 years.
[edit] Speaker of the House
On September 16, 1940, at the age of 58, Rayburn became Speaker of the United States House of Representatives. His career as Speaker was interrupted only twice: 1947–1948 and 1953–1954, when Republicans controlled the House. During that time, Rayburn served as Minority Leader.
Rayburn grew up in abject poverty, and would champion the interests of the poor once in office. He was a close friend of Lyndon B. Johnson and knew Johnson's father Sam Ealy Johnson, from their days in the Texas State Legislature. Rayburn was instrumental to LBJ's ascent to power, particularly his unusual and rapid rise to the position of Minority Leader even though at the time, Johnson had been in the Senate for a mere four years. Johnson also owed his subsequent elevation to Majority Leader to Rayburn. Like Johnson, Rayburn did not sign a Southern Manifesto[1].
Rayburn, though a menacing and powerful presence on the House floor, was incredibly shy outside of work. He had married once, to Metze Jones, sister of Texas Congressman Marvin Jones and Rayburn's colleague, but the marriage ended quickly and no one really ever knew why. Biographer D.B. Hardeman guessed that Rayburn's work schedule and long bachelorhood, combined with the couple's differing views on alcohol contributed to the rift. The court's divorce file in Bonham, Texas, could never be located, and Rayburn avoided speaking of his brief marriage. One of his greatest, most painful regrets was that he did not have a son, or as he put it in Robert Caro's biography of Lyndon B. Johnson, "a towheaded boy to take fishing."
[edit] Legendary reputation
In shaping legislation, Rayburn preferred working quietly in the background to being in the public spotlight. As Speaker, he won a reputation for fairness and integrity. He refused to accept bribery in the form of gifts or money from lobbyists. He only said, "I am not for sale," and walked away. In his years in Congress, Rayburn always insisted on paying his own expenses, even going so far as to pay for his own travel expenses when inspecting the Panama Canal when his committee was considering legislation concerning it, rather than exercising his right to have the government pay for it. When he died, his personal savings only totaled $15,000 and most of his holdings were in his family ranch.
Rayburn was well known among his colleagues for his after business hours "Board of Education" meetings in hideaway offices in the House. During these off-the-record sessions, the Speaker and powerful committee chairmen would gather for poker, bourbon, and a frank discussion of politics. Rayburn alone determined who received an invitation to these gatherings; to be invited to a "Board of Education" gathering was a high honor.
He coined the term "Sun Belt" while strongly supporting the construction of Route 66. It originally ran south from Chicago, through Oklahoma, and then turned westward from Texas to New Mexico and Arizona before ending at the beach in Santa Monica, California. Arguing in favor of the project, he stated famously that America absolutely must connect "the Frost Belt with the Sun Belt."
The phrase "A jackass can kick a barn down, but it takes a carpenter to build one," is attributed to Rayburn.[1]
Rayburn died of pancreatic cancer in 1961 at the age of 79, and was posthumously awarded the Congressional Gold Medal. By the time of his death, he had served as Speaker for twice as long as any of his predecessors.
[edit] Tributes
- The Rayburn House Office Building, which contains offices of House members adjacent to the United States Capitol.
- The ballistic missile submarine USS Sam Rayburn.
- The Sam Rayburn Reservoir in East Texas was named after him in 1963, and is a popular destination for bass fishing and professional fishing tournaments.
- Sam Rayburn High School in Pasadena, Texas, also bears his name and houses the desk he used as Speaker of the House.
- The Sam Rayburn Independent School District was named for him in 1964.
- A documentary tentatively titled "Rayburn: Mr. Speaker" is currently in production from filmmaker Reed Penney, according to a report by the Texas A&M University-Commerce campus newspaper The East Texan.
- Sam Rayburn Memorial Student Center at Texas A&M University-Commerce is named after Mr. Rayburn.
- Sam Rayburn Middle School in Bryan, Texas is named in his honor.
- Sam Rayburn Middle School in San Antonio, Texas was named in his honor.
[edit] Portrayals
Portrayed by Pat Hingle in LBJ: The Early Years (1987, TV). Played by James Gammon in Truman (1995, TV).
[edit] Bibliography
- Robert A. Caro, The Years of Lyndon Johnson: The Path to Power (1982).
- Anthony Champagne and Floyd F. Ewing, "RAYBURN, SAMUEL TALIAFERRO (1882-1961)." Handbook of Texas Online (2005) online version
- Anthony Champagne, Congressman Sam Rayburn (Rutgers University Press, 1984).
- Anthony Champagne, Sam Rayburn: A Bio-Bibliography (Greenwood, 1988).
- C. Dwight Dorough, Mr. Sam (1962).
- Lewis L. Gould and Nancy Beck Young, "The Speaker and the Presidents: Sam Rayburn, the White House, and the Legislative Process, 1941–1961" in Raymond W. Smock and Susan W. Hammond, eds. Masters of the House: Congressional Leadership Over Two Centuries (1998). online version
- D. B. Hardeman and Donald C. Bacon, Rayburn: A Biography (Austin: Texas Monthly Press, 1987).
- Alfred Steinberg, Sam Rayburn (Hawthorn, 1975
[edit] External links
- Obituary, NY Times, November 16, 1961, Rayburn Is Dead; Served 17 Years As House Speaker
- The leadership of Speaker Sam Rayburn published 1961, hosted by the Portal to Texas History.
- Sam Rayburn at the Biographical Directory of the United States Congress
- Samuel Taliaferro Rayburn from the Handbook of Texas Online
- "Mister Speaker", Time Magazine, September 27, 1943
- Rayburn: Mr Speaker Documentary Website
- The Friends of Sam Rayburn Website
- Sam Rayburn at Find A Grave
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