John Blatnik
Encyclopedia
John Anton Blatnik was a United States
Congressman
from Minnesota
. He was a member of the Minnesota Democratic-Farmer-Labor Party
(DFL), which is affiliated with the Democratic Party
.
Blatnik was born in Chisholm, Minnesota
, to parents of Slovene descent.http://www.uvi.si/clinton/eng/cl_gl_o1.html He graduated from Winona State Teachers College (today Winona State University
) and worked as a chemistry teacher in Chisholm.
From 1940 to 1944, he served in the Minnesota State Senate
and volunteered to serve in the United States Army Air Corps
in 1942. While in the Army Air Corps (the predecessor to the Air Force
), he was chief of the Office of Strategic Services
's mission with Tito's
Yugoslav partisans
for almost a year. http://www.uvi.si/clinton/eng/cl_gl_o1.html
In 1946, Blatnik was elected to Congress representing Minnesota's 8th District in the northeastern part of the state, running on the newly unified ticket of the Minnesota Democratic-Farmer-Labor Party. He was reelected 13 times without much difficulty. He served in the 80th
, 81st
, 82nd
, 83rd
, 84th
, 85th
, 86th
, 87th
, 88th
, 89th
, 90th
, 91st
, 92nd
, and 93rd congresses
, (January 3, 1947 – January 3, 1975).
John Blatnik was one of the congressmen that voted against the Civil Rights Act of 1964.
Blatnik was an early supporter of the Saint Lawrence Seaway
and helped develop the original legislation to build it. He served as chairman of the Public Works Committee (now known as the Transportation and Infrastructure Committee) during his last two terms in Congress. As chairman, he shepherded the Federal Water Pollution Control Act, better known as the Clean Water Act
, to passage in 1972.
Upon retirement, Blatnik endorsed his long-time administrative assistant, Jim Oberstar
, to replace him in Congress; Oberstar won easily in the 1974 election.
The bridge for Interstate 535
crossing the Superior Bay
and the Saint Louis Bay
between Wisconsin
and Minnesota
was renamed the John A. Blatnik Bridge
in his honor on September 24, 1971.http://www.fhwa.dot.gov/byday/fhbd0924.htm
In 1955, Blatnik married the former Gisela Hager. They had three children. Blatnik died in Forest Heights, Maryland on December 17, 1991. He was survived by his second wife, the former Evelyn Castiglioni.
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
Congressman
United States House of Representatives
The United States House of Representatives is one of the two Houses of the United States Congress, the bicameral legislature which also includes the Senate.The composition and powers of the House are established in Article One of the Constitution...
from Minnesota
Minnesota
Minnesota is a U.S. state located in the Midwestern United States. The twelfth largest state of the U.S., it is the twenty-first most populous, with 5.3 million residents. Minnesota was carved out of the eastern half of the Minnesota Territory and admitted to the Union as the thirty-second state...
. He was a member of the Minnesota Democratic-Farmer-Labor Party
Minnesota Democratic-Farmer-Labor Party
The Minnesota Democratic–Farmer–Labor Party is a major political party in the state of Minnesota and the state affiliate of the Democratic Party. It was created on April 15, 1944, with the merger of the Minnesota Democratic Party and the Farmer–Labor Party...
(DFL), which is affiliated with the Democratic Party
Democratic Party (United States)
The Democratic Party is one of two major contemporary political parties in the United States, along with the Republican Party. The party's socially liberal and progressive platform is largely considered center-left in the U.S. political spectrum. The party has the lengthiest record of continuous...
.
Blatnik was born in Chisholm, Minnesota
Chisholm, Minnesota
As of the census of 2000, there were 4,960 people, 2,178 households, and 1,287 families residing in the city. The population density was 1,129 people per square mile . There were 2,375 housing units at an average density of 540/sq mi...
, to parents of Slovene descent.http://www.uvi.si/clinton/eng/cl_gl_o1.html He graduated from Winona State Teachers College (today Winona State University
Winona State University
Winona State University is a comprehensive public university in Winona, Minnesota, United States, a college and river town located in picturesque bluff country on the Mississippi River, with around 8,900 enrolled undergraduate and graduate students...
) and worked as a chemistry teacher in Chisholm.
From 1940 to 1944, he served in the Minnesota State Senate
Minnesota Senate
The Minnesota Senate is the upper house in the Minnesota Legislature. There are 67 members, half as many as are in the Minnesota House of Representatives. In terms of membership, it is the largest upper house of any state legislature. Each Senate district in the state includes an A and B House...
and volunteered to serve in the United States Army Air Corps
United States Army Air Corps
The United States Army Air Corps was a forerunner of the United States Air Force. Renamed from the Air Service on 2 July 1926, it was part of the United States Army and the predecessor of the United States Army Air Forces , established in 1941...
in 1942. While in the Army Air Corps (the predecessor to the Air Force
United States Air Force
The United States Air Force is the aerial warfare service branch of the United States Armed Forces and one of the American uniformed services. Initially part of the United States Army, the USAF was formed as a separate branch of the military on September 18, 1947 under the National Security Act of...
), he was chief of the Office of Strategic Services
Office of Strategic Services
The Office of Strategic Services was a United States intelligence agency formed during World War II. It was the wartime intelligence agency, and it was a predecessor of the Central Intelligence Agency...
's mission with Tito's
Josip Broz Tito
Marshal Josip Broz Tito – 4 May 1980) was a Yugoslav revolutionary and statesman. While his presidency has been criticized as authoritarian, Tito was a popular public figure both in Yugoslavia and abroad, viewed as a unifying symbol for the nations of the Yugoslav federation...
Yugoslav partisans
Partisans (Yugoslavia)
The Yugoslav Partisans, or simply the Partisans were a Communist-led World War II anti-fascist resistance movement in Yugoslavia...
for almost a year. http://www.uvi.si/clinton/eng/cl_gl_o1.html
In 1946, Blatnik was elected to Congress representing Minnesota's 8th District in the northeastern part of the state, running on the newly unified ticket of the Minnesota Democratic-Farmer-Labor Party. He was reelected 13 times without much difficulty. He served in the 80th
80th United States Congress
The Eightieth United States Congress was a meeting of the legislative branch of the United States federal government, composed of the United States Senate and the United States House of Representatives. It met in Washington, DC from January 3, 1947 to January 3, 1949, during the third and fourth...
, 81st
81st United States Congress
The Eighty-first United States Congress was a meeting of the legislative branch of the United States federal government, composed of the United States Senate and the United States House of Representatives...
, 82nd
82nd United States Congress
The Eighty-second United States Congress was a meeting of the legislative branch of the United States federal government, composed of the United States Senate and the United States House of Representatives. It met in Washington, DC from January 3, 1951 to January 3, 1953, during the last two years...
, 83rd
83rd United States Congress
The Eighty-third United States Congress was a meeting of the legislative branch of the United States federal government, composed of the United States Senate and the United States House of Representatives. It met in Washington, DC from January 3, 1953 to January 3, 1955, during the first two years...
, 84th
84th United States Congress
The Eighty-fourth United States Congress was a meeting of the legislative branch of the United States federal government, composed of the United States Senate and the United States House of Representatives. It met in Washington, DC from January 3, 1955 to January 3, 1957, during the third and...
, 85th
85th United States Congress
The Eighty-fifth United States Congress was a meeting of the legislative branch of the United States federal government, composed of the United States Senate and the United States House of Representatives. It met in Washington, DC from January 3, 1957 to January 3, 1959, during the fifth and sixth...
, 86th
86th United States Congress
The Eighty-sixth United States Congress was a meeting of the legislative branch of the United States federal government, composed of the United States Senate and the United States House of Representatives. It met in Washington, DC from January 3, 1959 to January 3, 1961, during the last two years...
, 87th
87th United States Congress
-House of Representatives :-Senate:* President: Richard Nixon , until January 20, 1961** Lyndon Johnson , from January 20, 1961* President pro tempore: Carl Hayden -House of Representatives:...
, 88th
88th United States Congress
The Eighty-eighth United States Congress was a meeting of the legislative branch of the United States federal government, composed of the United States Senate and the United States House of Representatives. It met in Washington, DC from January 3, 1963 to January 3, 1965, during the last year of...
, 89th
89th United States Congress
-House of Representatives:- Senate :* President of the Senate: Hubert Humphrey , starting January 20, 1965* President pro tempore: Carl Hayden - Majority leadership :* Majority Leader and Democratic Conference Chairman: Mike Mansfield...
, 90th
90th United States Congress
The Ninetieth United States Congress was a meeting of the legislative branch of the United States federal government, composed of the United States Senate and the United States House of Representatives. It met in Washington, DC from January 3, 1967 to January 3, 1969, during the last two years of...
, 91st
91st United States Congress
The Ninety-first United States Congress was a meeting of the legislative branch of the United States federal government, composed of the United States Senate and the United States House of Representatives. It met in Washington, DC from January 3, 1969 to January 3, 1971, during the first two years...
, 92nd
92nd United States Congress
The Ninety-second United States Congress was a meeting of the legislative branch of the United States federal government, composed of the United States Senate and the United States House of Representatives...
, and 93rd congresses
93rd United States Congress
The Ninety-third United States Congress was a meeting of the legislative branch of the United States federal government, composed of the United States Senate and the United States House of Representatives. It met in Washington, DC from January 3, 1973 to January 3, 1975, during the end of Richard...
, (January 3, 1947 – January 3, 1975).
John Blatnik was one of the congressmen that voted against the Civil Rights Act of 1964.
Blatnik was an early supporter of the Saint Lawrence Seaway
Saint Lawrence Seaway
The Saint Lawrence Seaway , , is the common name for a system of locks, canals and channels that permits ocean-going vessels to travel from the Atlantic Ocean to the North American Great Lakes, as far as Lake Superior. Legally it extends from Montreal to Lake Erie, including the Welland Canal...
and helped develop the original legislation to build it. He served as chairman of the Public Works Committee (now known as the Transportation and Infrastructure Committee) during his last two terms in Congress. As chairman, he shepherded the Federal Water Pollution Control Act, better known as the Clean Water Act
Clean Water Act
The Clean Water Act is the primary federal law in the United States governing water pollution. Commonly abbreviated as the CWA, the act established the goals of eliminating releases of high amounts of toxic substances into water, eliminating additional water pollution by 1985, and ensuring that...
, to passage in 1972.
Upon retirement, Blatnik endorsed his long-time administrative assistant, Jim Oberstar
Jim Oberstar
James Louis "Jim" Oberstar is a former U.S. Representative who served in the U.S. Congress from 1975 until 2011 as a member of the Minnesota Democratic–Farmer–Labor Party. He represented northeastern , which included the cities of Duluth, Brainerd, Grand Rapids, International Falls, and Hibbing...
, to replace him in Congress; Oberstar won easily in the 1974 election.
The bridge for Interstate 535
Interstate 535
Interstate 535 is a long Interstate Highway spur route of Interstate 35 in Minnesota and Wisconsin, in the United States. It is paired with U.S...
crossing the Superior Bay
Superior Bay
Superior Bay is a narrow inlet of Lake Superior along the border of Minnesota and Wisconsin. It is 7 miles long and 0.5 miles wide. A small strait connects it to St. Louis Bay and Spirit Lake to the west, into which the St Louis River empties....
and the Saint Louis Bay
Saint Louis River
The St. Louis River is a river in the U.S. states of Minnesota and Wisconsin that flows into Lake Superior. The largest U.S. river to flow into the lake, it is 179 miles in length and starts near Hoyt Lakes, Minnesota. The river's watershed is in area...
between Wisconsin
Wisconsin
Wisconsin is a U.S. state located in the north-central United States and is part of the Midwest. It is bordered by Minnesota to the west, Iowa to the southwest, Illinois to the south, Lake Michigan to the east, Michigan to the northeast, and Lake Superior to the north. Wisconsin's capital is...
and Minnesota
Minnesota
Minnesota is a U.S. state located in the Midwestern United States. The twelfth largest state of the U.S., it is the twenty-first most populous, with 5.3 million residents. Minnesota was carved out of the eastern half of the Minnesota Territory and admitted to the Union as the thirty-second state...
was renamed the John A. Blatnik Bridge
John A. Blatnik Bridge
The John A. Blatnik Bridge is the bridge that carries Interstate Highway 535 and U.S. Highway 53 over the Saint Louis Bay, a tributary of Lake Superior, between Duluth, Minnesota and Superior, Wisconsin. The bridge is long and rises up nearly above the water to accommodate the seaway shipping...
in his honor on September 24, 1971.http://www.fhwa.dot.gov/byday/fhbd0924.htm
In 1955, Blatnik married the former Gisela Hager. They had three children. Blatnik died in Forest Heights, Maryland on December 17, 1991. He was survived by his second wife, the former Evelyn Castiglioni.
External links
- Short biography from the U.S. Congressional website
- Blatnik's role in environmental policy, from Minnesota Public Radio
- Official Remarks by Congressman Glenn M. AndersonGlenn M. AndersonGlenn Malcolm Anderson was an American politician. He was the 37th Lieutenant Governor of California and later as congressman. He was a member of the Democratic Party....
in honor of Blatnik - John A. Blatnik, Oral History Interview – 2/4/1966
- The John A. Blatnik Papers, including extensive records of his congressional service, are available for research use at the Minnesota Historical Society.