William Moore McCulloch facts for kids
Quick facts for kids
William Moore McCulloch
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| Member of the U.S. House of Representatives from Ohio's 4th district |
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| In office November 4, 1947 – January 3, 1973 |
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| Preceded by | Robert Franklin Jones |
| Succeeded by | Tennyson Guyer |
| Member of the Ohio House of Representatives | |
| In office 1933–1944 |
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| Personal details | |
| Born | November 24, 1901 Holmesville, Ohio, U.S. |
| Died | February 22, 1980 (aged 78) Washington, D.C., U.S. |
| Resting place | Arlington National Cemetery |
| Political party | Republican |
| Spouse | Mabel Harris (m. 1927) |
| Children | Nancy McCulloch Ann McCulloch |
| Alma mater | College of Wooster Ohio State University |
William Moore McCulloch (born November 24, 1901 – died February 22, 1980) was an American lawyer and politician. He was a member of the Republican Party. He served as a U.S. Representative for Ohio's 4th congressional district from 1947 to 1973. He is best known for his important work in helping to pass major civil rights laws in the 1960s.
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Growing Up and School
William McCulloch was born on November 24, 1901, near Holmesville, Ohio. His parents were James H. and Ida M. McCulloch.
He went to the College of Wooster in Wooster, Ohio, and graduated in 1923. He then studied law at Ohio State University in Columbus, Ohio, finishing in 1925. That same year, he became a lawyer and started working in Piqua, Ohio.
His Career in Politics
Serving Ohio
From 1933 to 1944, McCulloch was a member of the Ohio House of Representatives. This is like a state-level parliament. He was the minority leader from 1936 to 1939, which means he led the party that had fewer members. Then, he became the speaker from 1939 to 1944, which is the person in charge of running the meetings.
Even though most of the people he represented were white conservatives, he started supporting equal rights early on. He also supported the NAACP, which works for civil rights for African Americans.
Military Service
McCulloch served in the United States Army from 1943 to 1945. He was a captain in the Military Government Forces in Europe during World War II.
Joining Congress
On November 4, 1947, McCulloch was elected to the 80th United States Congress in a special election. He took the place of Robert Franklin Jones. He was re-elected twelve times, serving in Congress until 1973.
His district in Ohio included several counties. He was very popular, winning 65-70 percent of the votes in each election. McCulloch believed in being careful with money, a idea called fiscal conservatism. He would even return any unused money from his office allowance to the U.S. Treasury.
Important Committees
In 1959, he became the top Republican on the House Judiciary Committee. He held this important position until he retired in 1973. He also served on other committees, including one about atomic energy and another about small businesses.
In 1967, President Lyndon B. Johnson asked him to join the Kerner Commission. This group looked into the causes of civil unrest. In 1968, he joined another commission that studied the causes and ways to prevent violence.
Fighting for Civil Rights
As a top member of the House Judiciary Committee, William McCulloch played a very important role in the Civil Rights Movement.
He helped introduce a big civil rights bill in 1963. This put pressure on President John F. Kennedy to propose his own civil rights law later that year. McCulloch did not have many African-American voters in his district, so supporting civil rights laws did not gain him many votes. However, he felt it was his duty to make sure everyone had their Constitutional rights.
President Kennedy once said, "Without him it can't be done," talking about McCulloch's help with the Civil Rights Act. President Johnson, who signed the act into law, called McCulloch "the most important and powerful political force" in getting the law passed.
A historian named Todd Purdum explained that McCulloch was upset when earlier civil rights bills were made weaker. McCulloch told the Kennedy White House that he would support a strong bill if they promised not to weaken it later and to give Republicans equal credit for passing it.
McCulloch voted for the Civil Rights Act of 1957, 1960, 1964, and 1968. He also voted for the Voting Rights Act of 1965. In 1970, he even opposed efforts to weaken parts of the 1965 Voting Rights Act that protected the voting rights of Black people in the South.
In 1971, Jacqueline Kennedy Onassis wrote a letter to McCulloch. She thanked him for being one of the most important people in passing civil rights laws in the 1960s.
Other Important Work
Throughout his career, McCulloch was generally a conservative politician. However, he was also a very strong supporter of civil rights. He worked with Democratic Chairman Emanuel Celler to pass the Civil Rights Act of 1964 through the House of Representatives.
While he opposed many of the "Great Society" programs in the mid-1960s, he later supported some more liberal ideas. For example, in 1968, he supported strong gun control laws and also supported busing to help integrate schools.
He decided not to run for re-election in 1972. After leaving Congress, he went back to working as a lawyer in Piqua, Ohio.
Personal Life
On October 17, 1927, William McCulloch married Mabel Harris in Covington, Kentucky. They had two daughters named Nancy and Ann.
Later Life and Legacy
William McCulloch passed away on February 22, 1980, in Washington, D.C., from a heart attack. He is buried with his wife at Arlington National Cemetery.
In the film All the Way, which is about President Johnson, Congressman McCulloch is played by actor Dan Desmond.
In 2010, the Ohio History Connection suggested McCulloch as a possible person to be honored with a statue in Statuary Hall at the United States Capitol.
In 2017, a student named Daud Shad won the JFK Profiles in Courage essay contest by writing about McCulloch.
