Albert Sidney Johnson Carnahan (January 9, 1897 – March 24, 1968) was an American diplomat and politician from Southeast Missouri. He began his career as a teacher and school administrator. He then served as a member of the

United States House of Representatives The United States House of Representatives, often referred to as the House of Representatives, the U.S. House, or simply the House, is the Lower house, lower chamber of the United States Congress, with the United States Senate, Senate being ...

for southeastern

Missouri Missouri is a U.S. state, state in the Midwestern United States, Midwestern region of the United States. Ranking List of U.S. states and territories by area, 21st in land area, it is bordered by eight states (tied for the most with Tennessee ...

for 14 years, becoming the first member of the prominent Carnahan Family to serve in public office.

Early life

Albert Carnahan was born on a farm near

Ellsinore, Missouri Ellsinore is a town in Carter County, Missouri, United States. The 2020 U.S. Census showed Ellsinore with a population of 416. History The site of the town of Ellsinore was originally patented on April 15, 1857 by Robert Patterson just two years ...

, the youngest of 10 children and named after the Confederate General

Albert Sidney Johnston Albert Sidney Johnston (February 2, 1803 – April 6, 1862) served as a general in three different armies: the Texian Army, the United States Army, and the Confederate States Army. He saw extensive combat during his 34-year military career, figh ...

. He attended Crommertown school, a one-room schoolhouse in Carter County. In 1914, at the age of 17, Carnahan began a career as an educator. He taught at Crommertown, Hogan Hollow and Ellsinore, Missouri. For a year during

World War I World War I (28 July 1914 11 November 1918), often abbreviated as WWI, was one of the deadliest global conflicts in history. Belligerents included much of Europe, the Russian Empire, the United States, and the Ottoman Empire, with fightin ...

, he served in an aviation unit of the

Navy A navy, naval force, or maritime force is the branch of a nation's armed forces principally designated for naval warfare, naval and amphibious warfare; namely, lake-borne, riverine, littoral zone, littoral, or ocean-borne combat operations and ...

at a station in Ireland. Upon returning home, he completed his high school education at the College High School in Cape Girardeau, Missouri. He earned a bachelor's degree in education in 1926 from the Missouri State Teachers College in Cape Girardeau, now called

Southeast Missouri State University Southeast Missouri State University (SEMO) is a public university in Cape Girardeau, Missouri. In addition to the main campus, the university has four regional campuses offering full degree programs and a secondary campus housing the Holland Col ...

. Carnahan taught in southeastern Missouri for several years before enrolling at the

University of Missouri The University of Missouri (Mizzou, MU, or Missouri) is a public university, public Land-grant university, land-grant research university in Columbia, Missouri. It is Missouri's largest university and the flagship of the four-campus Universit ...

Columbia, Missouri Columbia is a city in the U.S. state of Missouri. It is the county seat of Boone County and home to the University of Missouri. Founded in 1821, it is the principal city of the five-county Columbia metropolitan area. It is Missouri's fourth ...

, from which earned his master's degree in 1932. For the next several years, Carnahan was a high school administrator serving Carter,

Reynolds Reynolds may refer to: Places Australia *Hundred of Reynolds, a cadastral unit in South Australia *Hundred of Reynolds (Northern Territory), a cadastral unit in the Northern Territory of Australia United States * Reynolds, Mendocino County, Calif ...

, and Shannon counties, rising to the post of superintendent of schools in Ellsinore. Mr. Carnahan married Kathel Schupp, with whom he raised two sons, Robert E. and Melvin E.

Political career

In 1944, Carnahan was elected to represent

Missouri's 8th Congressional District Missouri's 8th congressional district is one of 435 congressional districts in the United States and one of eight congressional districts in the state of Missouri. The district encompasses rural Southeast Missouri and South Central Missouri as w ...

in the House of Representatives as a

Democrat Democrat, Democrats, or Democratic may refer to: Politics *A proponent of democracy, or democratic government; a form of government involving rule by the people. *A member of a Democratic Party: **Democratic Party (United States) (D) **Democratic ...

. He served only one term before being defeated in 1946, but ran again in 1948 and won. Carnahan served in the House for another six consecutive terms, but failed to win the Democratic Party's nomination for his own seat in 1960. As a Member of Congress, Mr. Carnahan served on the House Committee on Foreign Affairs, beginning with his first term, and at the time of his retirement was the ranking member of that Committee. For several years, he served as Chairman of the Subcommittee on International Organizations and Movements and the Subcommittee on Africa. He helped write such major legislation as the

GI Bill The Servicemen's Readjustment Act of 1944, commonly known as the G.I. Bill, was a law that provided a range of benefits for some of the returning World War II veterans (commonly referred to as G.I.s). The original G.I. Bill expired in 1956, bu ...

, the

Marshall Plan The Marshall Plan (officially the European Recovery Program, ERP) was an American initiative enacted in 1948 to provide foreign aid to Western Europe. The United States transferred over $13 billion (equivalent of about $ in ) in economic re ...

, the Area Development Act, and a revision of the

Social Security Welfare, or commonly social welfare, is a type of government support intended to ensure that members of a society can meet basic human needs such as food and shelter. Social security may either be synonymous with welfare, or refer specificall ...

statutes, was a delegate to the 12th

General Assembly A general assembly or general meeting is a meeting of all the members of an organization or shareholders of a company. Specific examples of general assembly include: Churches * General Assembly (presbyterian church), the highest court of presby ...

of the

United Nations The United Nations (UN) is an intergovernmental organization whose stated purposes are to maintain international peace and international security, security, develop friendly relations among nations, achieve international cooperation, and be ...

in 1957, and served as Congressional Advisor to the U. S. Delegation to the Second International Conference on Peaceful Uses of Atomic Energy in

Geneva Geneva ( ; french: Genève ) frp, Genèva ; german: link=no, Genf ; it, Ginevra ; rm, Genevra is the List of cities in Switzerland, second-most populous city in Switzerland (after Zürich) and the most populous city of Romandy, the French-speaki ...

in 1958. Carnahan did not sign the 1956

Southern Manifesto The Declaration of Constitutional Principles (known informally as the Southern Manifesto) was a document written in February and March 1956, during the 84th United States Congress, in opposition to racial integration of public places. The manife ...

, and voted in favor of the Civil Rights Acts of 1957 and

1960 It is also known as the "Year of Africa" because of major events—particularly the independence of seventeen African nations—that focused global attention on the continent and intensified feelings of Pan-Africanism. Events January * Ja ...

. In 1961, Carnahan was appointed by President

John F. Kennedy John Fitzgerald Kennedy (May 29, 1917 – November 22, 1963), often referred to by his initials JFK and the nickname Jack, was an American politician who served as the 35th president of the United States from 1961 until his assassination i ...

as the first United States Ambassador to Sierra Leone. He retired from this post in 1963.

Later life

After retiring from the political life, Carnahan returned to Ellsinore, Missouri. He continued his interest in international service as a member of the Rotary Club of Poplar Bluff. He became Rotary District World Service Chairman, and inaugurated a program to aid in the education of children in Sierra Leone. Albert Carnahan died at the

Mayo Clinic The Mayo Clinic () is a nonprofit American academic medical center focused on integrated health care, education, and research. It employs over 4,500 physicians and scientists, along with another 58,400 administrative and allied health staff, ...

in Rochester,

Minnesota Minnesota () is a state in the upper midwestern region of the United States. It is the 12th largest U.S. state in area and the 22nd most populous, with over 5.75 million residents. Minnesota is home to western prairies, now given over to ...

on March 24, 1968. He was buried at Carson Hill Cemetery in Ellsinore.Jan Onofrio
Missouri Biographical Dictionary
2001, page 123

Legacy

A.S.J. Carnahan was the first of three generations of the family to be elected to public office. The Carnahans have become one of the best known and most enduring families in Missouri politics. He was the father of Mel Carnahan, who went on to become the Governor of Missouri from 1993 to 2000. His daughter-in-law, Jean Carnahan, was appointed a

United States senator The United States Senate is the Upper house, upper chamber of the United States Congress, with the United States House of Representatives, House of Representatives being the Lower house, lower chamber. Together they compose the national Bica ...

in 2001 following the death of her husband Mel, just before his election to that body. His grandson

Russ Carnahan John Russell Carnahan (; born July 10, 1958) is an American politician from the state of Missouri. A member of the Democratic Party, he served as the U.S. representative for from 2005 to 2013. At the time, the district included the southern th ...

served in the U.S. House of Representatives from 2005 to 2013, and his granddaughter Robin Carnahan was the Missouri Secretary of State from 2005 to 2013. Carnahan Hall on the campus of

, which houses the classes and offices of the Department of Political Science, was rededicated to him in 2004.

References

External sources

Congressional biographyLegislative Profile
{{DEFAULTSORT:Carnahan, A.S.J. 1897 births 1968 deaths Carnahan family American school administrators Schoolteachers from Missouri Ambassadors of the United States to Sierra Leone People from Carter County, Missouri University of Missouri alumni Baptists from Missouri Southeast Missouri State University alumni United States Navy personnel of World War I Burials in Missouri Democratic Party members of the United States House of Representatives from Missouri 20th-century American politicians 20th-century American educators 20th-century Baptists 20th-century American diplomats