Carl Atwood Elliott

Carl Atwood Elliott. The eldest of G.W. and Nora Elliott's eight children, Carl Elliott was born in Vina, Alabama, and raised on a farm on Gober Ridge. The 1930 valedictorian of Vina High School, Elliott left home at the age of sixteen to attend the University of Alabama. He worked his way through college, and served as president of the Student Government Association. In 1936, Elliott earned his law degree from the university. In 1948, campaigning with the theme "From Farm Boy to Congress," he won a landslide election to north Alabama's Seventh U.S. Congressional District. For sixteen years he faithfully represented a constituency of small farmers, coal miners, and businessmen. A lifelong champion of universal access to education, Congressman Elliott's Library Services and Construction Act of 1956 brought books to rural counties. His National Defense Education Act of 1958 enabled millions of needy students to attend college. In 1972, the University of Alabama conferred upon him an honorary Doctor of Laws degree. In 1990, Congressman Elliott received the inaugural John F. Kennedy Profile in Courage Award. His autobiography, The Cost of Courage: The Journey of an American Congressman, was published in 1992. For many years, Elliott lived and practiced law in Jasper, Alabama, buried in Jasper's Oak Hill Cemetery.