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 is a chamber of the Bicameralism, 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 Artic ...

for

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

. 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 ...

, 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 cities, twin city with neighboring Texarkana, Arkansas. The Texas city's population was 36,193 at the 2 ...

. He attended public schools there and in

Washington, D.C. Washington, D.C., formally the District of Columbia and commonly known as Washington or D.C., is the capital city and federal district of the United States. The city is on the Potomac River, across from Virginia, and shares land borders with ...

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 American Civil War, Civil War, on July 17, 1861. Union forces defeat ...

, 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 university, public research university in Austin, Texas, United States. Founded in 1883, it is the flagship institution of the University of Texas System. With 53,082 stud ...

. Later that year, he was admitted to the

State Bar of Texas The State Bar of Texas (the Texas Bar) is an agency of the judiciary under the administrative control of the Texas Supreme Court. It is responsible for assisting the Texas Supreme Court in overseeing all attorneys licensed to practice law in ...

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 s ...

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 or simply the Marines, is the maritime land force service branch of the United States Department of Defense. It is responsible for conducting expeditionar ...

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 force, air service branch of the United States Department of Defense. It is one of the six United States Armed Forces and one of the eight uniformed services of the United States. Tracing its ori ...

Reserve as a

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

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 carr ...

from 1949 to 1950. He served as the city attorney for

Ganado, Texas Ganado ( ) is a city in Jackson County, Texas, United States. The population was 1,975 at the 2020 census. Geography Ganado is located at (29.041111, –96.512136), approximately 35 miles northeast of Victoria. According to the United Stat ...

from 1955 to 1960. He died of cancer in Houston, Texas on December 9 2008 he was 81 years old.

Texas Senate

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

Texas State Senate The Texas Senate is the upper house of the Texas Legislature, with the Texas House of Representatives functioning as the lower house. Together, they form the state legislature of the state of Texas. The Senate is made up of 31 members, where eac ...

. 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), also known as JFK, was the 35th president of the United States, serving from 1961 until his assassination in 1963. He was the first Roman Catholic and youngest person elected p ...

was

assassinated Assassination is the willful killing, by a sudden, secret, or planned attack, of a personespecially if prominent or important. It may be prompted by political, ideological, religious, financial, or military motives. Assassinations are orde ...

, 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 group necessary to constitute the group at a meeting. In a deliberative assembly (a body that uses parliamentary procedure, such as a legislature), a quorum is necessary to conduct the business of ...

-busting Democratic senators that hid out in an

Austin Austin refers to: Common meanings * Austin, Texas, United States, a city * Austin (given name), a list of people and fictional characters * Austin (surname), a list of people and fictional characters * Austin Motor Company, a British car manufac ...

garage apartment for 4½ days.

U.S. House of Representatives

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

References

External links

{{DEFAULTSORT:Patman, William Neff 1927 births 2008 deaths People from Texarkana, Texas Deaths from stomach cancer in Texas Ranchers from Texas Democratic Party Texas state senators Texas lawyers Politicians 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 lawyers Military personnel from Texas Kemper Military School alumni 20th-century members of the Texas Legislature 20th-century members of the United States House of Representatives