Cliff Clevenger

Cliff Clevenger (August 20, 1885 – December 13, 1960) was a United States Representative from Ohio who served ten consecutive terms in Congress from 1939 to 1959. A member of the Republican Party, he participated in the legislative process during a significant period in American history, representing the interests of his constituents over two decades in the U.S. House of Representatives.

Clevenger was born on a ranch near Long Pine, Nebraska, on August 20, 1885. In 1895 he moved with his parents to Lacona, Iowa, where he attended the public schools. His early years in the rural Midwest shaped his familiarity with agricultural and small-town commercial life, experiences that later informed his career in business and public service.

After completing his schooling, Clevenger entered the mercantile business at a young age. From 1901 to 1903 he engaged in the mercantile trade in Marengo, Iowa. He then relocated to Appleton, Wisconsin, where he continued in the same line of work from 1904 to 1914. Building on this experience, he became president of the Clevenger Stores in Bowling Green, Ohio, a position he held from 1915 to 1926. Following this, he served as manager of the F. W. Uhlman Stores in Bryan, Ohio, from 1927 to 1938. His long career in retail and business management established him as a prominent local businessman before his entry into national politics.

Clevenger was elected as a Republican to the Seventy-sixth Congress and to the nine succeeding Congresses, serving from January 3, 1939, to January 3, 1959. His twenty years in the House of Representatives spanned the era of the Great Depression’s aftermath, World War II, the early Cold War, and the beginnings of the modern civil rights movement. Throughout this period, he contributed to the legislative process over ten terms in office, participating in debates and votes on domestic and foreign policy issues that shaped mid-twentieth-century America. As a member of the House, he took part in the democratic process and represented the interests of his Ohio constituents during these transformative decades.

During his congressional service, Clevenger aligned with the Republican Party’s positions of his time and took part in key legislative decisions. Notably, he voted against the Civil Rights Act of 1957, a landmark measure aimed at protecting voting rights for African Americans. His vote placed him among those legislators who opposed this early federal civil rights initiative, reflecting the divisions within Congress and the country over civil rights policy in the 1950s.

After serving ten terms, Clevenger chose not to be a candidate for renomination in 1958, bringing his congressional career to a close on January 3, 1959. He then retired from public office, concluding a long professional life that had encompassed both substantial business leadership and two decades of national legislative service.

Cliff Clevenger died at his home in Tiffin, Ohio, on December 13, 1960. He was buried in Oak Hill Cemetery in Neenah, Wisconsin. His career is recorded in the Biographical Directory of the United States Congress, which notes his extended tenure in the House and his role as a Republican representative from Ohio during a pivotal period in American political history.