Richard B. Wathen
Encyclopedia
Richard B. Wathen was an American
(Indiana
) politician
, journalist
, and author
. He was a Republican
member of the Indiana House of Representatives
between 1973 and 1990.
Wathen was born in Jeffersonville, Indiana
. He comes from a family of Kentucky Bourbon makers. His father Otho H. Wathen, President of American Medicinal Spirits Company, and his brother Otho H. Wathen, Jr. were in the distilling business. He attended Princeton University
. He received his law degree from Indiana University in 1942 and was admitted to the Indiana Bar. As World War II
was going on, joined the United States Navy
as an officer serving on the aircraft carrier Guadalcanal (CVE-60). He was part of the party that captured the German submarine the U-505 on June 4, 1944 and received a Presidential Unit Citation
. He later rose to the rank of Commander
.
While serving his country took Wathen away from home for many years, including a lot of time in Washington, upon his father's death in 1964, Wathen returned home to Jeffersonville, Indiana
. He practice law there for many years. In addition to his service in the Indiana House of Representatives
, Wathen once challenged Congressman Lee H. Hamilton
but was not successful.
Wathen had three children one of whom also became an attorney. Out of his seven grandchildren, Alexander B. Wathen also followed the family calling and currently practices law in Texas. One of Wathen's sons and one of his grandchildren also served in the military.
Wathen died on March 14, 2001, from throat cancer after a few months of illness.
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
(Indiana
Indiana
Indiana is a US state, admitted to the United States as the 19th on December 11, 1816. It is located in the Midwestern United States and Great Lakes Region. With 6,483,802 residents, the state is ranked 15th in population and 16th in population density. Indiana is ranked 38th in land area and is...
) politician
Politician
A politician, political leader, or political figure is an individual who is involved in influencing public policy and decision making...
, journalist
Journalist
A journalist collects and distributes news and other information. A journalist's work is referred to as journalism.A reporter is a type of journalist who researchs, writes, and reports on information to be presented in mass media, including print media , electronic media , and digital media A...
, and author
Author
An author is broadly defined as "the person who originates or gives existence to anything" and that authorship determines responsibility for what is created. Narrowly defined, an author is the originator of any written work.-Legal significance:...
. He was a Republican
Republican Party (United States)
The Republican Party is one of the two major contemporary political parties in the United States, along with the Democratic Party. Founded by anti-slavery expansion activists in 1854, it is often called the GOP . The party's platform generally reflects American conservatism in the U.S...
member of the Indiana House of Representatives
Indiana House of Representatives
The Indiana House of Representatives is the lower house of the Indiana General Assembly, the state legislature of the U.S. state of Indiana. The House is composed of 100 members representing an equal number of constituent districts. House members serve two-year terms without term limits...
between 1973 and 1990.
Wathen was born in Jeffersonville, Indiana
Jeffersonville, Indiana
Jeffersonville is a city in Clark County, Indiana, along the Ohio River. Locally, the city is often referred to by the abbreviated name Jeff. It is directly across the Ohio River to the north of Louisville, Kentucky along I-65. The population was 44,953 at the 2010 census...
. He comes from a family of Kentucky Bourbon makers. His father Otho H. Wathen, President of American Medicinal Spirits Company, and his brother Otho H. Wathen, Jr. were in the distilling business. He attended Princeton University
Princeton University
Princeton University is a private research university located in Princeton, New Jersey, United States. The school is one of the eight universities of the Ivy League, and is one of the nine Colonial Colleges founded before the American Revolution....
. He received his law degree from Indiana University in 1942 and was admitted to the Indiana Bar. As World War II
World War II
World War II, or the Second World War , was a global conflict lasting from 1939 to 1945, involving most of the world's nations—including all of the great powers—eventually forming two opposing military alliances: the Allies and the Axis...
was going on, joined the United States Navy
United States Navy
The United States Navy is the naval warfare service branch of the United States Armed Forces and one of the seven uniformed services of the United States. The U.S. Navy is the largest in the world; its battle fleet tonnage is greater than that of the next 13 largest navies combined. The U.S...
as an officer serving on the aircraft carrier Guadalcanal (CVE-60). He was part of the party that captured the German submarine the U-505 on June 4, 1944 and received a Presidential Unit Citation
Presidential Unit Citation
The Presidential Unit Citation is a senior unit award granted to military units which have performed an extremely meritorious or heroic act, usually in the face of an armed enemy...
. He later rose to the rank of Commander
Commander
Commander is a naval rank which is also sometimes used as a military title depending on the individual customs of a given military service. Commander is also used as a rank or title in some organizations outside of the armed forces, particularly in police and law enforcement.-Commander as a naval...
.
While serving his country took Wathen away from home for many years, including a lot of time in Washington, upon his father's death in 1964, Wathen returned home to Jeffersonville, Indiana
Jeffersonville, Indiana
Jeffersonville is a city in Clark County, Indiana, along the Ohio River. Locally, the city is often referred to by the abbreviated name Jeff. It is directly across the Ohio River to the north of Louisville, Kentucky along I-65. The population was 44,953 at the 2010 census...
. He practice law there for many years. In addition to his service in the Indiana House of Representatives
Indiana House of Representatives
The Indiana House of Representatives is the lower house of the Indiana General Assembly, the state legislature of the U.S. state of Indiana. The House is composed of 100 members representing an equal number of constituent districts. House members serve two-year terms without term limits...
, Wathen once challenged Congressman Lee H. Hamilton
Lee H. Hamilton
Lee Herbert Hamilton is a former member of the United States House of Representatives and currently a member of the U.S. Homeland Security Advisory Council. A member of the Democratic Party, Hamilton represented the 9th congressional district of Indiana from 1965 to 1999...
but was not successful.
Wathen had three children one of whom also became an attorney. Out of his seven grandchildren, Alexander B. Wathen also followed the family calling and currently practices law in Texas. One of Wathen's sons and one of his grandchildren also served in the military.
Wathen died on March 14, 2001, from throat cancer after a few months of illness.
Authored books
- Cliffs of Fall (1958) (New Orleans, Publications Press) PS3545.A81 C6, PZ4.W333 Cl
- The Only Yankee (1970) (Chicago, Regnery PublishingRegnery PublishingRegnery Publishing in Washington, D.C., is a publisher which specializes in conservative books characterized on their website as "contrary to those of 'mainstream' publishers in New York." Since 1993, Regnery Publishing has been a division of Eagle Publishing, which also owns the weekly magazine...
) 73-124731 - Wathen's Law: The Hang-Ups of a Politician (1981) (Chicago, Regnery PublishingRegnery PublishingRegnery Publishing in Washington, D.C., is a publisher which specializes in conservative books characterized on their website as "contrary to those of 'mainstream' publishers in New York." Since 1993, Regnery Publishing has been a division of Eagle Publishing, which also owns the weekly magazine...
) ISBN 0895268914 - Legislative history of Clark County, 1972-84 (1984) JS451.I69 C55 1984
External links
- Indiana General Assembly
- Indiana Lawyers in the Legislature
- About American Medicinal Spirits Company
- http://photos-b.ak.fbcdn.net/photos-ak-snc1/v349/89/12/1405325408/n1405325408_30115713_7350.jpg Picture of Richard Wathen with visiting pages at the House of Representatives in Indianapolis in 1990.
