ATOMIC BOMB PIONEER US SENATOR CONNECTICUT FEDERAL PRISONS PAROLE LETTER SIGNED
Item History & Price
| Reference Number: Avaluer:1640030 | Modified Item: No |
| Country/Region of Manufacture: United States |
BRIEN McMAHONA Key Figure in the Early Years of Atomic Weapons(1903– 1952)USDEMOCRATIC SENATOR FROM CONNECTICUT 1945-1952, CHAIROF THE JOINT ATOMIC ENERGY COMMITTEE 1949-1952CHAIROF THE SENATE ATOMIC ENERGY COMMITTEE 1945-1946&ASST TO THE US ATTORNEY GENERAL INCHARGE OF THE DEPT OF JUSTICE CRIMINAL DIVISION 1933-1935On July 16, 1945, an atomic bomb was successfully detonatedat Alamogordo, New Mexico, after which Senator Brien McMahon of Connecticutcalled it "the most important th...ingin history since the birth of Jesus Christ."HERE’S A TYPED LETTER SIGNED BY McMAHON ON “UNITED STATES SENATE” LETTERHEAD, 1p., DATED MAY 28, 1947, TO EDWARD SYMECKO, STATE ADJUTANT OF THE POLISH LEGION OFAMERICAN VETERANS RECOMMENDING AN APPOINTMENT TO THE UNITED STATES BOARD OFPAROLE. McMAHON WRITES, IN PART:“…It’s decisionsaffect not only our society, but the thousands of individuals who are inmatesof Federal Prisons and whose cases come before them for review…” THE TLS COMESWITH ITS ORIGINAL “CONGRESS OF THE UNITED STATES, JOINT COMMITTEE ON ATOMICENERGY” CORNER CARD TRANSMITTAL ENVELOPE COVER w/ McMAHON’S PRINTED FREE FRANK.The document measures 8” x 10½” and isin VERY FINE CONDITION.A FINE ADDITIONTO YOUR CONNECTICUT POLITICAL HISTORY AUTOGRAPH, MANUSCRIPT & EPHEMERACOLLECTION!<<>::<>>Biography of theHonorableBrien McMahonMcMahon CommemorativeStamp, 1962Brien McMahon, born James O'BrienMcMahon (October 6, 1903 – July 28, 1952) was an Americanlawyerand politicianwho served in the United States Senate(as a Democratfrom Connecticut) from 1945 to 1952.McMahon was a major figure in the establishment of the Atomic Energy Commission, through his authorship of the Atomic Energy Actof 1946 (the McMahon Act). McMahon served as chairman of the SenateSpecial Committee on Atomic Energy, and the first chairmanof the JointCommittee on Atomic Energy. McMahon was a key figure in theearly years of atomic weapons development and anadvocate for the civilian (rather than military)control of nuclear development in the USA. Also, in 1952, McMahon proposed an"army" of young Americans to act as "missionaries ofdemocracy", which sowed the seeds forwhat later became the Peace Corps. Life and careerMcMahon was born James O'Brien McMahon in 1903 in Norwalk, Connecticut.McMahon graduated Fordham Universityin 1924. and then Yale Law School, New Haven, Connecticutin 1927. McMahon changed his name to Brien McMahon the same year as beingadmitted to the bar. McMahon began a practice in Norwalk and later served as a judgein the city, appointed to the position by Connecticut Governor WilburL. Cross. However, McMahon quickly resigned to become specialassistant to the Attorney General of theUnited States in 1933. Attorney General Homer Cummingswas also from Connecticut. In 1935, McMahon was appointed as United States AssistantAttorney General overseeing the Department of Justice'sCriminalDivision. Among prominent cases associated with McMahon in the Criminal Divisionwere the prosecutions of JohnDillinger's lawyer, Louis Piquette (for harboring a criminal)and the trials of gangsters associated with 'BabyFace' Nelson. However, the case that elevated McMahon to national renown and laid thefoundation for his political career was the Harlan CountyCoal Miners' case. It was the first attempt to enforce the WagnerAct protecting unions.The case became famous, less for legal principles than for the violence and scandalsurrounding the trial. Although he lost, he "received wide public recognition and areputation as a courageous and honest upholder of justice, both of which wouldfurther his political ambitions, " according to a biography accompanyingthe introduction to his papers, held by Georgetown Universitylibrary. In 1939, McMahon left government service and resumed his law practice. InFebruary 1940 McMahon married Rosemary Turner, and they had a daughter, Patricia. McMahon mounted a successful campaign for a Connecticut United StatesSenate seat in 1944, defeating incumbent JohnA. Danaher, with internationalism(McMahon) v. isolationism (Danaher) a major pointof debate. On July 16, 1945, an atomic bomb was successfully detonated at Alamogordo, New Mexico, after which Senator Brien McMahon of Connecticut called it"the most important thing in history since the birth of JesusChrist." In late 1945, McMahon was appointed Chairman of the SenateSpecial Committee on Atomic Energy, which explored legislative alternatives tothe War Department sponsored May-Johnson bill.McMahon lacked knowledge about atomic energy, but saw the chairmanship as ameans to assert himself as a new Senator, especially as the May-Johnson billunderwent increased attack from scientists and later lost support of the TrumanWhite House. On December 20, 1945, Brien McMahon introduced into the Senate legislationfor an alternative atomic energy bill, which was quickly known as the McMahonBill. The liberal bill placed control of atomic research in the hands ofscientists and was broadly supported by scientists. McMahon himself framed thecontroversy as a question of military versus civilian control of atomic energy, even though the War Department bill was primarily a civilian bill as well.McMahon's Special Committee on Atomic Energy held many hearings during late1945 and early 1946, thereby airing arguments about domestic postwarlegislation for controlling atomic energy. In the spring of 1946, the McMahonBill underwent major revisions in order to appease conservative elements in theSenate. The resulting bill passed the Senate and the House. On August 1, 1946, President Harry Truman signed the McMahon Billinto law as the Atomic Energy Act of 1946.The Atomic Energy Act of 1946 created a special Congressional committee, the Joint Committee onAtomic Energy. Brien McMahon served as its first chairman in 1946, and again in 1949-1952. As chairman of the committee he advocated an expandedAmerican nuclear arsenal and the building of the hydrogenbomb. Connecticut voters reelected McMahon to his Senate seatin 1950. In 1952, before being diagnosed with what would become his fatal cancer, McMahon launched a campaign for the presidency, with the "campaign slogan... 'The Man is McMahon' and his main platform ... to insure world peacethrough fear of atomic weapons." From his sickbed, he sent a message tothe Democratic state convention in Hartford, Connecticutsaying that if elected President, he would tell the Atomic Energy Commissionto manufacture thousands of hydrogen bombs.[3]Brien McMahon served in the United States Senate until his death in Washington, D.C. in 1952, at age 48. More than four years remained in his second Senate term. During his entire tenure inthe Senate, he served as Secretary of the Senate Democratic Conference. Brien McMahon is buried in St. Mary's Cemetery in Norwalk. McMahon CommemorativeStamp, 1962A commemorative stamphonoring Brien McMahon and his role in opening the way to peaceful uses ofatomic energy was issued by the United States on July 28, 1962 at Norwalk, Connecticut. The stamp features a portrait of McMahon facing a rendition of anatomic symbol. Brien McMahon High School, in Norwalk, is named after him. Brien McMahon Hall, a residence hall at the University of Connecticutin Storrs, also bears his name. Footage of McMahon is included in the 1982 documentary TheAtomic Cafe giving a speech urging a reasonedresponse to the acquisition of atomicweapons contrasting with the more McCarthyitespeeches of RepublicanSenatorsOwen Brewster, RichardNixon and DemocraticRepresentativeLloyd Bentsen. I am a proud member of the Universal Autograph Collectors Club(UACC), The Ephemera Society of America, the Manuscript Society and theAmerican Political Items Collectors (APIC) (member name: John Lissandrello). Isubscribe to each organizations' code of ethics and authenticity is guaranteed.~Providing quality service and historical memorabilia online for over tenyears.~WE ONLY SELL GENUINE ITEMS, i.e., NO REPRODUCTIONS, FAKES ORCOPIES
