Henry John Heinz III (October 23, 1938 – April 4, 1991) was an American businessman and
Republican
Republican can refer to:
Political ideology
* An advocate of a republic, a type of government that is not a monarchy or dictatorship, and is usually associated with the rule of law.
** Republicanism, the ideology in support of republics or agains ...
politician from
Pennsylvania
Pennsylvania (; ( Pennsylvania Dutch: )), officially the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, is a state spanning the Mid-Atlantic, Northeastern, Appalachian, and Great Lakes regions of the United States. It borders Delaware to its southeast, ...
. Heinz represented the
Pittsburgh
Pittsburgh ( ) is a city in the Commonwealth (U.S. state), Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, United States, and the county seat of Allegheny County, Pennsylvania, Allegheny County. It is the most populous city in both Allegheny County and Wester ...
suburbs in 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 ...
from 1971 to 1977 and represented Pennsylvania in the
United States Senate
The United States Senate is the upper chamber of the United States Congress, with the House of Representatives being the lower chamber. Together they compose the national bicameral legislature of the United States.
The composition and pow ...
from 1977 until he was killed in a plane crash in
Lower Merion Township, Pennsylvania
Lower Merion Township is a township in Montgomery County, Pennsylvania. It is part of the Philadelphia Main Line. The township's name originates with the county of Merioneth in north Wales. Merioneth is an English-language transcription of the W ...
, in 1991.
Early life, education and early career
Henry John Heinz III was born on October 23, 1938, in
Pittsburgh
Pittsburgh ( ) is a city in the Commonwealth (U.S. state), Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, United States, and the county seat of Allegheny County, Pennsylvania, Allegheny County. It is the most populous city in both Allegheny County and Wester ...
, Pennsylvania, the only child of Joan (Diehl) and
H. J. "Jack" Heinz II, heir to the
H. J. Heinz Company
The H. J. Heinz Company is an American food processing company headquartered at One PPG Place in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. The company was founded by Henry J. Heinz in 1869. Heinz manufactures thousands of food products in plants on six contin ...
. His parents divorced in 1942. Heinz moved to San Francisco, California, with his mother and stepfather,
U.S. Navy
The United States Navy (USN) is the maritime service branch of the United States Armed Forces and one of the eight uniformed services of the United States. It is the largest and most powerful navy in the world, with the estimated tonnage o ...
Captain Clayton Chot "Monty" McCauley. Although he was raised and primarily resided in San Francisco throughout his childhood, Heinz often spent the summer months with his father in Pittsburgh.
In 1956, Heinz graduated from
Phillips Exeter Academy
(not for oneself) la, Finis Origine Pendet (The End Depends Upon the Beginning) gr, Χάριτι Θεοῦ (By the Grace of God)
, location = 20 Main Street
, city = Exeter, New Hampshire
, zipcode ...
.
[ He then attended and graduated from ]Yale University
Yale University is a private research university in New Haven, Connecticut. Established in 1701 as the Collegiate School, it is the third-oldest institution of higher education in the United States and among the most prestigious in the wo ...
, where Theodore Stebbins
Theodore Ellis Stebbins, Jr. (born August 11, 1938) is an American art historian and curator. Stebbins is currently the Consultative Curator of American Art at the Harvard Art Museums.
Career
From 1977 to 1999, Stebbins was the John Moors Cabot ...
was his roommate, in 1960, majoring in history, arts and letters. Heinz subsequently graduated from Harvard Business School
Harvard Business School (HBS) is the graduate business school of Harvard University, a private research university in Boston, Massachusetts. It is consistently ranked among the top business schools in the world and offers a large full-time MBA p ...
in 1963. It was during his years at Harvard, during summer break, that he met his future wife, Teresa Simões Ferreira, who attended the University of Geneva
The University of Geneva (French: ''Université de Genève'') is a public research university located in Geneva, Switzerland. It was founded in 1559 by John Calvin as a theological seminary. It remained focused on theology until the 17th centu ...
. Upon graduating from Harvard Business School in 1963, Heinz served in the United States Air Force Reserve
The Air Force Reserve Command (AFRC) is a major command (MAJCOM) of the United States Air Force, with its headquarters at Robins Air Force Base, Georgia. It is the federal Air Reserve Component (ARC) of the U.S. Air Force, consisting of commiss ...
and was on active duty during the same year.[ He remained in the Air Force Reserve until 1969.][
Before entering politics, Heinz served as an assistant to Pennsylvania Republican U.S. Senator ]Hugh Scott
Hugh Doggett Scott Jr. (November 11, 1900 – July 21, 1994) was an American politician. A member of the Republican Party, he represented Pennsylvania in the U.S. House of Representatives from 1947 to 1959 and in the U.S. Senate, from 195 ...
and played an active role as assistant campaign manager during Scott's campaign for re-election. Heinz then worked in the financial and marketing division of the H. J. Heinz Company between 1965 and 1970, after which he became a professor of business at the Carnegie Mellon University
Carnegie Mellon University (CMU) is a private research university in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. One of its predecessors was established in 1900 by Andrew Carnegie as the Carnegie Technical Schools; it became the Carnegie Institute of Technology ...
's Graduate School of Industrial Administration
The Tepper School of Business is the business school of Carnegie Mellon University. It is located in the university's campus in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, US.
The school offers degrees from the undergraduate through doctoral levels, in addition t ...
.[
]
Political career
U.S. House of Representatives
In 1971, Heinz entered politics after Representative Robert Corbett
Robert Alfred Corbett (born 14 December 1938) was a member of the House of Commons of Canada from 1978 to 1993. His background was in business.
Corbett was born in Saint John, New Brunswick, was the son of James Ross Corbett and Helen Elma Yea ...
, who represented Pennsylvania's 18th congressional district
Pennsylvania's 18th congressional district was a district including the city of Pittsburgh and parts of surrounding suburbs. A variety of working class and majority black suburbs located to the east of the city were included, such as McKeesport ...
, died in office. After winning the Republican primary, Heinz won the special election on November 2, 1971, to fill the vacancy created by Corbett's death. Heinz was re-elected to the U.S. House of Representatives in 1972
Within the context of Coordinated Universal Time (UTC) it was the longest year ever, as two leap seconds were added during this 366-day year, an event which has not since been repeated. (If its start and end are defined using Solar time, me ...
and 1974
Major events in 1974 include the aftermath of the 1973 oil crisis and the resignation of United States President Richard Nixon following the Watergate scandal. In the Middle East, the aftermath of the 1973 Yom Kippur War determined politics; f ...
.[
]
U.S. Senate
Heinz opted not to run for re-election to his seat in the House of Representatives, choosing instead in 1976 to run for Pennsylvania's open United States Senate
The United States Senate is the upper chamber of the United States Congress, with the House of Representatives being the lower chamber. Together they compose the national bicameral legislature of the United States.
The composition and pow ...
seat created by the retirement of incumbent Hugh Scott
Hugh Doggett Scott Jr. (November 11, 1900 – July 21, 1994) was an American politician. A member of the Republican Party, he represented Pennsylvania in the U.S. House of Representatives from 1947 to 1959 and in the U.S. Senate, from 195 ...
. Heinz won the election
An election is a formal group decision-making process by which a population chooses an individual or multiple individuals to hold public office.
Elections have been the usual mechanism by which modern representative democracy has opera ...
, and was subsequently re-elected in 1982
Events January
* January 1 – In Malaysia and Singapore, clocks are adjusted to the same time zone, UTC+8 (GMT+8.00).
* January 13 – Air Florida Flight 90 crashes shortly after takeoff into the 14th Street bridges, 14th Street Bridge in ...
and in 1988
File:1988 Events Collage.png, From left, clockwise: The oil platform Piper Alpha explodes and collapses in the North Sea, killing 165 workers; The USS Vincennes (CG-49) mistakenly shoots down Iran Air Flight 655; Australia celebrates its Australian ...
.[
In the Senate, Heinz was a moderate-to-liberal Republican. He was a member of the ]Committee on Banking, Housing, and Urban Affairs
The United States Senate Committee on Banking, Housing, and Urban Affairs (formerly the Committee on Banking and Currency), also known as the Senate Banking Committee, has jurisdiction over matters related to banks and banking, price controls, d ...
, the Committee on Finance, the National Commission on Social Security Reform, the National Commission on Health Care Reform, the Northeast Coalition, and the Steel Caucus. He also served as chairman of the Subcommittee on International Finance and Monetary Policies, the Special Committee on Aging, and the Republican Conference Task Force on Job Training and Education.[
Heinz voted in favor of the ]bill
Bill(s) may refer to:
Common meanings
* Banknote, paper cash (especially in the United States)
* Bill (law), a proposed law put before a legislature
* Invoice, commercial document issued by a seller to a buyer
* Bill, a bird or animal's beak
Plac ...
establishing Martin Luther King Jr. Day
Martin Luther King Jr. Day (officially Birthday of Martin Luther King, Jr., and sometimes referred to as MLK Day) is a federal holiday in the United States marking the birthday of Martin Luther King Jr. It is observed on the third Mond ...
as a federal holiday
Federal holidays in the United States are the eleven calendar dates that are designated by the U.S. government as holidays. On U.S. federal holidays, non-essential federal government offices are closed and federal government employees are paid ...
and the Civil Rights Restoration Act of 1987
The Civil Rights Restoration Act of 1987, or Grove City Bill, is a United States legislative act that specifies that entities receiving federal funds must comply with civil rights legislation in all of their operations, not just in the program ...
(as well as to override President Reagan
Ronald Wilson Reagan ( ; February 6, 1911June 5, 2004) was an American politician, actor, and union leader who served as the 40th president of the United States from 1981 to 1989. He also served as the 33rd governor of California from 1967 ...
's veto). Heinz voted in favor of the Robert Bork Supreme Court nomination
On July 1, 1987, President Ronald Reagan nominated Judge Robert Bork for Associate Justice of the Supreme Court of the United States, to succeed Lewis F. Powell Jr., who had earlier announced his retirement. At the time of his nomination, Bork ...
.
He was elected chairman of the National Republican Senatorial Committee
The National Republican Senate Committee (NRSC) is the Republican Hill committee for the United States Senate, working to elect Republicans to that body. The NRSC was founded in 1916 as the Republican Senatorial Campaign Committee. It was reorgan ...
for two terms, 1979–1981 and 1985–1987.
''The New York Times'' noted that Heinz built a solid record in the Senate as "a persistent defender of the nation's growing elderly population and of the declining steel industry", that he was "instrumental in pushing through legislation that put the Social Security system on sounder financial footing", and "played a major role in strengthening laws regulating retirement policies, pension plans, health insurance and nursing homes", and "pushed successfully for trade laws that encourage American exports and protect American products, like steel, from foreign imports".
Death
On April 4, 1991, Heinz and six other people, including two children, were killed when a Sun Co. Aviation Department Bell 412
The Bell 412 is a utility helicopter of the Huey family manufactured by Bell Helicopter. It is a development of the Bell 212, with the major difference being the composite four-blade main rotor.
Design and development
Development began in the ...
helicopter and a Piper Aerostar
The Piper Aerostar (formerly Ted Smith Aerostar) is an American twin-engined propeller-driven executive or light transport aircraft, designed by Ted R. Smith. It was originally built by Ted Smith Aircraft Company, which after 1978 became part o ...
with Heinz aboard collided in mid-air above Merion Elementary School in Lower Merion Township, Pennsylvania
Lower Merion Township is a township in Montgomery County, Pennsylvania. It is part of the Philadelphia Main Line. The township's name originates with the county of Merioneth in north Wales. Merioneth is an English-language transcription of the W ...
. All aboard both aircraft, as well as two children at the school, were killed. The helicopter had been dispatched to investigate a problem with the landing gear of Heinz's plane. While moving in for a closer look, the helicopter collided with the plane, causing both aircraft to lose control and crash. The subsequent NTSB
The National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) is an independent U.S. government investigative agency responsible for civil transportation accident investigation. In this role, the NTSB investigates and reports on aviation accidents and incid ...
investigation attributed the cause of the crash to poor judgment by the pilots of the two aircraft involved.
Following a funeral at Heinz Chapel
Heinz Memorial Chapel is a Pittsburgh History and Landmarks Foundation Historic Landmark and a contributing property to the Schenley Farms National Historic District on the campus of the University of Pittsburgh in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, Uni ...
in Pittsburgh and a Washington, D.C. memorial service that was attended by President George H. W. Bush
George Herbert Walker BushSince around 2000, he has been usually called George H. W. Bush, Bush Senior, Bush 41 or Bush the Elder to distinguish him from his eldest son, George W. Bush, who served as the 43rd president from 2001 to 2009; pr ...
and Vice President Dan Quayle
James Danforth Quayle (; born February 4, 1947) is an American politician who served as the 44th vice president of the United States from 1989 to 1993 under President George H. W. Bush. A member of the Republican Party (United States), Republic ...
, Senator Heinz's remains were interred in the Heinz family mausoleum in Homewood Cemetery
Homewood Cemetery is a historic urban cemetery in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, United States. It is located in Point Breeze and is bordered by Frick Park, the neighborhood of Squirrel Hill, and the smaller Smithfield Cemetery.
It was established i ...
, located in the Point Breeze neighborhood of Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania.[
Heinz's long time friend, Senator Tim Wirth of Colorado, remarked: "He really believed he could make the world a better place, such a contrast to the jaded resignation of our time. He could send the Senate leadership up a wall faster than anyone I've seen." Heinz's son ]André
André — sometimes transliterated as Andre — is the French and Portuguese form of the name Andrew, and is now also used in the English-speaking world. It used in France, Quebec, Canada and other French-speaking countries. It is a variation o ...
said at the services: "Dad, I am so grateful for the time we had, and I miss you and I love you."
In 1995, Teresa
Teresa (also Theresa, Therese; french: Thérèse) is a feminine given name.
It originates in the Iberian Peninsula in late antiquity. Its derivation is uncertain, it may be derived from Greek θερίζω (''therízō'') "to harvest or re ...
, Heinz's widow, married Heinz's Senate colleague and future Secretary of State and presidential nominee John Kerry
John Forbes Kerry (born December 11, 1943) is an American attorney, politician and diplomat who currently serves as the first United States special presidential envoy for climate. A member of the Forbes family and the Democratic Party (Unite ...
.
Legacy
The John Heinz National Wildlife Refuge at Tinicum
The John Heinz National Wildlife Refuge at Tinicum is a 1000-acre (4.05 km2) National Wildlife Refuge in Philadelphia and Tinicum Township, Pennsylvania. Adjacent to Philadelphia International Airport, the refuge is designed to the largest ...
(formerly known as the Tinicum Wildlife Preserve) was renamed in his honor following his death. The 1,200 acre (4.9 km2) refuge includes the largest remaining freshwater tidal marsh
A marsh is a wetland that is dominated by herbaceous rather than woody plant species.Keddy, P.A. 2010. Wetland Ecology: Principles and Conservation (2nd edition). Cambridge University Press, Cambridge, UK. 497 p Marshes can often be found at ...
in Pennsylvania, as well as other habitats that are home to a variety of plants and animals native to Southeastern Pennsylvania.
Heinz was elected to the American Philosophical Society
The American Philosophical Society (APS), founded in 1743 in Philadelphia, is a scholarly organization that promotes knowledge in the sciences and humanities through research, professional meetings, publications, library resources, and communit ...
in 1991.
His family established the Heinz Award
The Heinz Awards are individual achievement honors given annually by the Heinz Family Foundation. The Heinz Awards each year recognize outstanding individuals for their innovative contributions in three areas: the Arts, the Economy and the Enviro ...
s in 1993, which honor individual innovation in five categories. One of the Jefferson Awards for Public Service
The Jefferson Awards Foundation was created in 1972 by the American Institute for Public Service. The Jefferson Awards are given at both national and local levels. Local winners are ordinary people who do extraordinary things without expectation ...
annual awards, for "Greatest Public Service by an Elected or Appointed Official", is named in his honor.
Several institutions bear his name, including:
*Senator H. John Heinz III Archives at the Carnegie Mellon University
Carnegie Mellon University (CMU) is a private research university in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. One of its predecessors was established in 1900 by Andrew Carnegie as the Carnegie Technical Schools; it became the Carnegie Institute of Technology ...
Libraries
* H. John Heinz III College at Carnegie Mellon University
* H. John Heinz III Center for Science, Economics and the Environment
*Senator John Heinz History Center
The Senator John Heinz History Center, an affiliate of the Smithsonian Institution, is the largest history museum in the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, United States. Named after U.S. Senator H. John Heinz III (1938–1991) from Pennsylvania, it i ...
*H. J. Heinz Campus of the VA Pittsburgh Healthcare System
Election history
*1971 Special Election
**John Heinz (R) 103,543
**John E. Connelly (D) 49,269 Connelly beaten by 54,000 votes
The Pittsburgh Press. November 3, 1971.
See also
*
References
Further reading
* Heinz, H. John, III. "Foreign Takeover of U.S. Banking – a Real Danger?" ''Journal of the Institute for Socioeconomic Studies'' 4 (Autumn 1979): 1–9
* Heinz, John. ''U.S. Strategic Trade: An Export Control System for the 1990s''. Boulder: Westview press, 1991.
Heinz vaults to national prominence. November, 1982
Heinz training for Oval Office, 1980
External links
*
John Heinz Legacy
Senator H. John Heinz III Archives
The H. John Heinz III College
The H. John Heinz III Center for Science, Economics and the Environment
*
Senator John Heinz History Center
*
{{DEFAULTSORT:Heinz, H. John Iii
1938 births
1991 deaths
Accidental deaths in Pennsylvania
Burials at Homewood Cemetery
Carnegie Mellon University faculty
Harvard Business School alumni
Heinz family
Phillips Exeter Academy alumni
Politicians from Pittsburgh
Republican Party United States senators from Pennsylvania
Republican Party members of the United States House of Representatives from Pennsylvania
20th-century American politicians
United States Air Force airmen
Victims of aviation accidents or incidents in 1991
Victims of aviation accidents or incidents in the United States
Yale University alumni
Members of the American Philosophical Society