A. M. Aikin, Jr.

Alexander Mack Aikin Jr. (October 9, 1905 – October 24, 1981) was an American politician who served in the Texas House of Representatives and the Texas Senate as a Democrat. He was elected to the House of Representatives in 1932, and after serving two terms was elected to the Senate in 1937. In total, he served for 46 years in the two chambers of the Texas Legislature, making him the longest-tenured legislator in the history of Texas at the time of his retirement in January 1979.

Aikin earned a reputation as a staunch supporter of education, and was given the honorific "the father of modern Texas education". He is best known for working with Governor Beauford H. Jester to pass the Gilmer-Aikin Act of 1949.

Aikin served on the Senate Finance Committee from 1937 to 1979; he was also the chair of the committee from 1967 until 1979. In 1943, Aikin also served as president pro tempore of the Senate and, in the absence of Governor Coke R. Stevenson and the Lieutenant Governor, as acting governor for 14 days. The A. M. and Welma Aikin Regional Archives and the A. M. Aikin Symposium at Paris Junior College (PJC), as well as two chairs at the University of Texas at Austin, have been named in his honor.

Early life Alexander Mack Aikin Jr. was born on October 9, 1905, in Aikin Grove, Red River County, Texas. His family moved to Lamar County in 1907, and Aikin attended grade school in Milton and high school in Deport. He then attended Paris Junior College (PJC) in Paris and Cumberland University in Lebanon, Tennessee, the latter of which he graduated from with a Bachelor of Laws degree in 1932.

Political career A member of the Democratic Party, Aikin's political career began in 1932 with his election to the Texas House of Representatives. From 1948 onwards, he did not face an opponent in any election that he contested. During his brief tenure as acting governor, Aikin briefly declared martial law in Beaumont due to a race riot; he had been hospitalized since September 6. He was also memorialized on October 29 with a brief service in the Texas Senate in which he was eulogized by Lieutenant Governor William P. Hobby Jr. and once again by State Senator Schwartz.

Legacy Aikin was honored with the proclamation of "A. M. Aikin Day" in 1973, during which his portrait was hung in the Texas Senate chamber, "a rare honor for a lawmaker who was still serving".

In 1979, the A. M. Aikin Symposium was established at PJC as a two-day seminar for high school students addressing "fiscal responsibility in government".

Furthermore, the A. M. Aikin Regents Chair in Junior and Community College Education and the A. M. Aikin Regents Chair in Education Leadership were established in 1985 at the University of Texas at Austin. The total endowment of the two chairs was $1 million; former PJC president Louis B. Williams led the fundraising effort for the endowment, while the total gift of $500,000 was matched with funds from the Permanent University Fund to establish the memorial chairs.