Lawrence Coughlin

Robert Lawrence Coughlin Jr. (April 11, 1929 – November 30, 2001) was an American lawyer and politician from Pennsylvania who served as a Republican member of the United States House of Representatives representing the 13th district of Pennsylvania from 1969 to 1993. He also served as a member of the Pennsylvania House of Representatives for the Montgomery County district from 1965 to 1966 and the Pennsylvania Senate for the 17th district from 1967 to 1969.

Early life and education R. Lawrence Coughlin was born in Wilkes-Barre, Pennsylvania, to Robert Lawrence and Evelyn (née Wich) Coughlin. His uncle was Clarence D. Coughlin, who represented Pennsylvania's 11th congressional district from 1921 to 1923. He was raised on his father's farm near Scranton, and graduated from the Hotchkiss School in Lakeville, Connecticut, in 1946.

Coughlin then enrolled at Yale University, where he majored in economics and was a member of St. Anthony Hall. He was also a classmate of George H. W. Bush, the future President of the United States. The district, based in Montgomery County and dominated by the Republican Party, included the affluent suburban communities of the Main Line and, in the 1980s, was reapportioned to include parts of Philadelphia. After winning the Republican nomination, he defeated his Democratic opponent, Robert D. Gates, by a margin of 62% to 37%.

During his tenure in Congress, Coughlin earned a reputation as a moderate to liberal Republican. A member of the House Appropriations Subcommittee on Transportation, he supported increased funding for the Southeastern Pennsylvania Transportation Authority and other mass transportation agencies, housing programs, and anti-drug education. He was also a member of the House Select Committee on Narcotics Abuse and Control, in which capacity he supported additional funding for the destruction of cocaine processing labs and reducing efforts to interdict narcotics traffic. He also became known for always wearing a bow tie.

Coughlin was re-elected eleven times, but declined to run again in 1992. His two most competitive campaigns for re-election came in 1984 and 1986, facing Democratic state Representative Joe Hoeffel both times.

Later life and death After retiring from Congress, Coughlin remained in Washington, D.C., and joined the law firm of Eckert Seamans Cherin & Mellott. He joined the law firm of Thompson Coburn in 2001, and also served as president of the Friends of the United States National Arboretum.

Coughlin died from cancer at his home in Mathews, Virginia, at age 71. He is buried at Arlington National Cemetery.

Personal life He was married three times. First to Helen Combs Swan in 1950; they had one daughter, Elizabeth (Lisa) Swan Coughlin. After Helen died in 1953, he married Elizbeth Poole Sellers Worrell; they had three children, Lynne Wick Coughlin, Sara Sellars Coughlin, and Robert Lawrence (Larry) Coughlin III. He married Susan MacGregor in 1981.