[Congressional Record Volume 152, Number 14 (Wednesday, February 8, 2006)]
[House]
[Pages H168-H169]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                         HATTIE CARAWAY STATION

  Ms. FOXX. Mr. Speaker, I move to suspend the rules and pass the bill 
(H.R. 4456) to designate the facility of the United States Postal 
Service located at 2404 Race Street in Jonesboro, Arkansas, as the 
``Hattie Caraway Station,'' as amended.
  The Clerk read as follows:

                               H.R. 4456

         Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives 
     of the United States of America in Congress assembled,

     SECTION 1. HATTIE W. CARAWAY STATION.

         (a) Designation.--The facility of the United States 
     Postal Service located at 2404 Race Street in Jonesboro, 
     Arkansas, shall be known and designated as the ``Hattie W. 
     Caraway Station''.
         (b) References.--Any reference in a law, map, regulation, 
     document, paper, or other record of the United States to the 
     facility referred to in subsection (a) shall be deemed to be 
     a reference to the ``Hattie W. Caraway Station''.

  The SPEAKER pro tempore. Pursuant to the rule, the gentlewoman from 
North Carolina (Ms. Foxx) and the gentleman from Illinois (Mr. Davis) 
each will control 20 minutes.
  The Chair recognizes the gentlewoman from North Carolina (Ms. Foxx).


                             General Leave

  Ms. FOXX. Mr. Speaker, I ask unanimous consent that all Members may 
have 5 legislative days within which to revise and extend their remarks 
and include extraneous material on the bill under consideration.
  The SPEAKER pro tempore. Is there objection to the request of the 
gentlewoman from North Carolina?
  There was no objection.
  Ms. FOXX. Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may consume.
  Mr. Speaker, H.R. 4456, offered by the distinguished gentleman from 
Arkansas (Mr. Berry), would designate the post office building in 
Jonesboro, Arkansas, as the ``Hattie Caraway Station.'' All members of 
the Arkansas delegation have cosponsored this legislation.
  Hattie Wyatt Caraway was born on February 1, 1878, near Bakerville, 
Tennessee. After marrying her husband Thaddeus Caraway, the couple 
moved on to Jonesboro, Arkansas, where Thaddeus started his political 
career by being elected into the U.S. House of Representatives. He 
served as a Democrat in the House from 1912 until 1921, when he 
successfully ran for the Senate. He served in that capacity until he 
passed away in 1931.
  In the same year, Arkansas Governor Harvey Parnell appointed Hattie 
Caraway to serve out the rest of her late husband's term. She was 
confirmed by a special election on January 12, 1932, becoming the first 
woman elected to the United States Senate.

                              {time}  1500

  While serving as a Senator in 1933, Caraway became the first woman to 
chair a Senate committee; and in 1943, she became the first woman to 
take up the gavel on the Senate floor as the Senate's presiding 
officer.
  When Caraway was defeated in her reelection efforts in 1944 by 
William Fulbright, her fellow Senators honored her with a standing 
ovation on the Senate floor. Her service to our country did not go 
unnoticed, and her groundbreaking accomplishments paved the way for 
women everywhere. At this time in our history, women had won the right 
to vote only 25 years earlier.
  I ask all Members to join me in honoring this courageous woman who 
helped shape our Nation's history by passing H.R. 4456.
  Mr. Speaker, I reserve the balance of my time.
  Mr. DAVIS of Illinois. Mr. Speaker, it is my pleasure to yield such 
time as he might consume to the gentleman from Arkansas (Mr. Berry), 
the sponsor of this legislation.
  Mr. BERRY. Mr. Speaker, I think it is fitting and proper that we are 
here today to proceed with naming a post office in Jonesboro, Arkansas, 
for Senator Hattie Caraway. She obviously was the first to do a lot of 
things.
  She was the first woman ever elected to the United States Senate in 
her own right. She was the first woman to chair a Senate committee, the 
first woman to take up the gavel on the Senate floor.
  She was said to be called ``Silent Hattie'' by her colleagues in the 
Senate; and when asked why she avoided making speeches, and those of us 
that serve in this distinguished body I am sure can identify with this, 
she said, ``The men have left nothing unsaid.''
  She might have gotten very tired sometimes of hearing it said over 
and over again, but she served with great distinction, not only the 
State of Arkansas but this wonderful Nation that we all represent, and 
broke the way for many people to do some good things.
  She also was said to drink a beer occasionally, but she would never 
fill the glass higher than what her hand reached. I guess to be sure 
that she did not have too much. I think that is an interesting fact 
that has been included in the information about Senator Caraway.
  She was a resident of Jonesboro, Arkansas, for nearly 50 years. She 
reared her family there, attended church, and actively participated in 
the Jonesboro community and civic organizations. Her husband, of 
course, was a United States Senator and was responsible for getting the 
post office set up on the Arkansas State University campus. The 
Caraways were great friends with V.C. Kays, the founding president of 
Arkansas State University. One year at Christmas, when Thad was dressed 
as Santa, Hattie supposedly jokingly locked him out of the party.
  She made history again recently by becoming the first Arkansasan to 
ever appear on a stamp. On February 21,

[[Page H169]]

2001, in Little Rock, the 76 cent Hattie Caraway definitive stamp was 
unveiled, which was the third in the Distinguished Americans series.
  The new Hattie Caraway station will be an expansion of delivery 
services for the postal service in Jonesboro, Arkansas. It will be 
presided over by the postmaster, Hillrey Adams, who will do a wonderful 
job of expanding these services; and, again, it is fitting and proper 
that we name this station after Senator Hattie Caraway and congratulate 
her and those that have come after her for the wonderful job that she 
did.
  Ms. FOXX. Mr. Speaker, I reserve the balance of my time.
  Mr. DAVIS of Illinois. Mr. Speaker, it is my pleasure to yield such 
time as he might consume to the gentleman from Arkansas (Mr. Snyder).
  Mr. SNYDER. Mr. Speaker, the history of Senator Caraway is a 
wonderful history, and I keep learning more things about her.
  There is a wonderful book that was written by former State Senator 
David Malone from Arkansas called ``Hattie and Huey,'' and it tells 
this remarkable story when Senator Huey Long came up to Arkansas to 
campaign for Senator Caraway. They basically barnstormed all around the 
small towns of Arkansas, the two of them together: Ms. Caraway, Silent 
Hattie; and Senator Long. It is just a remarkable and colorful story.
  One of the things I just recently learned in the last couple of days 
about Senator Caraway is that her maiden name was Wyatt, W-Y-A-T-T. 
Well, I have one of my favorite relatives, my uncle Dick Wyatt, who 
lives in Medford, Oregon, who had a stroke over the weekend and is 
doing well but has got a lot of recovery and rehabilitation ahead of 
him; but I have now got to figure out, well, is my Uncle Dick somehow 
related to Hattie Wyatt Caraway.
  One of my favorite stories about Senator Caraway was she was 
appointed to the seat after her husband passed away and then they had 
this election which essentially ratified the appointment, but it was 
not expected that she would run for reelection for a full regular term 
herself. She was trying to make up her mind what to do. I think she was 
with her son in her own home, and they were trying to decide what to do 
with a group of her advisers. Somebody said, well, let us flip a coin; 
and so they flipped a coin, and it came up that she should not run. It 
got real quiet, no one said anything, and then she said, let us go two 
out of three. That is when they knew she had the fire in her belly and 
that she wanted to run. They actually flipped the coin. It came up 
twice that she should run.
  I think this is a very fitting tribute to Senator Caraway. She has 
been a tremendous role model for women in America, and I appreciate the 
gentleman from Arkansas (Mr. Berry) for sponsoring this legislation.
  Mr. DAVIS of Illinois. Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may 
consume.
  I suspect that we have exhausted our requests for time, but let me 
just say that I am pleased to join with both these gentlemen from the 
State of Arkansas in supporting this legislation.
  As a former resident of the State of Arkansas, I thought I knew about 
its history, but this is one that had actually escaped me. I did not 
know that Hattie Wyatt Caraway was the first woman elected to the 
United States Senate. I did not know that Arkansas had been the 
recipient of that act and of that action, and I certainly want to join 
with my colleagues in suggesting that it is indeed fitting and proper 
that we name the post office at Jonesboro, Arkansas, after Senator 
Hattie Caraway.
  Mr. Speaker, I yield back the balance of my time.
  Ms. FOXX. Mr. Speaker, I, along with my colleague, find that one of 
the great benefits of serving in the House is learning a lot of 
history, and I, too, have learned a lot today. I want to urge all 
Members to support the passage of H.R. 4456, as amended.
  Mr. Speaker, I yield back the balance of my time.
  The SPEAKER pro tempore (Mr. Gutknecht). The question is on the 
motion offered by the gentlewoman from North Carolina (Ms. Foxx) that 
the House suspend the rules and pass the bill, H.R. 4456, as amended.
  The question was taken; and (two-thirds having voted in favor 
thereof) the rules were suspended and the bill, as amended, was passed.
  The title of the bill was amended so as to read: ``A bill to 
designate the facility of the United States Postal Service located at 
2404 Race Street in Jonesboro, Arkansas, as the `Hattie W. Caraway 
Station'.''.
  A motion to reconsider was laid on the table.

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