Carl Vinson | |
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38th Dean of the United States House of Representatives | |
In office November 16, 1961 – January 3, 1965 |
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Preceded by | Sam Rayburn |
Succeeded by | Emanuel Celler |
Chairman of the House Armed Services Committee | |
In office January 3, 1955 – January 3, 1965 |
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Speaker |
Sam Rayburn John William McCormack |
Preceded by | Dewey J. Short |
Succeeded by | L. Mendel Rivers |
In office January 3, 1949 – January 3, 1953 |
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Speaker | Sam Rayburn |
Preceded by | Walter G. Andrews |
Succeeded by | Dewey J. Short |
Member of the U.S. House of Representatives from Georgia |
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In office November 3, 1914 – January 3, 1965 |
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Preceded by | Thomas W. Hardwick |
Succeeded by | John J. Flynt, Jr. |
Constituency |
10th district (1914–1933) 6th district (1933–1965) |
Member of the Georgia House of Representatives | |
Personal details | |
Born | November 18, 1883 Baldwin County, Georgia |
Died | June 1, 1981 (aged 97) Milledgeville, Georgia |
Political party | Democratic |
Alma mater | Mercer University |
Signature |
Carl Vinson (November 18, 1883 – June 1, 1981) was a United States Representative from Georgia. He was a Democrat and served for more than 50 years in the United States House of Representatives. He was known as "The Father of the Two-Ocean Navy". He is the longest-serving member of the United States House of Representatives from the state of Georgia.
Vinson was born in Baldwin County, Georgia, attended Georgia Military College, and graduated with a law degree from Mercer University in 1902. He was elected to the Georgia House of Representatives in 1908. After losing a third term following redistricting, he was appointed judge of the Baldwin County court, but following the sudden death of Senator Augustus Bacon, Representative Thomas W. Hardwick of Georgia's 10th congressional district was nominated to fill Bacon's Senate seat and Vinson announced his candidacy for Hardwick's seat in Congress. Vinson won over three opponents. He was the youngest member of Congress (30 years old) when he was sworn in on November 3, 1914.
Vinson served as a Representative from November 3, 1914, to January 3, 1965. During his tenure in the U.S. House, Vinson was a champion for national defense and especially the U.S. Navy and the U.S. Marine Corps. He joined the House Naval Affairs Committee shortly after World War I and became the ranking Democratic member in the early 1920s. He was the only Democrat appointed to the Morrow Board, which reviewed the status of aviation in America in the mid-1920s.