Ozark Political Dynasties: The Carnahan Family and Their Connections to Public Service

• In Event: Memory as a Political Act: The Construction of Personal Memory and Popular Narrative Within and Beyond Political Regimes

Abstract

The grandchildren of A.S.J. Carnahan are unique in carrying on a tradition the family began in the Great Depression some 80 years ago. Currently the late Gov. Mel Carnahan's son Russ is running to be the state's Lieutenant Governor. Russ lives in St. Louis and has been a three-term U.S. Representative from that region. What has been the significance of their family's political history and public service? How has this past history of holding public office affected present day family members? The late A.S.J. Carnahan began his political career as a county school superintendent in a relatively impoverished Ozark region, then became a U.S. Representative known for supporting President John F. Kennedy's liberal foreign policy. How has this family history in the Ozarks influenced the several Carnahan office holders who have had active political careers?

Author

• Alex Primm, Oral History of the Ozarks Project