[Congressional Record Volume 163, Number 178 (Thursday, November 2, 2017)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Pages E1495-E1496]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




  RECOGNIZING THE LIFE AND LEGACY OF THE HONORABLE JAMES (JIM) MARTIN

                                 ______
                                 

                        HON. ROBERT B. ADERHOLT

                               of alabama

                    in the house of representatives

                       Thursday, November 2, 2017

  Mr. ADERHOLT. Mr. Speaker, I received the sad news earlier this week 
that the Honorable James (Jim) Martin passed away from this life at the 
age of 99, in Gadsden, Alabama. Jim Martin was not only a former member 
of this body, but he was the Congressman for the district of Alabama, 
which I now represent.
  James Martin was born in Tarrant, Alabama on September 1, 1918, the 
son of a railroad engineer and school teacher. Martin attended school 
in a log cabin. After graduating high school in 1936, he attended a 
business college, and then started a job as a clerk at Pan-American 
Petroleum in Birmingham.
  In 1941, shortly before America was drawn into World War II, Martin 
decided to join the U.S. Army. Martin served as a captain and was part 
of the American effort to liberate Europe from the Nazis.
  Martin and his men liberated concentration camps and saw the horrors 
of war firsthand. In an interview with the Library of Congress, Martin 
said, ``I'm not the same person I was before World War II.''
  After fighting in that war, he came back to Alabama and settled in 
the city of Gadsden. It was in Gadsden where he met his future wife Pat 
Huddleston.
  It was in 1962, that Martin decided to enter politics. He challenged 
then U.S. Senator Lister Hill, the incumbent Democrat. Martin came 
within 6,000 votes of upsetting Hill.
  Alabama voters elected Martin to the U.S. House of Representatives in 
November of 1964. Martin took office as the Member of Congress from 
Alabama's 7th Congressional District in 1965 which was the year I was 
born. He served one term, from January 1965 to January 1967.
  To say that Congressman Martin was a trailblazer in Alabama politics 
is an understatement. His election in 1964 marked a change of course in 
a state that had been dominated by a single party for decades.
  During his time in Congress, Martin worked diligently to represent 
the wishes and interests of his constituents back in Alabama. He was a 
great leader and one of those rare individuals who could convey his 
conservative message in words like few others.
  In 1966, Martin chose not to seek reelection to Congress, but instead 
decided to seek the Governorship of Alabama. While Martin did not win 
the election against the wife of George Wallace, Lurleen Wallace, his 
showing was remarkable. Martin received more support than any 
Republican candidate for governor since Reconstruction.
  Then in the 1990s, Martin served as Alabama's Conservation and 
Natural Resources director under Governor Fob James. Just as Martin had 
been a trailblazer in politics, he did the same during his time serving 
in this capacity.
  Martin convinced the state to purchase Cathedral Caverns in Marshall 
County. It has since become a state park. He also started Alabama's 
Forever Wild Program. Its mission

[[Page E1496]]

is to secure Alabama's wild and natural wonders and to save them from 
development.
  After leaving public life, Martin remained active, engaged and 
involved in his community. I would regularly see Congressman Martin 
around the Gadsden area as he always had a lot of advice for his 
congressman.
  Martin is survived by his wife, Pat, two sons Douglas Martin, Jr. and 
Richard H. Martin, and one daughter, Annette Graham Martin, along with 
many grandchildren and great-grandchildren.
  James Martin's remarkable life and legacy will live on for many 
generations. It is my honor and privilege to recognize him and his 
accomplishments and have this statement included in the Record of the 
Congress in which he served, a tribute to his service, his love for his 
state and country and his faith in his creator.

                          ____________________