Silvio Conte | |
|---|---|
.png) Conte in 1989 | |
| Member of theU.S. House of Representatives fromMassachusetts's1st district | |
| In office January 3, 1959 – February 8, 1991 | |
| Preceded by | John W. Heselton |
| Succeeded by | John Olver |
| Member of theMassachusetts Senate from the Berkshire district | |
| In office January 3, 1951 – January 3, 1959 | |
| Preceded by | Michael H. Condron |
| Succeeded by | Robert P. Cramer |
| Personal details | |
| Born | Silvio Ottavio Conte (1921-11-09)November 9, 1921 |
| Died | February 8, 1991(1991-02-08) (aged 69) |
| Political party | Republican |
| Spouse | Corinne Conte |
| Children | 4 |
| Education | Boston College (LLB) |
| Signature |  |
| Military service | |
| Allegiance |  United States of America |
| Branch/service | .svg) United States Navy |
| Years of service | 1942–1944 |
| Battles/wars | World War II |
Conte speaks in support of FY1989 interior appropriations Recorded June 29, 1988 | |
Silvio Ottavio Conte (November 9, 1921 – February 8, 1991) was an American lawyer and politician. He was aRepublican member of theUnited States House of Representatives for 16 terms, representing the1st congressional district of Massachusetts from January 3, 1959, until his death inBethesda, Maryland, in 1991. He strongly supported legislation to protect the environment, as well as federal funding of medical and scientific research.
Conte was born to parents who wereItalian immigrants inPittsfield, Massachusetts. He attended local public schools, including Pittsfield Vocational High School, graduating in 1940 and later worked as amachinist andpressman.[1] He served as aconstruction mechanic in theUnited States NavySeaBees[2] duringWorld War II from 1942 to 1944.
After the war, Conte went on to college, graduating fromBoston College andBoston College Law School under theG. I. Bill of Rights. He was a member of theBoston College Eagles football andbasketball teams.[3] He earned his law degree (LL.B.) in 1949 and passed the Massachusetts bar.
He married Corinne Duvall in 1948 and they had four children together.[2]
Conte returned to Pittsfield and immediately turned his attention to politics. He was elected to theMassachusetts Senate in 1950, serving from 1951 to 1958.
He was elected to the U.S. House of Representatives in 1958, defeatingJames M. Burns, a professor atWilliams College. Conte was appointed to theHouse Appropriations Committee, a seat that he would keep for all of his long congressional career. He served as the ranking minority member of the committee at the time of his death.
Conte was effective in taking care of his district, which covered most ofWestern Massachusetts. He helped to win defense contracts for theGeneral Electric plant in Pittsfield. An avid fisherman and environmentalist, he introduced legislation to bring backAtlantic salmon to theConnecticut River and worked to protect other natural resources.[4]
He supported federal funding of research, and secured funding for apolymer research center at theUniversity of Massachusetts Amherst. As he was a passionate advocate for federal funded health research through the National Institutes of Health, the NIH continues to honor him today with grants for neurological research awarded in his name.[5]
Conte never lost an election; he was the only Republican member of Congress who did not have an opponent in the 1964 election. He is somewhat famous for wearing a pig mask in a 1983 press conference, as a protest againstpork barrel spending.
Conte voted in favor of theCivil Rights Act of 1960, theCivil Rights Act of 1964 and theCivil Rights Act of 1968, as well as the24th Amendment to the U.S. Constitution and theVoting Rights Act of 1965, and like fellow Massachusetts RepublicansF. Bradford Morse,William H. Bates,Joseph W. Martin Jr., andHastings Keith, voted in favor of theMedicare health program.[6][7][8][9][10][11]
In 1966, along with three Republican senators and four other Republican representatives, Conte signed a telegram sent to Georgia governorCarl E. Sanders regarding the Georgia legislature's refusal to seat the recently electedJulian Bond in their state House of Representatives. This refusal, said the telegram, was "a dangerous attack on representative government. None of us agree with Mr. Bond's views on the Vietnam War; in fact we strongly repudiate these views. But unless otherwise determined by a court of law, which the Georgia Legislature is not, he is entitled to express them."[12]
A member of the Republican Party, Conte was part of what was then itsliberal Northern tradition.[13] Conte voted against U.S. involvement in the 1991Gulf War, one of only three Republicans in the House to oppose the resolution, along withFrank Riggs (CA) andConnie Morella (MD).
On social issues, Conte's record was more conservative, also reflecting hisRoman Catholic faith; for instance, he was opposed to abortion.[14] He encouraged a generation of young activists whom he hired as staff. For instance,Betty Boothroyd worked for him as a legislative assistant between 1960 and 1962; she later becameSpeaker of the House of Commons of the United Kingdom.
Conte died at age 69 ofprostate cancer inBethesda, Maryland, on February 8, 1991. He is buried in St. Joseph's Cemetery in his home town of Pittsfield. More than 5,000 of his constituents waited in line in 5 °F (−15 °C) weather to attend his wake at tiny All Souls Church, his childhood church, in Pittsfield.
His funeral was attended by fourU.S. Cabinet secretaries, 100 members of Congress, and the sittingvice president of the United States,Dan Quayle. He was eulogized by long-time political friendsTip O'Neill (formerU.S. Speaker of the House) and SenatorEdward Kennedy.
He was survived by his wife Corinne (née Duval), and their four children.John Olver, aDemocrat, succeeded him in Congress.
| Massachusetts Senate | ||
|---|---|---|
| Preceded by Michael H. Condron | Member of theMassachusetts Senate from the Berkshire district 1951–1959 | Succeeded by Robert P. Cramer |
| U.S. House of Representatives | ||
| Preceded by | Member of theU.S. House of Representatives fromMassachusetts's 1st congressional district 1959–1991 | Succeeded by |
| New office | Ranking Member of theHouse Small Business Committee 1975–1979 | Succeeded by |
| Preceded by | Ranking Member of theHouse Appropriations Committee 1979–1991 | |
| International | |
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| National | |
| People | |
| Other | |
