Robert N.C. Nix Sr.
| Robert N. C. Nix Sr. | |
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| Member of the U.S. House of Representatives from Pennsylvania's 2nd district |
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In office January 3, 1963 – January 3, 1979 |
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| Preceded by | Kathryn E. Granahan |
| Succeeded by | William H. Gray III |
| Member of the U.S. House of Representatives from Pennsylvania's 4th district |
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In office May 20, 1958 – January 3, 1963 |
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| Preceded by | Earl Chudoff |
| Succeeded by | Herman Toll |
| Personal details | |
| Born | August 9, 1898 Orangeburg, South Carolina |
| Died | June 22, 1987 (aged 88) Philadelphia, Pennsylvania |
| Political party | Democratic |
Robert Nelson Cornelius Nix Sr. (August 9, 1898 – June 22, 1987) was the first African American to represent Pennsylvania in the House of Representatives. The Robert N. C. Nix Federal Building in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania is named in his honor.
Born in Orangeburg, South Carolina, he attended Townsend Harris High School in New York City and graduated from Lincoln University (Pennsylvania) in 1921. He received his law degree from the University of Pennsylvania and began practicing in Philadelphia. After entering private practice, Nix became active in the Democratic Party as a committeeman from the fourth ward in 1932. He became a special assistant deputy attorney general of Pennsylvania in 1934 and delegate to the 1956 Democratic National Convention.
In 1958, he defeated two opponents in a special election to fill a congressional vacancy left by Earl Chudoff in the House of Representatives. An elected official who rarely wanted or attracted widespread publicity, he supported mostly liberal legislation. He was reelected 10 times. He worked for the passage of the landmark legislation promoting the American Civil Rights Movement and privately sought to prevent the House from denying Rep. Adam Clayton Powell his seat in 1967. In 1975, he introduced an amendment to the Foreign Military Sales Act requiring the Defense Department to provide the U.S. Congress with information on identities of agents who negotiate arms sales for American firms.
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