William Neff Patman (March 26, 1927 – December 9, 2008) was an American politician who served from 1981 to 1985 as a Democratic 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 chamber of the United States Congress, with the Senate being the upper chamber. Together they ...

for

Texas's 14th congressional district Texas's 14th congressional district for the United States House of Representatives stretches from Freeport to Beaumont. It formerly covered the area south and southwest of the Greater Houston region, including Galveston, in the state of Texas ...

. He was the son of

Wright Patman John William Wright Patman (August 6, 1893 – March 7, 1976) was an American politician. First elected in 1928, Patman served 24 consecutive terms in the United States House of Representatives for Texas's 1st congressional district from 1929 to 1 ...

, who served in the U.S. House from 1929 to 1976.

Early life and education

Patman was born in

Texarkana, Texas Texarkana is a city in Bowie County, Texas, United States, in the Ark-La-Tex region. Located approximately from Dallas, Texarkana is a twin city with neighboring Texarkana, Arkansas. The Texas city's population was 36,193 at the 2020 censu ...

. He attended public schools there and in Washington, D.C. He then attended the now-closed

Kemper Military School Kemper Military School & College was a private military school located in Boonville, Missouri. Founded in 1844, Kemper filed for bankruptcy and closed in 2002. The school's motto was "Nunquam Non Paratus" (Never Not Prepared). The 46-acre camp ...

Boonville, Missouri Boonville is a city and the county seat of Cooper County, Missouri, United States. The population was 7,964 at the 2020 census. The city was the site of a skirmish early in the Civil War, on July 17, 1861. Union forces defeated the Missouri S ...

, graduating in 1944. Patman graduated in 1953 from the

University of Texas at Austin The University of Texas at Austin (UT Austin, UT, or Texas) is a public research university in Austin, Texas. It was founded in 1883 and is the oldest institution in the University of Texas System. With 40,916 undergraduate students, 11,075 ...

. Later that year, he was admitted to the State Bar of Texas and served as a legal examiner for the

Texas Railroad Commission The Railroad Commission of Texas (RRC; also sometimes called the Texas Railroad Commission, TRC) is the state agency that regulates the oil and gas industry, gas utilities, pipeline safety, safety in the liquefied petroleum gas industry, and sur ...

until 1955.

Career

He served in the

United States Marine Corps The United States Marine Corps (USMC), also referred to as the United States Marines, is the maritime land force service branch of the United States Armed Forces responsible for conducting expeditionary and amphibious operations through c ...

as a private first class from 1945 to 1946. He subsequently served in the

United States Air Force The United States Air Force (USAF) is the air service branch of the United States Armed Forces, and is one of the eight uniformed services of the United States. Originally created on 1 August 1907, as a part of the United States Army Si ...

Reserve as a

captain Captain is a title, an appellative for the commanding officer of a military unit; the supreme leader of a navy ship, merchant ship, aeroplane, spacecraft, or other vessel; or the commander of a port, fire or police department, election precinct, e ...

from 1953 to 1966. He was a diplomatic courier for the

United States Foreign Service The United States Foreign Service is the primary personnel system used by the diplomatic service of the United States federal government, under the aegis of the United States Department of State. It consists of over 13,000 professionals carry ...

from 1949 to 1950. He served as the

city attorney A city attorney is a position in city and municipal government in the United States. The city attorney is the attorney representing the municipality. Unlike a district attorney or public defender, who usually handles criminal cases, a city att ...

for Ganado, Texas from 1955 to 1960.

Texas Senate

In 1960, Patman successfully sought the district 18 seat in the

Texas State Senate The Texas Senate ( es, Senado de Texas) is the upper house of the Texas State Legislature. There are 31 members of the Senate, representing single-member districts across the U.S. state of Texas, with populations of approximately 806,000 per con ...

. He took office the following year and served until 1981. He was a delegate to state Democratic Party conventions during this senatorial tenure. When 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 ...

was

assassinated Assassination is the murder of a prominent or important person, such as a head of state, head of government, politician, world leader, member of a royal family or CEO. The murder of a celebrity, activist, or artist, though they may not have ...

, Patman was in the fifteenth vehicle of the motorcade. In 1979, Patman was a member of the Killer Bees, the group of twelve

quorum A quorum is the minimum number of members of a deliberative assembly (a body that uses parliamentary procedure, such as a legislature) necessary to conduct the business of that group. According to '' Robert's Rules of Order Newly Revised'', the ...

-busting Democratic senators that hid out in an

Austin Austin is the capital city of the U.S. state of Texas, as well as the seat and largest city of Travis County, with portions extending into Hays and Williamson counties. Incorporated on December 27, 1839, it is the 11th-most-populous city ...

garage apartment for 4½ days.

U.S. House of Representatives

In 1980, he was elected to the District 14 seat in the

, when the short-term incumbent

Joseph P. Wyatt, Jr. Joseph Peyton Wyatt Jr. (October 12, 1941 – April 4, 2022) served as a United States House of Representatives, U.S. Representative from Texas. Biography Born in Victoria, Texas, Wyatt attended the Victoria County public schools. He attended Vic ...

, a former member of Patman's state senatorial staff, did not seek reelection. Patman was re-elected in 1982, when

U.S. Senator 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 power ...

Lloyd M. Bentsen, Jr., of

Houston Houston (; ) is the most populous city in Texas, the most populous city in the Southern United States, the fourth-most populous city in the United States, and the sixth-most populous city in North America, with a population of 2,304,580 ...

led the entire Democratic ticket to its last ever full sweep of Texas statewide offices. In 1984, however, Patman was unseated by

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 ...

Mac Sweeney David McCann "Mac" Sweeney (born September 15, 1955) is a Republican Party (United States), Republican former member of the United States House of Representatives from Texas. Born in Wharton, Texas, Wharton in Wharton County, Texas, Wharton Co ...

Wharton Wharton may refer to: Academic institutions * Wharton School of the University of Pennsylvania * Wharton County Junior College * Paul R. Wharton High School * Wharton Center for Performing Arts, at Michigan State University Places * Wharton, ...

, when

Ronald W. 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 ...

swept Texas in his presidential reelection bid. Though Sweeney was defeated after two terms by a Democrat, the district returned to Republican representation in 1995, with the defection of Representative

Greg Laughlin Gregory Haines Laughlin (born January 21, 1942) is a politician from Texas. He is a former member of the United States House of Representatives. Early life and education Laughlin was born in Bay City, Texas, and was raised in West Columbia, T ...

(who defeated Sweeney in 1988) and then the election in 1996 of former Representative

Ron Paul Ronald Ernest Paul (born August 20, 1935) is an American author, activist, physician and retired politician who served as the U.S. representative for Texas's 22nd congressional district from 1976 to 1977 and again from 1979 to 1985, as we ...

, who defeated Laughlin in the Republican

primary Primary or primaries may refer to: Arts, entertainment, and media Music Groups and labels * Primary (band), from Australia * Primary (musician), hip hop musician and record producer from South Korea * Primary Music, Israeli record label Works ...

. After his defeat by Sweeney, Patman did not seek further office and retired to Ganado, located some ninety miles southwest of Houston, where he lived on his

ranch A ranch (from es, rancho/Mexican Spanish) is an area of land, including various structures, given primarily to ranching, the practice of raising grazing livestock such as cattle and sheep. It is a subtype of a farm. These terms are most ofte ...

called Ganadom.

Personal life

Patman spent his last years in Ganado and at a second house in Austin. He died of

stomach cancer Stomach cancer, also known as gastric cancer, is a cancer that develops from the lining of the stomach. Most cases of stomach cancers are gastric carcinomas, which can be divided into a number of subtypes, including gastric adenocarcinomas. Ly ...

at the age of eighty-one at

M.D. Anderson Cancer Center The University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center (colloquially MD Anderson Cancer Center) is a comprehensive cancer center in Houston, Texas. It is the largest cancer center in the U.S. and one of the original three comprehensive cancer centers ...

in Houston. Services were held at the Texas Senate chamber; he is interred at the

Texas State Cemetery The Texas State Cemetery (TSC) is a cemetery located on about just east of downtown Austin, the capital of the U.S. state of Texas. Originally the burial place of Edward Burleson, Texas Revolutionary general and vice-president of the Republic of ...

in Austin. Patman's father-in-law, Fred Mauritz, was also a Texas state senator, having served from 1940 until his death, also of

cancer Cancer is a group of diseases involving abnormal cell growth with the potential to invade or spread to other parts of the body. These contrast with benign tumors, which do not spread. Possible signs and symptoms include a lump, abnormal b ...

, in 1947. U.S. Representative

Lloyd Doggett Lloyd Alton Doggett II (born October 6, 1946) is an American attorney and politician who is a U.S. representative from Texas. A member of the Democratic Party, he has represented a district based in Austin since 1995, currently numbered as Tex ...

of Austin credited Patman with foreseeing the 2008 financial crisis that brought about a $700 billion bailout from Congress: "Much of his legacy — fighting predatory lenders and warning of

bank A bank is a financial institution that accepts Deposit account, deposits from the public and creates a demand deposit while simultaneously making loans. Lending activities can be directly performed by the bank or indirectly through capital m ...

s deemed 'too big to fail' — testifies to his foresight."

References

External links

{{DEFAULTSORT:Patman, William Neff 1927 births 2008 deaths People from Texarkana, Texas Deaths from cancer in Texas Deaths from stomach cancer Ranchers from Texas Democratic Party Texas state senators Texas lawyers People from Austin, Texas People from Ganado, Texas University of Texas at Austin alumni Burials at Texas State Cemetery United States Marines United States Air Force officers Democratic Party members of the United States House of Representatives from Texas 20th-century American politicians 20th-century American lawyers Military personnel from Texas