Tom Donald Fike Bevill (March 27, 1921 – March 28, 2005) was an American attorney, politician, and Democratic fifteen-term

U.S. congressman 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 ...

who represented

Alabama's 4th Congressional District Alabama's 4th congressional district is a U.S. congressional district in Alabama, which elects a representative to the United States House of Representatives. It encompasses the counties of Franklin County, Alabama, Franklin, Colbert County, Ala ...

and Alabama's 7th congressional district from 1967 to 1997.

Early years and education

Bevill was born in

Townley, Alabama Townley is an unincorporated area, unincorporated community in Walker County, Alabama, Walker County, Alabama, United States of America, United States. It was formerly an incorporated town from 1895 until the 1920s. Townley has one site on the Na ...

, on March 27, 1921. He attended Walker County High School, the

University of Alabama The University of Alabama (informally known as Alabama, UA, the Capstone, or Bama) is a Public university, public research university in Tuscaloosa, Alabama, United States. Established in 1820 and opened to students in 1831, the University of ...

School of Commerce and Business Administration, and the University of Alabama School of Law. Bevill was an initiate of the Gamma Alpha chapter of

Pi Kappa Alpha Pi Kappa Alpha (), commonly known as Pike is a college fraternity founded at the University of Virginia in 1868. The fraternity has over 225 chapters and provisional chapters across the United States and abroad with over 15,500 undergraduate mem ...

at UA. He served in the

United States Army The United States Army (USA) is the primary Land warfare, land service branch of the United States Department of Defense. It is designated as the Army of the United States in the United States Constitution.Article II, section 2, clause 1 of th ...

during

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 ...

. He also privately practiced law.

Political career

In 1958, Bevill was elected to the Alabama Legislature, serving there until his election to Congress in 1966. Bevill served 15 two-year terms in the House of Representatives from Alabamas

4th Fourth or the fourth may refer to: * the ordinal form of the number 4 * ''Fourth'' (album), by Soft Machine, 1971 * Fourth (angle), an ancient astronomical subdivision * Fourth (music), a musical interval * ''The Fourth'', a 1972 Soviet drama ...

and

7th Seventh is the ordinal form of the number seven. Seventh may refer to: * Seventh Amendment to the United States Constitution * A fraction (mathematics), , equal to one of seven equal parts Film and television *"The Seventh", a second-season ep ...

Congressional districts, from 1967 to 1997. In Congress, Bevill was known for securing federal money and development projects for his district. This earned him the nickname "The King of

Pork Pork is the culinary name for the meat of the pig (''Sus domesticus''). It is the most commonly consumed meat worldwide, with evidence of pig animal husbandry, husbandry dating back to 8000–9000 BCE. Pork is eaten both freshly cooke ...

", a term which he actually turned into a positive. After fifteen terms in Congress, he retired in 1997. Bevill is credited with answering the world's very first

9-1-1 911, sometimes written , is an emergency telephone number for Argentina, Canada, the Dominican Republic, Fiji, Jordan, Mexico, Pakistan, Maldives, Palau, Panama, Iraq, the Philippines, Sint Maarten, the United States, and Uruguay, as well as ...

emergency call on February 16, 1968, made from Haleyville by then-Alabama House Speaker

Rankin Fite Ernest Rankin Fite (September 1, 1916 – November 6, 1980) was an Alabama state legislator and attorney. Biography Fite was born in Montgomery, Alabama to Ernest Baxter and Minnie Watt Fite. His grandfather, Bloomer Rankin Fite, established a ...

at the invitation of the

Alabama Telephone Company The Alabama Telephone Company was an American independent telephone company in Northwest Alabama, operating in the mid-20th century and serving Pickens County, Fayette County, and the Haleyville area. At its peak, it was the largest telephone c ...

. He also sponsored the Bevill Amendment to the

Resource Conservation and Recovery Act The Resource Conservation and Recovery Act (RCRA), enacted in 1976, is the primary federal law in the United States governing the disposal of solid waste and hazardous waste.United States. Resource Conservation and Recovery Act. , , ''et seq., ...

which excludes mining wastes from the act's jurisdiction. He was a moderate to

conservative Democrat In American politics, a conservative Democrat is a member of the Democratic Party with more conservative views than most Democrats. Traditionally, conservative Democrats have been elected to office from the Southern states, rural areas, and t ...

who opposed abortion and gun control. Bevill voted for the Abandoned Shipwrecks Act of 1987. The Act asserts United States title to certain abandoned shipwrecks located on or embedded in submerged lands under state jurisdiction, and transfers title to the respective state, thereby empowering states to manage these cultural and historical resources more efficiently, with the goal of preventing

treasure hunters Treasure hunting is the physical search for treasure. One of the most popular types of modern day treasure hunters are historic shipwreck salvors. These underwater treasure salvors try to find sunken shipwrecks and retrieve artifacts with both c ...

and salvagers from damaging them. President

Ronald Reagan Ronald Wilson Reagan (February 6, 1911 – June 5, 2004) was an American politician and actor who served as the 40th president of the United States from 1981 to 1989. He was a member of the Republican Party (United States), Republican Party a ...

signed it into law on April 28, 1988.

Personal life

Bevill died on March 28, 2005, in

Jasper, Alabama Jasper is a city in and the county seat of Walker County, Alabama, United States. Its population was 14,352 as of the 2010 census. Named in honor of Sergeant William Jasper, an American Revolutionary War hero, Jasper was settled around 1815 a ...

, the day after his 84th birthday. He had been in declining health for several years due to heart problems. In 2004, he received triple-bypass heart surgery. His son Don Bevill ran for his old seat in 1998. He lost 56%-44% to his father's Republican successor

Robert Aderholt Robert Brown Aderholt ( ; born July 22, 1965) is an American politician and attorney serving as the U.S. representative for since 1997. He is a member of the Republican Party. The district includes most of Tuscaloosa County north of the Blac ...

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Bevill, Tom 1921 births 2005 deaths Democratic Party members of the Alabama House of Representatives Alabama lawyers People from Walker County, Alabama United States Army personnel of World War II United States Army soldiers University of Alabama alumni Democratic Party members of the United States House of Representatives from Alabama 20th-century American lawyers 20th-century members of the United States House of Representatives 20th-century members of the Alabama Legislature