Olin E. Teague

Olin E. Teague
Chairman of the House Science Committee
In office
January 3, 1973 – December 31, 1978
Speaker Carl Albert
Tip O'Neill
Preceded by George P. Miller
Succeeded by Don Fuqua
Chairman of the House Veterans' Affairs Committee
In office
January 3, 1955 – January 3, 1973
Speaker Sam Rayburn
John William McCormack
Carl Albert
Preceded by Edith Nourse Rogers
Succeeded by William Jennings Bryan Dorn
Member of the U.S. House of Representatives
from Texas's 6th district
In office
August 24, 1946 – December 31, 1978
Preceded by Luther A. Johnson
Succeeded by Phil Gramm
Personal details
Born (1910-04-06)April 6, 1910
Woodward, Oklahoma
Died January 23, 1981(1981-01-23) (aged 70)
Bethesda, Maryland

Olin Earl "Tiger" Teague (April 6, 1910 – January 23, 1981) was a notable World War II veteran and congressional representative for Texas's 6th congressional district for just under 33 years, from 1946 to 1978. He is buried in Arlington National Cemetery.

Biography

Early life

Born in Oklahoma and raised in Mena, Arkansas, Teague graduated from the Agricultural and Mechanical College of Texas (now Texas A&M University) in 1932. He joined the Army in 1940 as a lieutenant and was discharged in 1946 as a colonel. He participated in the D-Day invasion of Normandy, and was a decorated combat veteran of World War II, receiving the Silver Star with two clusters, the Bronze Star, and two Purple Hearts.[1] The nickname "Tiger" came from his play on the football field while in high school.

Congressional career

Representative Olin Teague and other members of the House Committee on Science and Astronautics visit the Marshall Space Flight Center on March 9, 1962 to gather first-hand information of the nation's space exploration program.

While in Congress, he was the veteran's champion, authoring more veterans' legislation than any congressman before him.[2]

He proposed fifty amendments in Congress including: Providing for the election of President and Vice President; to abolish the electoral college (1953), Provides representation for the people of the District of Columbia (1957), Relative to appointment of postmasters (1959), Proposal with respect to the appointment of postmasters (1961), Empowering Congress to grant representation in the Congress and among the electors of President and Vice President to the people of the District of Columbia (1950 and 1951 and 1953), Equal rights regardless of sex (1967).[3]

He was instrumental in improving benefits for servicemen's survivors. In 1956, he helped overhaul the survivor's benefits, with the creation of the Dependency and Indemnity Compensation (DIC). He was also chairman of the House Democratic Caucus, chairman of the House Committee on Veterans Affairs (1955–1972), and chairman of the House Committee on Science and Astronautics (1973–1978). Before 1973, he also chaired the Manned Space Flight Subcommittee and in that capacity oversaw NASA's efforts to place a man on the moon.[4] In 1976, Teague was pivotal in establishing the Office of Science and Technology Policy.

Legacy

The Olin E. Teague Veterans Center, a VA hospital and health center in Temple, Texas, was named for him. The VA also presents the annual Olin E. Teague Award for contributions to improving the quality of life of disabled veterans. Also named for him were the Olin E. Teague Research Center at Texas A&M, a space research facility, and the original visitor center at the Johnson Space Center (closed in 1992).

References

  1. ↑ Past Chairmen of House Committee on Veteran's Affairs
  2. ↑ R. Jim Nicholson (12 October 2005). "Secretary Nicholson Speech: Remarks by The Hon. James Nicholson, Secretary of Veterans Affairs: 25th Annual Olin E. Teague Award". United States Department of Veterans Affairs. Retrieved 2006-08-29.
  3. ↑ "Data.gov Data Set Proposed Amendments".
  4. ↑ "A History of the Committee on Science". United States House Committee on Science. Archived from the original on 2006-08-24. Retrieved 2006-08-29.
United States House of Representatives
Preceded by
Luther A. Johnson		 Member of the U.S. House of Representatives
from Texas's 6th congressional district
1946–1978 		Succeeded by
Phil Gramm
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