Thomas Pelly

This article is about American politician. For the Australian Rugby player, seeTom Pelly.

Thomas Pelly
Pelly in 1965
Member of theU.S. House of Representatives fromWashington's1stdistrict
In office January 3, 1953 – January 3, 1973
Preceded by	Hugh Mitchell
Succeeded by	Joel Pritchard
Personal details
Born	Thomas Minor Pelly (1902-08-22)August 22, 1902 Seattle,Washington,U.S.
Died	November 21, 1973(1973-11-21)(aged 71) Ojai,California,U.S.
Political party	Republican

Thomas Minor Pelly(August 22, 1902 – November 21, 1973) was an American politician. He served as aU.S. Representativefrom the state ofWashingtonbetween 1953 and 1973.

Early life

Pelly was born on August 22, 1902, inSeattle, Washington.His parents were Bernard Pelly, the Britishconsulto Seattle and Elizabeth Montgomery Minor Pelly, the daughter of former mayor of SeattleThomas T. Minor.He attendedSummit Schooland theUniversity SchoolinVictoria, British Columbia,before taking classes at theHoosac SchoolinHoosick, New York.He renounced hisBritish citizenshipat the age of 21.

He worked various jobs: first with the West and Wheeler Real Estate Company and then with the Seattle National Bank where he was eventually promoted to trust officer in the late 1920s, after joining as a foot messenger. He married Mary Virginia Taylor in 1927, after meeting her onBainbridge Island,where his family had a house. The couple had two children: Marion Elizabeth and Tom Minor Jr. In 1930, he started working for the Lowman & Hanford Stationery Company, during which time he wrote and publishedJudgement, and other poems, North-Westward, The Story of Restoration Point and Country ClubandDr. Minor: A Sketch of the Background and Life of Thos. T. Minor, M.D.Five years later, he became the company president.

Career

Pelly first ran for public office in 1932, when he contested a seat in theWashington House of Representatives.His Democratic opponent sued to have Pelly classed as a British citizen and although Pelly won the lawsuit, he lost the election. He was active in the community, serving as vice chair of the Seattle Community Chest and as a director of theSeattle Symphony,theSeattle Art Museum,the Seattle Trust and Savings Bank, the Olympia State Bank and Trust Company, the Shaw and Borden Company, Johnson's Inc. of Spokane, theLakeside School,and theHelen Bush School.DuringWorld War II,he joined the council of the Seattle United Service Organization, which assisted military personnel by organizing recreation.

Seattle Chamber of Commerce

Pelly was elected president of theSeattle Chamber of Commercein 1949, focusing his efforts on this position. He worked to negotiate apurchase agreementbetween the city andPuget Sound Power and Lightand organized a committee to agree the purchase of a ferryboat system between the Black Ball Line and GovernorArthur B. Langlie.He often traveled through the state to promote Seattle and attended most sessions of the state legislature. He was honored as the First Citizen of the Year by the Seattle-King County Association of Realtors on January 24, 1951, for his work at the chamber of commerce.

U.S. House of Representatives

Pelly was first elected to theUnited States House of Representativeson November 4, 1952, as the representative for the1st district.He ran as aRepublican,receiving 51.37 percent of the vote in theEisenhower sweep.His district was the largest by population and containedSand Point Naval Air Station,Fort Lawtonand thePuget Sound Naval Shipyard,as well asBoeing,the Keyport Torpedo Station, and the Bangor Ammunition Depot. He would ultimately serve ten terms in office. In 1966, he won re-election with 80.27 percent of the vote and was the first congressional Republican candidate to be endorsed by the King County Central Labor Council.

Pelly focused on the issues of fisheries and environmental protection during his 20 years in office. He was a member of the House merchant marine and fisheries committee and continuously worked to improve working conditions formerchant marines.He worked with SenatorWarren Magnusonto impose sanctions on South American countries who impounded American fishing vessels that violated their claimed territorial waters. Pelly introduced a bill to make theU.S. Maritime Administrationan independent agency, and supported the July 1965 establishment of the Joint Oceanographic Research Group in Seattle. He was a member of the House science and astronautics committee, the only one from the Northwest. He voted against H.R. 4671, which would have built two dams near theGrand Canyon,and introduced H. R. 17202 in 1972 which established theNorth Cascades National Parkfollowing a petition with 30,000 signatures collected byThe Mountaineers,theSierra Club,and theNorth Cascades Conservation Council.

In financial matters, he introduced H. R. 16551 to amend theSocial Security Actto adjust social security benefits in line with inflation and supported tax relief for college students and their parents.In 1961, he served as the spokesperson for a group of congressmen who opposed PresidentJohn F. Kennedy's proposed foreign aid plan, which would have involved borrowing $7.3 billion from theU.S. Treasuryacross five years and spending $4.8 billion in 1961. Pelly’s goal was to review howforeign aidborrowing was occurring and allow the appropriations committee to authorize the funds.

Pelly reportedly considered running for governor in the 1964 election and in 1966, he was the preferred vice presidential candidate forRichard Nixonamongst state Republicans, although he never ran for any other office. In 1972, he chose not to seek re-election and he was succeeded byJoel Pritchard.

Death

Pelly died on November 21, 1973, inOjai, California,while on holiday. He was 71 years old.

External links

• United States Congress."Thomas Pelly (id: P000196)".Biographical Directory of the United States Congress.
• Biography at Evergreen Washelli Memorial Park