Representative Albin Walter Norblad

Albin Walter Norblad Jr. (September 12, 1908 – September 20, 1964) was an American attorney and Republican politician from Oregon who served as a Representative from Oregon in the United States Congress from 1945 to 1965. A member of the Republican Party, he represented Oregon’s 1st congressional district in the U.S. House of Representatives from January 18, 1946, until his death in 1964, contributing to the legislative process during ten terms in office. He was the son of Edna Lyle and A. W. Norblad Sr., a one-time governor of Oregon.

Norblad was born in Escanaba, Michigan, but before he was a year old his family relocated to Astoria, Oregon. He attended public schools in Astoria and later completed his secondary education at the New Mexico Military Institute in Roswell, New Mexico. He then enrolled at the University of Oregon, from which he graduated before undertaking graduate study at Harvard Law School. In 1932 he was admitted to the bar and returned to Astoria to practice law at his father’s firm, Norblad & Norblad, beginning a legal career that paralleled his early involvement in public affairs.

Norblad entered elective office in the Oregon Legislative Assembly, serving one term as a state representative from 1935 to 1937. In addition to his legislative service, he was active in civic and educational affairs, serving as a member of the board of trustees of Linfield College. He also participated in national party politics as a delegate to the 1940 Republican National Convention, reflecting his growing prominence within the Republican Party in Oregon.

During World War II, Norblad joined the United States Army Air Forces, serving from 1942 to 1945 as a combat intelligence officer. His wartime service interrupted his legal and political career but enhanced his public standing upon his return. After the war he settled in Stayton, Oregon, where he resumed civilian life and prepared to reenter public service.

Norblad’s congressional career began when he was elected to fill the vacancy in the United States House of Representatives caused by the death of Representative James W. Mott. He took his seat on January 18, 1946, representing Oregon’s 1st district, and was subsequently re-elected to nine successive terms, serving continuously until his death. His tenure in Congress spanned a significant period in American history, encompassing the post–World War II era, the early Cold War, and the beginnings of the modern civil rights movement. As a member of the House of Representatives, Albin Walter Norblad participated in the democratic process and represented the interests of his constituents in Oregon.

During his time in Congress, Norblad took notable positions on civil rights legislation. He voted in favor of the Civil Rights Acts of 1957, 1960, and 1964, as well as the 24th Amendment to the United States Constitution, which prohibited the use of poll taxes in federal elections. These votes placed him among those Republican lawmakers who supported key elements of the federal civil rights agenda during the 1950s and 1960s, reflecting a commitment to expanding voting rights and combating racial discrimination under federal law.

Norblad died in office of a heart attack in Bethesda, Maryland, on September 20, 1964. He was buried in Lone Oak Cemetery in Stayton, Oregon, the community where he had made his home after World War II. His death placed him among the members of the United States Congress who died in office in the mid-twentieth century. One of his children, Albin W. Norblad III, later continued the family’s tradition of public service as a state court judge in Oregon.