Albert David Baumhart Jr. (June 15, 1908 – January 23, 2001) was a Republican member of the

U.S. House of Representatives The United States House of Representatives is a chamber of the bicameral United States Congress; it is the lower house, with the U.S. Senate being the upper house. Together, the House and Senate have the authority under Article One of th ...

from

Ohio Ohio ( ) is a U.S. state, state in the Midwestern United States, Midwestern region of the United States. It borders Lake Erie to the north, Pennsylvania to the east, West Virginia to the southeast, Kentucky to the southwest, Indiana to the ...

. He served in

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from 1941 to 1942, and again from 1955 to 1961.

Early life

Baumhart was born in

Vermilion, Ohio Vermilion is a city in Erie County, Ohio, Erie and Lorain County, Ohio, Lorain counties in the U.S. state of Ohio, on Lake Erie. Its population was 10,659 at the 2020 United States census, 2020 census. Located about 35 miles west of Cleveland an ...

. Baumhart's mother died at 35 in 1918 from the

Spanish Flu epidemic The 1918–1920 flu pandemic, also known as the Great Influenza epidemic or by the common misnomer Spanish flu, was an exceptionally deadly global influenza pandemic caused by the H1N1 subtype of the influenza A virus. The earliest document ...

. He attended

Ohio University Ohio University (Ohio or OU) is a Public university, public research university with its main campus in Athens, Ohio, United States. The university was first conceived in the 1787 contract between the United States Department of the Treasury#Re ...

Athens, Ohio Athens is a city in Athens County, Ohio, United States, and its county seat. The population was 23,849 at the 2020 United States census. Located along the Hocking River within Appalachian Ohio about southeast of Columbus, Ohio, Columbus, Athe ...

, receiving his A.B. and M.A. in 1931.

Political career

He was a publishing house representative at Vermilion, Ohio, from 1932 to 1939. He was a member of the

Ohio State Senate The Ohio Senate is the upper house of the Ohio General Assembly. The State Senate, which meets in the Ohio Statehouse in Columbus, Ohio, Columbus, first convened in 1803. Senators are elected for four year terms, staggered every two years such t ...

from 1937 to 1940. Baumhart was elected as a Republican to the Seventy-seventh Congress. Throughout all of 1940 and most of 1941 he was known as an "interventionist Republican" who advocated that America go to war in Europe against Nazi Germany in order to help

the United Kingdom The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, commonly known as the United Kingdom (UK) or Britain, is a country in Northwestern Europe, off the coast of European mainland, the continental mainland. It comprises England, Scotlan ...

. He resigned to accept a commission in the

United States Navy The United States Navy (USN) is the naval warfare, maritime military branch, service branch of the United States Department of Defense. It is the world's most powerful navy with the largest Displacement (ship), displacement, at 4.5 millio ...

on September 2, 1942. He was discharged as a lieutenant commander on January 17, 1946. He was a member of the public relations staff of

Owens-Corning Owens Corning is an American company that develops and produces insulation, roofing, and fiberglass composites and related products. It is the world's largest manufacturer of fiberglass composites. It was formed in 1935 as a partnership between ...

Fiberglass Fiberglass (American English) or fibreglass (English in the Commonwealth of Nations, Commonwealth English) is a common type of fibre-reinforced plastic, fiber-reinforced plastic using glass fiber. The fibers may be randomly arranged, flattened i ...

Corp., in

Toledo, Ohio Toledo ( ) is a city in Lucas County, Ohio, United States, and its county seat. It is located at the western end of Lake Erie along the Maumee River. Toledo is the List of cities in Ohio, fourth-most populous city in Ohio and List of United Sta ...

, from 1946 to 1953. He served as director of the

Republican National Committee The Republican National Committee (RNC) is the primary committee of the Republican Party of the United States. Its members are chosen by the state delegations at the national convention every four years. It is responsible for developing and pr ...

in 1953 and 1954. Baumhart was again elected as a Republican to the Eighty-fourth, Eighty-fifth, and Eighty-sixth Congresses. He was not a candidate for renomination in

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 * Janu ...

. Baumhart voted in favor of the Civil Rights Acts of 1957 and

. He was a delegate to

1968 Republican National Convention The 1968 Republican National Convention was held at the Miami Beach Convention Center in Miami Beach, Dade County, Florida, USA, from August 5 to August 8, 1968, to select the party's nominee in the general election. It nominated former Vice P ...

Post-Political career

He later worked as public relations consultant.

Death

He died on January 23, 2001, in

Lorain, Ohio Lorain () is a city in Lorain County, Ohio, United States. It is located in Northeast Ohio on Lake Erie, at the mouth of the Black River (Ohio), Black River about west of Cleveland. It is the List of cities in Ohio, ninth-most populous city in O ...

. He is interred at Maple Grove Cemetery in Vermilion, Ohio.

References

The Political Graveyard
1908 births 2001 deaths Republican Party Ohio state senators Ohio University alumni United States Navy personnel of World War II People from Vermilion, Ohio United States Navy officers Republican Party members of the United States House of Representatives from Ohio 20th-century members of the United States House of Representatives 20th-century members of the Ohio General Assembly {{Ohio-Representative-stub