[Congressional Record Volume 164, Number 152 (Wednesday, September 12, 2018)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Pages E1234-E1235]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




          CELEBRATING THE 85TH ANNIVERSARY OF MARTIN'S TAVERN

                                  _____
                                 

                      HON. RODNEY P. FRELINGHUYSEN

                             of new jersey

                    in the house of representatives

                     Wednesday, September 12, 2018

  Mr. FRELINGHUYSEN. Mr. Speaker, I rise today to celebrate the 85th 
Anniversary of Martin's Tavern located on Wisconsin Avenue and N 
Street, NW in Washington, D.C.
  In the late 1890s, William S. Martin traveled from Galway, Ireland to 
America. Forty years later in 1933, William S. Martin and his son, 
William G. Martin, opened Martin's Tavern on the corner of Wisconsin 
Avenue and N Street NW in Georgetown. Since then, the warm atmosphere 
of Martin's Tavern has welcomed neighbors and world travelers looking 
for great food, service and years of history within its walls. In the 
late 19th century through the early 20th Century, Georgetown remained a 
blue collar laborers' port, transporting goods in and out of the 
Washington region. The Martin family was at the heart of the community, 
familiar with the many that resided, labored and traveled in 
Georgetown, setting the tone and spirit of their tavern.
  This Georgetown landmark has hosted countless political icons--most 
notably has been every president from Harry Truman (Booth Six) to 
George W. Bush (Table 12). Over the last eighty-five years, some of the 
most significant conversations and events would unfold over the 
tavern's Irish-American fare.
  In the 1930s, Benjamin Cohen and Thomas Corcoran, of President 
Franklin D. Roosevelt's administration, met in an extension of the 
tavern's main room called, ``The Dugout.'' Roosevelt's brain trust 
would hammer out countless New Deal legislation including: the 
Tennessee Valley Authority, Securities Exchange Act, the Federal 
Housing Administration, Securities Exchange Commission, the Public 
Utilities Holding Company Act, Rural Electrification Act, and the Fair 
Employment Act among other New Deal legislation.
  During World War II, Martin's Tavern witnessed the creation of many 
plans to gain intelligence and eventually assist the allies in winning 
the war. The Office of Strategic Services, the predecessor of the 
modern Central Intelligence Agency, held planning meetings and agent 
briefings in The Dugout.
  While they were dating, Martin's Tavern was a favorite spot of then 
Senator John F. Kennedy and Miss Jacqueline Lee Bouvier. On Wednesday, 
June 24, 1953, Jackie returned from covering the coronation of Queen 
Elizabeth II for the Washington Times Herald. That

[[Page E1235]]

night he popped the question to her in Booth Three and she accepted.
  One evening in 1954 in Booth Two, five Supreme Court Justices 
deliberated on the landmark case, Brown vs. the Board of Education. 
Shortly thereafter on May 17, 1954, Chief Justice Earl Warren read the 
unanimous decision of the Court. The Supreme Court Justices who ruled 
on Brown vs. the Board of Education were: Chief Justice Earl Warren, 
Hugo Black, Stanley Forman Reed, Felix Frankfurter, William O. Douglas, 
Robert H. Jackson, Harold Hitz Burton, Tom C. Clark, and Sherman 
Minton.
  These are just a few of the many moments Martin's Tavern has 
witnessed in our nation's history. While the regular patrons have 
changed, many Members of Congress from the House and Senate continue to 
visit, and great food and service remain a staple. Today, my friend and 
fourth generation owner, Billy Martin, Jr., continues the tradition of 
Washington's oldest family owned restaurant.
  Mr. Speaker, I ask that you and our colleagues join me in 
congratulating Martin's Tavern, on the occasion of its 85th 
Anniversary.

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