[Congressional Record Volume 155, Number 136 (Thursday, September 24, 2009)]
[House]
[Page H9946]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]


 THE REMARKABLE CAREER OF CONGRESSMAN BOB DOUGHTON OF ALLEGHANY COUNTY

  The SPEAKER pro tempore. Under a previous order of the House, the 
gentlewoman from North Carolina (Ms. Foxx) is recognized for 5 minutes.
  Ms. FOXX. Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Next month, Alleghany County, a 
beautiful rural mountain county in northwest North Carolina, which I 
represent, will celebrate Bob Doughton Day and mark the beginning of 
the celebration of the 75th anniversary of the creation of the Blue 
Ridge Parkway.
  Congressman Bob Doughton was an Alleghany County native from the town 
of Laurel Springs, who is fondly remembered for the instrumental role 
he played in the passage of Social Security and the creation of the 
Blue Ridge Parkway.
  Congressman Doughton, who was sometimes known as ``Farmer Bob,'' 
served in the House of Representatives for 42 consecutive years, from 
1911-1953.
  According to his congressional biography, Congressman Doughton was 
educated in the public schools of Laurel Springs and Sparta in 
Alleghany County. He began his career as a very successful Alleghany 
County farmer known for raising excellent cattle. He also worked as a 
banker and was the owner and president of the Deposit Savings and Loan 
Bank of North Wilkesboro until 1936.
  He launched his political career as a member of the State Board of 
Agriculture from 1903 to 1909. He was later elected to the North 
Carolina State Senate in 1908 and in 1909, and was finally elected as a 
Democrat to the 62nd Congress in 1910.
  For 6 years he chaired the Committee on Expenditures in the 
Department of Agriculture and then later he rose through the ranks to 
chair the powerful Ways and Means Committee for nine terms. He also 
served as chairman for the Joint Committee on Internal Revenue Taxation 
for two terms.
  He retired from Congress in 1952, and died about 2 years later at the 
age of 90, on October 1, 1954, in his hometown of Laurel Springs.
  He had a remarkable congressional career, chairing the Ways and Means 
Committee for 18 years through some of the must tumultuous years of the 
20th century. In his final year in Congress he became the longest 
serving Member of the House, preceding Congressman Sam Rayburn as what 
is known as the dean of the House, in 1952.
  As we mark the 75th anniversary of the Blue Ridge Parkway, which is 
the most visited park of the National Park System, it is very 
appropriate today to stop and remember this influential North Carolina 
lawmaker whose vision helped create this beautiful scenic highway.

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