Kenneth Allison Roberts (November 1, 1912 – May 9, 1989) was an American lawyer,

World War II World War II or the Second World War (1 September 1939 – 2 September 1945) was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War II, Allies and the Axis powers. World War II by country, Nearly all of the wo ...

veteran and politician who served seven terms as a

U.S. Representative 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

Alabama Alabama ( ) is a U.S. state, state in the Southeastern United States, Southeastern and Deep South, Deep Southern regions of the United States. It borders Tennessee to the north, Georgia (U.S. state), Georgia to the east, Florida and the Gu ...

from 1951 to 1965.

Biography

Born in

Piedmont, Alabama Piedmont is a city in Calhoun and Cherokee counties in the U.S. state of Alabama. The population was 4,400 at the 2020 census. It is included in the Anniston- Oxford, Alabama Metropolitan Statistical Area. The city is approximately one an ...

, Roberts attended the public schools and

Howard College Howard College is a Public college, public community college with its main campus in Big Spring, Texas. It also has branch campuses in San Angelo, Texas, San Angelo and Lamesa, Texas, Lamesa. History Howard County Junior College was establishe ...

Birmingham, Alabama Birmingham ( ) is a city in the north central region of Alabama, United States. It is the county seat of Jefferson County, Alabama, Jefferson County. The population was 200,733 at the 2020 United States census, 2020 census, making it the List ...

. He was graduated from the

University of Alabama Law School The University of Alabama School of Law, (formerly known as the Hugh F. Culverhouse Jr. School of Law at The University of Alabama) located in Tuscaloosa, Alabama is the only public law school in the state. It is one of five law schools in the ...

in 1935 and

admitted to the bar An admission to practice law is acquired when a lawyer receives a license to practice law. In jurisdictions with two types of lawyer, as with barristers and solicitors, barristers must gain admission to the bar whereas for solicitors there are dist ...

in 1936. He practiced law in

Anniston, Alabama Anniston is a city and the county seat of Calhoun County, Alabama, Calhoun County in Alabama, United States, and is one of two urban centers/principal cities of and included in the Anniston–Oxford metropolitan area, Anniston–Oxford Metropo ...

(1936) and in Talladega (1937–1942).

World War II

Roberts was elected to the

Alabama State Senate The Alabama State Senate is the upper house of the Alabama Legislature, the state legislature of the U.S. state of Alabama. The body is composed of 35 members representing an equal number of districts across the state, with each district conta ...

in 1942 and resigned the same year to enter 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 ...

. He served in both Atlantic and Pacific Theaters until discharged as a lieutenant in 1945.

Early career

He was president of Piedmont Development Co. from 1945 to 1950. From 1948 to 1950 he served as member of Alabama State Board of Veterans Affairs and city attorney of

Congress

Roberts was elected as a

Democrat Democrat, Democrats, or Democratic may refer to: Politics *A proponent of democracy, or democratic government; a form of government involving rule by the people. *A member of a Democratic Party: **Democratic Party (Cyprus) (DCY) **Democratic Part ...

to the Eighty-second and to the six succeeding Congresses (January 3, 1951 – January 3, 1965). He was wounded in the

1954 United States Capitol shooting The 1954 United States Capitol shooting was a domestic terrorist attack on March 1, 1954, by four Puerto Rican nationalists seeking to promote Puerto Rican independence from the United States. They fired 30 rounds from semi-automatic pistols on ...

. Having been a signatory to the 1956

Southern Manifesto The Declaration of Constitutional Principles (known informally as the Southern Manifesto) was a document written in February and March 1956, during the 84th United States Congress, in opposition to racial integration of public places. The manife ...

that opposed the desegregation of public schools ordered by the Supreme Court in ''

Brown v. Board of Education ''Brown v. Board of Education of Topeka'', 347 U.S. 483 (1954), was a landmark decision of the United States Supreme Court that ruled that U.S. state laws establishing racial segregation in public schools are unconstitutional, even if the ...

'', he voted against H.R. 6127, Civil Rights Act of 1957. He was an unsuccessful candidate for reelection in 1964 to the Eighty-ninth Congress. Roberts led the establishment of federal safety legislation through the House of Representatives subcommittee on traffic safety which was formed in 1956. In 1963 he introduced the U.S. Clean Air Act.

Later career

He resumed the practice of law until his retirement in 1979. From 1965 to 1972 he was Counsel for the Vehicle Equipment Safety Commission. He served as member of the National Highway Safety Advisory Committee from 1966 to 1970. ANCExplorer Kenneth A

Death and burial

He was a resident of

until his death due to congestive heart failure in

Potomac, Maryland Potomac () is an Unincorporated area#United States, unincorporated community and census-designated place in Montgomery County, Maryland, United States. As of the 2020 United States census, 2020 census, it had a population of 47,018. It is named a ...

, on May 9, 1989. He was interred at

Arlington National Cemetery Arlington National Cemetery is the largest cemetery in the United States National Cemetery System, one of two maintained by the United States Army. More than 400,000 people are buried in its 639 acres (259 ha) in Arlington County, Virginia. ...

Bibliography

References

External links

* , - {{DEFAULTSORT:Roberts, Kenneth Allison 1912 births 1989 deaths Democratic Party Alabama state senators American shooting survivors Burials at Arlington National Cemetery Democratic Party members of the United States House of Representatives from Alabama People from Piedmont, Alabama Politicians from Anniston, Alabama Samford University alumni United States Navy officers United States Navy personnel of World War II University of Alabama School of Law alumni Signatories of the Southern Manifesto 20th-century members of the United States House of Representatives 20th-century members of the Alabama Legislature