Representative Hervey Gilbert Machen

Hervey Gilbert Machen (October 14, 1916 – November 29, 1994) was an American lawyer, banker, and Democratic politician who represented Maryland’s fifth congressional district in the United States House of Representatives for two terms from 1965 to 1969. His service in Congress occurred during a significant period in American history, and as a member of the House of Representatives he participated in the legislative process and represented the interests of his constituents in southern Maryland and the suburbs of Washington, D.C.

Machen was born in Washington, D.C., and grew up in nearby Prince George’s County, Maryland. He graduated from Hyattsville High School in Hyattsville, Maryland, before pursuing higher education at the University of Maryland, College Park, where he received his Bachelor of Arts degree. He went on to study law at Southeastern University in Washington, D.C., earning his Bachelor of Laws (LL.B.) degree in 1939 and his Master of Laws (LL.M.) degree in 1941, preparing for a career that would combine legal practice with public service.

With the onset of World War II, Machen entered military service and served in the United States Army from 1941 to 1946. His five years in uniform coincided with the nation’s full mobilization for the war effort and provided him with experience in public duty and administration that would later inform his political career. Following his discharge from the Army, he returned to Maryland and embarked on a dual career as a banker and a lawyer, establishing himself professionally in Prince George’s County.

Machen quickly became active in local government and legal affairs. From 1947 to 1951 he served as an assistant attorney in the Office of the Maryland State’s Attorney of Prince George’s County, Maryland, participating in the prosecution of criminal cases and the enforcement of state law. He also served as city attorney for Cheverly, Maryland, and for Hyattsville, Maryland, from 1949 to 1958, advising municipal officials on legal matters and helping to shape local ordinances and policies during a period of rapid suburban growth around the nation’s capital.

Building on his local legal and civic work, Machen entered state politics as a member of the Maryland House of Delegates, where he served from 1954 to 1962. In the House of Delegates he represented his county in the state legislature, contributing to debates and legislation affecting education, infrastructure, and governance in Maryland. His eight-year tenure in the state legislature, combined with his experience as a municipal attorney and assistant state’s attorney, established his reputation as a capable Democratic officeholder and positioned him for higher office.

Machen was elected as a Democrat to the U.S. Congress in the 1964 election, taking his seat in the Eighty-ninth Congress on January 3, 1965, and serving through the Ninetieth Congress until January 3, 1969. As a Representative from Maryland, he contributed to the legislative process during two terms in office at the height of the Great Society era. He voted in favor of the Voting Rights Act of 1965 and the Civil Rights Act of 1968, aligning himself with major federal efforts to secure and enforce civil rights and expand democratic participation. His tenure in Congress coincided with significant national debates over civil rights, social welfare, and the Vietnam War, and he participated in the democratic process on behalf of his fifth-district constituents.

In 1968, Machen was an unsuccessful candidate for re-election to the House of Representatives, losing his bid to continue representing Maryland’s fifth district. He sought to return to Congress in 1970 but was again unsuccessful in securing the Democratic nomination. After his congressional service, he returned to private life, drawing on his background in law and banking and remaining associated with the public record through his legislative papers and archival materials.

Hervey Gilbert Machen died on November 29, 1994, in Annapolis, Maryland. He was interred in St. Barnabas Episcopal Church Cemetery in Temple Hills, Maryland, in the county where much of his legal and political career had been based. His papers are preserved at the University of Maryland libraries, documenting his years in local, state, and national office and providing a record of his role in Maryland and U.S. public life during the mid-twentieth century.