Representative F. Jay Nimtz

Floyd Jay Nimtz (December 1, 1915 – December 6, 1990), commonly known as F. Jay Nimtz, was an American lawyer, World War II veteran, and Republican politician who served one term as a U.S. Representative from Indiana from 1957 to 1959. His congressional service took place during a significant period in American history, and he participated actively in the legislative process while representing the interests of his constituents in the House of Representatives.

Nimtz was born in South Bend, Indiana, the youngest child of Frederick and Bertha Baske Nimtz. His father and his maternal grandparents were German immigrants, and he was raised in the city’s public school system. He attended South Bend public schools and graduated from Central High School in 1933. Pursuing higher education in his home state, he enrolled at Indiana University, from which he received a Bachelor of Arts degree in 1938. He then continued his studies at the Indiana University Maurer School of Law, earning his law degree in 1940. That same year he was admitted to the bar and commenced the practice of law in South Bend.

With the approach of World War II, Nimtz entered military service. He was inducted into the United States Army as a private on June 13, 1941, and served on active duty until February 14, 1947, ultimately attaining the rank of lieutenant colonel. His service took him overseas to England, France, and Germany. During the postwar period in Europe, he served for fourteen months as assistant executive officer for the Office of United States Chief of Counsel for Prosecution of Axis Criminality (OCCPAC), which was involved in the prosecution of Axis war criminals. After his release from active duty, he continued his military association as a colonel in the United States Army Reserve while resuming his legal practice in South Bend.

In the years following the war, Nimtz became increasingly involved in local public affairs and Republican politics. He served as a member of the board of directors of the Saint Joseph County Department of Public Welfare, reflecting his engagement with social and community issues. He sought elective office at the local level, running unsuccessfully for South Bend city judge in 1947 and for Saint Joseph County prosecutor in 1948. These early campaigns helped establish his public profile and laid the groundwork for his later bid for national office.

Nimtz was elected as a Republican to the Eighty-fifth Congress, serving from January 3, 1957, to January 3, 1959, as a Representative from Indiana. During his single term in the United States House of Representatives, he contributed to the legislative process at a time of growing national attention to civil rights and Cold War policy. He voted in favor of the Civil Rights Act of 1957, a landmark piece of federal civil rights legislation. In 1958 he co-sponsored legislation creating the Lincoln Sesquicentennial Commission, established to commemorate the 150th anniversary of Abraham Lincoln’s birth, and he was subsequently appointed vice chairman of that commission. Nimtz was an unsuccessful candidate for reelection in 1958 to the Eighty-sixth Congress and again in 1960 to the Eighty-seventh Congress.

After leaving Congress, Nimtz continued to combine public service with his legal and military careers. He attended the United States Army Command and General Staff College, from which he graduated in 1965, furthering his professional military education while maintaining his status in the Army Reserve. In civic and governmental roles within Indiana, he served as president of the South Bend Redevelopment Commission from 1974 until his death, playing a significant part in the city’s development and urban policy. At the state level, he was a member of the Indiana Air Pollution Control Board from 1979 to 1986 and of the Indiana Environmental Management Board from 1981 to 1986, reflecting his involvement in emerging environmental and regulatory issues.

Nimtz spent his later years in South Bend, remaining active in public affairs until shortly before his death. He died in South Bend on December 6, 1990, and was buried at Riverview Cemetery in that city. In recognition of his service to his community, state, and nation—as a lawyer, soldier, and public official—F. J. Nimtz Parkway in South Bend was named in his honor.