Joe L. Evins | |
|---|---|
 Evins in 1973 | |
| Member of the U.S. House of Representatives fromTennessee | |
| In office January 3, 1947 – January 3, 1977 | |
| Preceded by | Harold Earthman |
| Succeeded by | Albert Gore Jr. |
| Constituency | 5th district (1947-1953) 4th district (1953-1977) |
| Personal details | |
| Born | Joseph Landon Evins (1910-10-24)October 24, 1910 DeKalb County, Tennessee, U.S. |
| Died | March 31, 1984(1984-03-31) (aged 73) Nashville, Tennessee, U.S. |
| Political party | Democratic |
| Relatives | Dan Evins (nephew) |
| Alma mater | Vanderbilt University Cumberland School of Law George Washington University |
Joseph Landon Evins (October 24, 1910 – March 31, 1984) was an American lawyer and politician who served 15 terms as aDemocraticU.S. Representative fromTennessee from 1947 to 1977.
Evins was a native of the Blend Community ofDeKalb County, Tennessee, the son ofJames Edgar Evins and Myrtie Goodson Evins.[1] His father was aTennessee state senator and a successful local businessman.[2] He was also the namesake ofEdgar Evins State Park near Smithville. One of his brother's children ran a localbank. Another nephew,Dan Evins, was the founder of theCracker Barrel Old Country Store restaurant chain.[3]
Evins graduated fromVanderbilt University inNashville, Tennessee in 1933 and theCumberland School of Law inLebanon, Tennessee in 1934, as well asThe George Washington University.[4] He was admitted to thebar in that same year and began practice inSmithville, thecounty seat of DeKalb County.[4]
In 1935 Evins was named a staffattorney for theFederal Trade Commission, and served in this position until 1938, when he was named the FTC's assistant secretary, a position which he held until 1940.[4]
Shortly afterU.S. entry intoWorld War II, he was commissioned in theUnited States ArmyJudge Advocate General Corps, serving on active duty until 1946, when he resumed his law practice in Smithville.[4]
Upon his return, he was also elected chairman of the DeKalb County Democratic Party. Later in that same year, he won the nomination of the Democratic Party for the seat from the 5th District. He won the election easily in this solidly-Democratic area, and was re-elected to fourteen more terms, generally with little or no opposition. His district was renumbered the 4th after the1950 Census, when Tennessee lost a congressional district.[citation needed]
Evins was a powerful figure inCongress. He was chairman of the House Select Committee on Small Business for six years, and for the following Congressional session of theUnited States House Committee on Small Business, and served on the importantHouse Appropriations Committee.
He used his influence to make sure that his district, a mostly rural area east and south ofNashville, was well taken-care of; Smithville was the smallest city chosen for participation in theModel Cities Program and its major thoroughfare was renamed "Congressional Boulevard".[citation needed]
TheTennessee Technological University Appalachian Center for Craft near Smithville was built with a $5 million federal grant that Evins secured as a member of the Appropriations Committee.[5]
Evins, aconservative Democrat, was slow to accept racialdesegregation. He signed the 1956Southern Manifesto[6] and voted against theCivil Rights Acts of 1957,[7]1960,[8]1964,[9] and1968.[10] But Evins voted present on the24th Amendment to the U.S. Constitution.[11] and voted in favor of theVoting Rights Act of 1965.[12]
Evins decided not to stand for re-election in 1976, after serving a total of 15 terms. At the time of his retirement in January 1977, his continuous service in the U.S. House of Representatives was longer than that of any other House member from Tennessee.[1][13][14]
In a spiritedprimary to succeed him,Al Gore won and began his political career.[citation needed]
His wife, Ann Smartt, with whom he had three daughters, was the daughter of aMcMinnville judge.[15]
Evins died in Nashville on March 31, 1984, and is buried in the Smithville Town Cemetery in Smithville.[16]
| U.S. House of Representatives | ||
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| Preceded by | Member of the U.S. House of Representatives fromTennessee's 5th congressional district 1947–1953 | Succeeded by |
| Preceded by | Member of the U.S. House of Representatives fromTennessee's 4th congressional district 1953–1977 | Succeeded by |
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