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William Henry Bates (April 26, 1917 – June 22, 1969) was a member of the United States House of Representatives notable for his staunch support of the United States Navy.


Life and career

Bates was born in Salem, Massachusetts, the son of Nora (Jennings) and Representative
George J. Bates George Joseph Bates (February 25, 1891 – November 1, 1949) was a member of the United States House of Representatives from the state of Massachusetts. Born in Salem, Massachusetts, he served in the Massachusetts House of Representatives 1918– ...
of the , who also served as Salem's mayor. He attended local schools and graduated from Worcester Academy in 1936. He received his undergraduate education at
Brown University Brown University is a private research university in Providence, Rhode Island. Brown is the seventh-oldest institution of higher education in the United States, founded in 1764 as the College in the English Colony of Rhode Island and Providenc ...
, Providence, R.I., graduating in 1940. Following graduation from Brown, he enlisted in the United States Navy in July 1940 and was commissioned as ensign in the Naval Reserve on January 30, 1941. Bates then received instruction at the Naval Reserve Supply Officer's School at the Naval Medical Center, Washington, DC, before serving successive tours of duty at the Washington Navy Yard and in ''Constellation'' (IX-20). He remained a naval reservist, and by 1949 had become the supply officer for the 4th Naval District. While Bates was stationed there, his father was killed in a plane crash at the Washington National Airport on November 1, 1949. Bates resigned his reserve commission — he had attained the rank of lieutenant commander by that time — on February 14, 1950, to fill the seat of his late father in the United States House of Representatives. For nearly two decades, until his death in 1969, Bates staunchly advocated a strong military posture for the United States. On the Joint Congressional Committee on Atomic Energy and the House Armed Services Committee, he vigorously supported the development of nuclear-powered naval vessels. He also vigorously backed incentive pay programs and the establishment of better housing facilities for servicemen. He constantly sought means to enhance the training, caliber, and morale of military personnel. Bates voted in favor of the Civil Rights Acts of 1957,
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 ...
,
1964 Events January * January 1 – The Federation of Rhodesia and Nyasaland is dissolved. * January 5 - In the first meeting between leaders of the Roman Catholic and Orthodox churches since the fifteenth century, Pope Paul VI and Patriarch ...
, and
1968 The year was highlighted by protests and other unrests that occurred worldwide. Events January–February * January 5 – "Prague Spring": Alexander Dubček is chosen as leader of the Communist Party of Czechoslovakia. * Januar ...
, as well as the 24th Amendment to the U.S. Constitution and the
Voting Rights Act of 1965 The Voting Rights Act of 1965 is a landmark piece of federal legislation in the United States that prohibits racial discrimination in voting. It was signed into law by President Lyndon B. Johnson during the height of the civil rights movement ...
. Bates died of stomach cancer on June 22, 1969. Immediately upon his death, the U.S. Navy attack submarine , originally planned to be named USS ''Redfish'', was renamed in his honor before her construction began. The Bates Bridge, which crosses the Merrimack River between Groveland and Haverhill, Massachusetts, is named in his honor. His great-nephew is comedian John Mulaney, whose maternal grandmother is Bates' sister.


See also

*
List of United States Congress members who died in office (1950–99) There are several lists of United States Congress members who died in office. These include: * List of United States Congress members who died in office (1790–1899) *List of United States Congress members who died in office (1900–1949) *List o ...


References


External links

{{DEFAULTSORT:Bates, William H. 1917 births 1969 deaths Brown University alumni Harvard Business School alumni United States Navy personnel of World War II United States Navy officers Republican Party members of the United States House of Representatives from Massachusetts Deaths from cancer in Maryland Deaths from stomach cancer 20th-century American politicians United States Navy reservists