Charles C. Barham

Charles Clem "Charlie" Barham (April 20, 1934 – May 3, 2010)^[1] was an attorney in private practice for thirty-nine years in Ruston, Louisiana, and a Democratic member of the Louisiana State Senate from District 35, nonconsecutively, from 1964 to 1972 and 1976 to 1988.^[2]

He was the older son of Lieutenant Governor C.E. "Cap" Barham, who held the second highest statewide office from 1952 to 1956 and was like his son an attorney in Ruston, the seat of Lincoln Parish. Barham's mother was the former Carice Helen Hilburn (1907–1965). He had a brother, Robert Ewing Barham (1940–1996), an English professor at Louisiana Tech University, from which Charles Barham received his Bachelor of Arts degree in 1958.^[1]

Barham was a maternal first cousin of Wiley W. Hilburn, the retired head of the Louisiana Tech journalism department, former editorial writer for the Shreveport Times, and an inductee of the Louisiana Political Museum and Hall of Fame in Winnfield. Hilburn said that Barham's approach to politics enabled him to broker agreements in the Senate: "Unlike most today, he was a conciliator, a consensus type of politician. I think he achieved a lot with that mantra."^[3] Other cousins are former Republican State Senators Edwards Barham and Robert J. Barham of Morehouse Parish, who represented an adjoining district. Cousin Robert Barham is secretary of the Louisiana Wildlife and Fisheries Department.^[4]

In 1968, Barham was reelected, and his district absorbed much of the territory of his colleague Danny Roy Moore of Homer, the seat of Claiborne Parish.^[2]

In 1971, Barham did not contest a third term in the state Senate and was succeeded by the funeral home operator K.D. Kilpatrick, also of Ruston and formerly of Farmerville, the seat of Union Parish. Kilpatrick did not seek reelection, and Barham staged a political comeback in the 1975 general election, having defeated outgoing State Representative Louise B. Johnson of Bernice in Union Parish. Johnson, a businesswoman and a Louisiana Tech graduate, had based much of her campaign on opposition to the Equal Rights Amendment. Barham polled 16,878 votes (52.4 percent) to Johnson's 15,385 ballots (47.6 percent), He drew heavily among African-American voters as well as organized labor. Kilpatrick preceded Barham in death by less than two months.

From 1998 to 2001, Barham was the executive director of the interest group, the Casino Association of Louisiana, based in Baton Rouge.^[5]

Barham graduated from Ruston High School in 1952 and played the position of running back ton the 1951 state championship football team under Coach Hoss Garrett. In 2009, Barham was recognized by the Ruston High School Alumni Association as a "distinguished alumnus." After his Louisiana Tech student years, he procured his Juris Doctor degree in 1959 from the Louisiana State University Law Center in Baton Rouge.^[1]

Barham died of cancer^[3] at the Grace Home hospice in Shreveport. He is survived by his wife, the former Joann Frasier (born August 8, 1933), and their three children, Kayla Ann Barham (born ca. 1959), Charles C. Barham (born 1961) and wife, Debi Shields Barham, and Lori Barham Sharp and husband, Gary, all of Shreveport, where Barham resided during his retirement. Barham had five grandchildren, Ryan Barham (born December 4, 1995), Taylor Barham, Charlie Barham, Matt Sharp, and Abbie Sharp.^[1]

Barham grave marker in Greenwood Cemetery in Ruston

Services were held on May 6 at Trinity United Methodist Church in Ruston. Interment followed at Greenwood Cemetery in Ruston.^[1] On the day before the funeral, Barham's former colleague, Senator Joe McPherson of Rapides Parish, hailed him as a "statesman" and introduced a resolution of honor.^[6]

On February 2, 2013, Barham was posthumously inducted into the Louisiana Political Museum and Hall of Fame in Winnfield, along with several others persons, including George Dement, the former mayor of Bossier City.^[7]

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