Chatham, Thurmond, 1896-1957

Richard Thurmond Chatham, Democratic congressman, industrialist, and philanthropist of Elkin, N.C., worked for the Chatham Manufacturing Company, owned by his family and the world's largest manufacturer of blankets, 1919-1955; served in the U.S. Navy, 1917-1919 and 1942-1945; and served in the U.S. Congress, 1949-1957, where he was a member of the House Foreign Affairs Committee.

Richard Thurmond Chatham (1896-1957), U.S. congressman, industrialist, and philanthropist, was born in Elkin, Surry County, N.C., the only son of Hugh Gwyn and Martha Lenoir Chatham. His grandfather was Alexander Chatham, founder of Chatham Manufacturing Company in Winston-Salem, N.C. Chatham was educated in the public schools; at Woodberry Forest School in Orange, Va.; at the University of North Carolina, 1915-1916; and at Yale University, 1916-1917. He left college in 1917 to enter the U.S. Navy as a seaman, serving until he was discharged as an ensign in June 1919.

In July 1919, Chatham began working at the Chatham Manufacturing Company, which was the world's largest manufacturer of blankets. After serving as treasurer of the company, he became president in 1929 and chairman of the board of directors in 1945. During his presidency, the company grew in capacity, variety of products, and profits.

From 1942 to 1945, Chatham served in the U.S. Navy with the Bureau of Ordnance and the office of the secretary of the navy. He also saw combat in Europe and the Pacific theater. He attained the rank of commander in the U.S. Naval Reserve and was awarded the Bronze Star Medal, the secretary of the navy's Commendation Medal, the Royal Order of Nassau with Swords from the Dutch government, and numerous battle stars and theater ribbons. After the war, Chatham founded the Navy Bulletin (later Armed Forces ) and operated it at a loss for five years.

With his only previous political experience as a county commissioner in Forsyth County, N.C., Chatham was unsuccessful in a 1946 bid for the Democratic nomination to the 80th Congress from the fifth congressional district. As a member of the Democratic Party's National Committee on Finance during the election of 1948, he was an active Truman supporter and a substantial contributor to the Party. He was elected to the 81st Congress in 1948 and to three succeeding terms, 1949-1957. While in Congress, he was a member of the House Foreign Affairs Committee and was an advocate of a strong internationalist policy, including recognition of China and support for the Marshall Plan. He lost his seat in Congress in 1956 to Ralph J. Scott, primarily because he refused to sign the Southern Manifesto, a document that pledged opposition by all legal means to school integration. Most of Chatham's southern colleagues in Congress signed the manifesto; in North Carolina, the only non-signer to win renomination in 1956 was Harold D. Cooley.

Chatham was a trustee of the University of North Carolina and of Woodberry Forest School; a member of the National Association of Manufacturers, until he resigned protesting its reactionary policies; president of the Winston-Salem Chamber of Commerce; and a member of the National Association of Wool Manufacturers, the American Legion, and the Veterans of Foreign Wars. In 1948, he served on the North Carolina Board of Conservation and Development and was president of the North Carolina Dairymen's Association.

His clubs included the Metropolitan Club and the Army and Navy Club in Washington, D.C., and the Racquet and Tennis Club in New York City. He was awarded an honorary Doctor of Textile Science degree from North Carolina State University in 1948. He belonged to the Methodist Church and to Delta Kappa Epsilon Fraternity.

On 28 October 1919, Chatham married Lucy Hodgin Hanes, with whom he had two sons, Hugh Gwyn II and Richard Thurmond, Jr. After Lucy died, Chatham married Patricia Firestone Coyner on 16 November 1950. The couple had one son, Walter Firestone, born in 1952. Chatham died in Durham, N.C., and was buried in Winston-Salem. His estate was valued at almost $2,000,000, of which $250,000 was used to establish the Chatham Foundation, a charitable trust supporting education.

[Based on the note by Julian M. Pleasants in the Dictionary of North Carolina Biography, Volume 1, 1979.]