Vinson, Carl, 1883-1981

Carl Vinson was born on November 18, 1883 in Baldwin County, Georgia. He attended Georgia Military College in Milledgeville, and he graduated from Mercer University Law School in 1902. He was admitted to the State Bar the same year and returned to Milledgeville to practice law. In 1904, and again in 1906, Vinson was appointed County Court Solicitor of Baldwin County. In 1909, at the age of twenty-five, he ran for and won a two-year term in the Georgia General Assembly. He was reelected in 1911 and served as Speaker Pro Tempore during his second term. Vinson was appointed judge of Baldwin County Court in 1912 and served until November 1914 when he resigned because he was elected to the U.S. House of Representatives. Vinson was reelected to the U.S. House of Representatives for 27 consecutive terms. Vinson's interest in national defense and sea power earned him a seat on the House Naval Affairs Committee. In 1931, he became committee chairman, serving in that capacity until 1947, when the Naval Affairs Committee and the Military Affairs Committee combined to become the House Armed Services Committee. He served as chairman of the House Armed Services Committee for the remainder of his legislative career, except for four years of Republican control of Congress. In 1964 President Johnson awarded him the Presidential Medal of Freedom with Special Distinction, the highest award that a president can bestow upon a civilian. Vinson retired in 1965 at the conclusion of the 88th Congress. He then returned to his farm in Baldwin County, and lived the last years of his life in Milledgeville, Georgia. On June 1, 1981, Carl Vinson died at age 97.