| William R. AndersonCollection Open |
William Robert Anderson, a career naval officer and four-term United States Congressman (Democrat), was born in Bakerville, Tennessee on June 17, 1921. He graduated from Columbia Military Academy in 1939. He earned his Bachelor of Science in Electrical Engineering in 1942 from the U.S. Naval Academy. He served in the U.S. Navy Submarine Service form 1942 until 1962. From 1957 until 1959, he commanded the USS Nautilus, the first atomic powered submarine. Under his command the USS Nautilus traveled underneath the polar ice cap at the geographic North Pole and Anderson gained considerable fame. He subsequently published Nautilus 90 North (1959), First Under the North Pole (1959), and The Useful Atom, (1966). He co-authored two books, Atomic Submarines (1961, 1968) and The Atomic Submarine and Polaris (1961) with James Baar and William E. Howard. For his feats and federal service, Anderson received several honors and awards including a Decorated Bronze Star for his service in submarine combat controls. He also was the recipient of the Stephen Decatur prize from the Navy League of the United States, a Distinguished Service award from New York City, the Christopher Columbus International Communications award from Genoa, Italy, the Elisha Kent Kane medal from the Geographic Society of Philadelphia in 1959, the Patron's Medal from the Royal Geographic Society in 1959, an honorary Doctor of Science from Defiance College, a Leadership award from the Freedoms Foundation in 1960 and the Lowell Thomas award of The Explorers Club in 1997. In 1963, Anderson served as Consultant to the President on the establishment of a National Service Corps or VISTA, now a part of the AmeriCorps program. He entered the 1962 governor's race in Tennessee as an independent and lost to former Democratic governor, Frank G. Clement. He ran and was elected to Congress in 1964, 1966, 1968, and 1970 from the Sixth District of Tennessee. He was defeated in his re-election campaign of 1972. As Congressman, Robinson concerned himself with naval affairs and energy resources. He criticized U.S. involvement in Vietnam, as well as some of the actions of J. Edgar Hoover. He later worked with the Jimmy Carter campaign. After retiring from Congress, Anderson worked as a private business and executive, helping to found the Public Office Corporation.
This collection consists primarily of the political records of William Robert Anderson, a U.S. Congressman (1964-1972) from the Sixth District of Tennessee. Materials from his unsuccessful bid for re-election in 1972 are included. The collection also contains a considerable amount of material from Anderson's service on the Jimmy Carter Presidential campaign (1976) and various personal records from the 1970s and 1980s.
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Contact the Archives
The Modern Political Archives
Baker Center for Public Policy
1640 Cumberland Avenue
Knoxville, TN 37996-3340
Phone: 865.974.0931
Fax: 865.974.8777
Email: bobby.holt@utk.edu