George Joseph Bates (February 25, 1891 – November 1, 1949) was 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 ...

from the state of

Massachusetts Massachusetts (Massachusett language, Massachusett: ''Muhsachuweesut assachusett writing systems, məhswatʃəwiːsət'' English: , ), officially the Commonwealth of Massachusetts, is the most populous U.S. state, state in the New England ...

. Born in

Salem, Massachusetts Salem ( ) is a historic coastal city in Essex County, Massachusetts, located on the North Shore of Greater Boston. Continuous settlement by Europeans began in 1626 with English colonists. Salem would become one of the most significant seaports tr ...

, he served in the

Massachusetts House of Representatives The Massachusetts House of Representatives is the lower house of the Massachusetts General Court, the state legislature of the Commonwealth of Massachusetts. It is composed of 160 members elected from 14 counties each divided into single-member ...

1918–1924. Bates was then elected

Mayor In many countries, a mayor is the highest-ranking official in a municipal government such as that of a city or a town. Worldwide, there is a wide variance in local laws and customs regarding the powers and responsibilities of a mayor as well a ...

of Salem in 1924 at the age of 33. He served as mayor until 1937, at which time he was sworn in as a Republican member of the House in the

75th Congress The 75th United States Congress was a meeting of the legislative branch of the United States federal government, composed of the United States Senate and the United States House of Representatives. It met in Washington, DC from January 3, 1937 ...

. During World War II, he was an interventionist. After the

fall of France The Battle of France (french: bataille de France) (10 May – 25 June 1940), also known as the Western Campaign ('), the French Campaign (german: Frankreichfeldzug, ) and the Fall of France, was the German invasion of France during the Second World ...

and before the Nazi invasion of Soviet Russia, Britain was effectively fighting the Nazis alone, throughout this time period Bates was outspokenly pro-British, and he advocated aiding Britain in any way possible, in order to help in their war against the Nazis. In 1941 he was one of the few Republicans to abstain from voting on the 1941 Lend Lease Act. Bates voted in favor of arming merchant ships. Bates made good on his campaign promises and voted to increase lend-lease funding to the British military as well as food aid for British civilians during

the Blitz The Blitz was a German bombing campaign against the United Kingdom in 1940 and 1941, during the Second World War. The term was first used by the British press and originated from the term , the German word meaning 'lightning war'. The Germa ...

. Bates was subsequently re-elected six times. Bates was born in Salem, Massachusetts, the son of Annie (Burns) and Thomas F. Bates. His first immigrant ancestor was Increase Bates who migrated from

Buckinghamshire, England Buckinghamshire (), abbreviated Bucks, is a ceremonial county in South East England that borders Greater London to the south-east, Berkshire to the south, Oxfordshire to the west, Northamptonshire to the north, Bedfordshire to the north-east a ...

and settled in

in 1629. Bates died in the crash of

Eastern Air Lines Flight 537 Eastern Air Lines Flight 537, registration N88727, was a Douglas DC-4 aircraft en route from Boston, Massachusetts, to Washington, D.C., via intermediate points on November 1, 1949. NX-26927 was a P-38 Lightning, Lockheed P-38 Lightning being te ...

in Washington, D.C. in 1949. He was replaced in the House by his son, William Henry Bates. He was buried at St. Mary's Cemetery in Salem. Bates Elementary School in Salem is named after George J. Bates and his son. His daughter, Carolyn (Bates) Stanton, is the maternal grandmother of comedian John Mulaney.

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Memorial services held in the House of Representatives of the United States, together with remarks presented in eulogy of George Joseph Bates, late a representative from Massachusetts frontispiece 1950
Mayors of Salem, Massachusetts Republican Party members of the Massachusetts House of Representatives Victims of aviation accidents or incidents in the United States Accidental deaths in Washington, D.C. 1891 births 1949 deaths Republican Party members of the United States House of Representatives from Massachusetts 20th-century American politicians Victims of aviation accidents or incidents in 1949 {{Massachusetts-MARepresentative-stub

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