A Trip To Bonham, Texas Is Worth the Time
The Flip Side
By Ken Judkins
A Trip To Bonham, Texas Is Worth the Time
My wife and I spent a recent weekend in Bonham, TX, to get away for a couple of days and to visit some of the interesting places the town has to offer.
We were not disappointed. A visit to the Homestead Winery in nearby Ivanhoe turned out to be a charming way to spend an hour. We were the only people there and a very friendly lady named Dorcas provided great conversation, not to mention samples of Homestead’s fantastic wines.
But it was the visits to the Sam Rayburn House and Sam Rayburn Library that made the entire trip worthwhile.
For those of you unfamiliar with “Mister Sam, “ as he was affectionately called by friend and political foe alike (I’m not aware of any personal enemies – Washington was a different place during his time), Rayburn served three terms as state representative early in the 20th Century, and a whopping 24 terms in the U.S. House of Representatives from 1913 until his death in 1961 at age 79. He served four years as House Majority Leader 1937 – 1941, and 17 of the following 21 years as Speaker of the House. He is still the longest-serving Speaker in U.S. history.
Rayburn was widely known and revered for his honesty and fairness, and the list of his accomplishments is too long to recite. He took one out-of-country junket during his 48 years in the House to visit the Panama Canal, and paid for it himself. He refused to accept any gift worth over $25. He remained a man of modest but comfortable means throughout his life, despite being the second most powerful man in America the better part of two decades.
Rayburn worked as a staunch ally with President Franklin Roosevelt to enact New Deal legislation that helped tens of millions of Americans survive the Great Depression and get the country working again. If not for these efforts, the hardships the common hard-working people suffered would have been far greater than they actually were. The focus was not on a “hand out” but on a “hand up” for those who needed it, and to ensure that folks didn’t starve in the process.
During World War II Rayburn was instrumental in ensuring the U.S. government provided all financial and material means necessary to successfully prosecute the war.
Rayburn worked across both aisles to achieve policies that put middle-class and poor people first. He cut a wide swath though public life during a time when the best politicians looked for solutions to people’s problems rather than spending time convincing them that government was the problem.
The Sam Rayburn House, located just west of Bonham on Highway 82, was built by Rayburn for his parents in 1916, shortly after he entered Congress. Sam lived there during the times he spent away from Washington, preferring to meet people at his home rather than the office his staff maintained in Bonham. It still contains the original furniture and belongings of the Speaker, including awards, personal letters, pictures, clothes, and other personal effects.
Rayburn maintained an “open door” policy at his house, meaning he never locked a door, and his friends let themselves in. Strangers were known by their ringing of the front doorbell, but were welcome nonetheless.
My favorite object in the tour of the house and grounds was the 1947 Cadillac given to Rayburn by fellow Democratic congressmen in a year the House went to the Republicans, demoting him to Minority Leader and causing him to lose the Speaker’s limousine privileges. A few friends decided to buy him a new Cadillac, but their overtures were rejected due to his self-imposed $25 limit on gifts. He relented and accepted the car when the entire Democratic delegation in Congress chipped in $25 each to purchase the vehicle. The few checks he received from Republicans were quietly returned with “thank you” notes, not to insult them, but to ensure there were no conflicts of interest with the other party when making deals.
The Sam Rayburn library is an amazing place. Artifacts maintained in this beautiful structure include personal letters from presidents dating back to Woodrow Wilson, an extensive collection of originally drawn political cartoons signed by the artists, important documents from the ‘teens through the ‘sixties, and, incredibly, the speaker’s rostrum that served the U.S. House of Representatives from 1857 through 1950. A chandelier and a fireplace taken from the White House during remodeling also adorn Rayburn’s recreated office.
H.G. Dulaney, Sam Rayburn’s personal secretary during the 1950’s still oversees the library and is frequently found in his office there. He is a fascinating man full of amazing stories, and was gracious enough to show us around the library for an hour and answer all of our questions.
We visited these two sites on a chilly Saturday in February, and were the only visitors at the time. If you enjoy 20th Century history and don’t like crowds, a trek to Bonham, Texas will be worth your while.
E-mail: kjudk1955@verizon.net
By Ken Judkins
A Trip To Bonham, Texas Is Worth the Time
My wife and I spent a recent weekend in Bonham, TX, to get away for a couple of days and to visit some of the interesting places the town has to offer.
We were not disappointed. A visit to the Homestead Winery in nearby Ivanhoe turned out to be a charming way to spend an hour. We were the only people there and a very friendly lady named Dorcas provided great conversation, not to mention samples of Homestead’s fantastic wines.
But it was the visits to the Sam Rayburn House and Sam Rayburn Library that made the entire trip worthwhile.
For those of you unfamiliar with “Mister Sam, “ as he was affectionately called by friend and political foe alike (I’m not aware of any personal enemies – Washington was a different place during his time), Rayburn served three terms as state representative early in the 20th Century, and a whopping 24 terms in the U.S. House of Representatives from 1913 until his death in 1961 at age 79. He served four years as House Majority Leader 1937 – 1941, and 17 of the following 21 years as Speaker of the House. He is still the longest-serving Speaker in U.S. history.
Rayburn was widely known and revered for his honesty and fairness, and the list of his accomplishments is too long to recite. He took one out-of-country junket during his 48 years in the House to visit the Panama Canal, and paid for it himself. He refused to accept any gift worth over $25. He remained a man of modest but comfortable means throughout his life, despite being the second most powerful man in America the better part of two decades.
Rayburn worked as a staunch ally with President Franklin Roosevelt to enact New Deal legislation that helped tens of millions of Americans survive the Great Depression and get the country working again. If not for these efforts, the hardships the common hard-working people suffered would have been far greater than they actually were. The focus was not on a “hand out” but on a “hand up” for those who needed it, and to ensure that folks didn’t starve in the process.
During World War II Rayburn was instrumental in ensuring the U.S. government provided all financial and material means necessary to successfully prosecute the war.
Rayburn worked across both aisles to achieve policies that put middle-class and poor people first. He cut a wide swath though public life during a time when the best politicians looked for solutions to people’s problems rather than spending time convincing them that government was the problem.
The Sam Rayburn House, located just west of Bonham on Highway 82, was built by Rayburn for his parents in 1916, shortly after he entered Congress. Sam lived there during the times he spent away from Washington, preferring to meet people at his home rather than the office his staff maintained in Bonham. It still contains the original furniture and belongings of the Speaker, including awards, personal letters, pictures, clothes, and other personal effects.
Rayburn maintained an “open door” policy at his house, meaning he never locked a door, and his friends let themselves in. Strangers were known by their ringing of the front doorbell, but were welcome nonetheless.
My favorite object in the tour of the house and grounds was the 1947 Cadillac given to Rayburn by fellow Democratic congressmen in a year the House went to the Republicans, demoting him to Minority Leader and causing him to lose the Speaker’s limousine privileges. A few friends decided to buy him a new Cadillac, but their overtures were rejected due to his self-imposed $25 limit on gifts. He relented and accepted the car when the entire Democratic delegation in Congress chipped in $25 each to purchase the vehicle. The few checks he received from Republicans were quietly returned with “thank you” notes, not to insult them, but to ensure there were no conflicts of interest with the other party when making deals.
The Sam Rayburn library is an amazing place. Artifacts maintained in this beautiful structure include personal letters from presidents dating back to Woodrow Wilson, an extensive collection of originally drawn political cartoons signed by the artists, important documents from the ‘teens through the ‘sixties, and, incredibly, the speaker’s rostrum that served the U.S. House of Representatives from 1857 through 1950. A chandelier and a fireplace taken from the White House during remodeling also adorn Rayburn’s recreated office.
H.G. Dulaney, Sam Rayburn’s personal secretary during the 1950’s still oversees the library and is frequently found in his office there. He is a fascinating man full of amazing stories, and was gracious enough to show us around the library for an hour and answer all of our questions.
We visited these two sites on a chilly Saturday in February, and were the only visitors at the time. If you enjoy 20th Century history and don’t like crowds, a trek to Bonham, Texas will be worth your while.
E-mail: kjudk1955@verizon.net
posted by Mark Coomes at 5:00 PM
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