Digital Repository

Samuel "Sam" Taliaferro Rayburn

Known affectionately as "Mr. Sam," Sam Rayburn helped pass some of the twentieth century's most important legislation, working, as he put it, "with, not under," eight Presidents. Elected to Congress in 1912, he spent forty-nine years in the U.S. House of Representatives, including a record seventeen years as House Speaker.

Audio: Houston Public Media

Image: Portrait of Sam Rayburn by Tom Lea, 1966. Oil on canvas, 60 x 40. Rayburn House Office Building, Washington, DC. ©James D. Lea.

Portrait of Sam Rayburn