Editing William Natcher (section)

==Congressional career==
He was elected as a Democrat to the United States House of Representatives in 1953 from the [[Kentucky's 2nd congressional district|2nd district]]. He cast 18,401 consecutive roll-call votes between 1953 and 1994, never missing a single roll call vote over his forty-one-year Congressional career until his last days in office, the all-time record for both the House of Representatives and Congress as a whole.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.rollcall.com/news/Susan-Collins-Casts-5000th-Vote-Without-a-Miss-216098-1.html |title = Susan Collins Casts 5,000th Vote Without a Miss - Roll Call}}</ref> Natcher refused to accept campaign contributions. He was also chairman of the [[House Appropriations Committee]] from 1993 to 1994. His knowledge of House rules in debate led House Speaker [[Tip O'Neill]] to employ him as presiding officer during crucial debates.

Natcher did not sign the 1956 [[Southern Manifesto]], and voted in favor of the [[Civil Rights Act of 1960|Civil Rights Acts of 1960]] and [[Civil Rights Act of 1968|1968]],<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.govtrack.us/congress/votes/86-1960/h102|title=HR 8601. PASSAGE. -- House Vote #102 -- Mar 24, 1960|website=GovTrack.us}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.govtrack.us/congress/votes/90-1967/h113|title=TO PASS H.R. 2516, A BILL TO ESTABLISH PENALTIES FOR … -- House Vote #113 -- Aug 16, 1967|website=GovTrack.us}}</ref> as well as the [[Twenty-fourth Amendment to the United States Constitution|24th Amendment to the U.S. Constitution]] and the [[Voting Rights Act of 1965]],<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.govtrack.us/congress/votes/87-1962/h193|title=S.J. RES. 29. CONSTITUTIONAL AMENDMENT TO BAN THE USE OF POLL TAX AS A REQUIREMENT FOR VOTING IN FEDERAL ELECTIONS.|work=GovTrack.us}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.govtrack.us/congress/votes/89-1965/h87|title=TO PASS H.R. 6400, THE 1965 VOTING RIGHTS ACT. -- House Vote #87 -- Jul 9, 1965|website=GovTrack.us}}</ref> but voted against the [[Civil Rights Act of 1957|Civil Rights Acts of 1957]] and [[Civil Rights Act of 1964|1964]].<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.govtrack.us/congress/votes/88-1964/h128|title=H.R. 7152. PASSAGE. -- House Vote #128 -- Feb 10, 1964|website=GovTrack.us}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.govtrack.us/congress/votes/85-1957/h42|title=HR 6127. CIVIL RIGHTS ACT OF 1957.|work=GovTrack.us}}</ref>

Natcher holds the record for the longest perfect voting record in the history of Congress. He did not miss a single vote for nearly the entirety of his 40 years of service, casting 18,401 consecutive votes from his 1953 swearing to his last appearance on the House floor on March 3, 1994. On the day of his last vote, he arrived at the Capitol from Bethesda Naval Hospital by ambulance and was wheeled onto the House floor on a gurney.<ref>{{cite news |title=Ky. congressman arrives on gurney for House vote |url=https://www.tampabay.com/archive/1994/03/03/ky-congressman-arrives-on-gurney-for-house-vote/ |access-date=May 27, 2024 |work=Tampa Bay Times |date=March 3, 1994}}</ref> He missed the first vote of his career the next day, when doctors advised him not to return to the Capitol.<ref>{{cite news |last1=Seelye |first1=Katharine |title=The Iron Man of Congress Ends a Streak in Absentia |url=https://www.nytimes.com/1994/03/04/us/the-iron-man-of-congress-ends-a-streak-in-absentia.html |access-date=May 27, 2024 |work=The New York Times |date=March 4, 1994}}</ref> He died a few weeks later, never having returned to the House floor again.

On March 4, 1994, Natcher was presented with the [[Presidential Citizens Medal]] by [[President of the United States]] [[Bill Clinton]].<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.presidency.ucsb.edu/documents/statement-the-death-representative-william-h-natcher|title=Statement on the Death of Representative William H. Natcher &#124; The American Presidency Project|website=www.presidency.ucsb.edu}}</ref> He continued to serve in Congress until his death on March 29, 1994, in [[Bethesda, Maryland]].

===Legacy===
Natcher was a champion of road projects within Kentucky, especially the construction of a [[cable-stayed bridge]] between Kentucky and [[Indiana]] near [[Owensboro, Kentucky|Owensboro]]. Natcher helped get the majority of federal funding for the new bridge, which now carries [[U.S. Highway 231]] across the [[Ohio River]] between [[Maceo, Kentucky]] and [[Rockport, Indiana]]. The [[William H. Natcher Bridge]] was named in his honor before he died, although it was not completed until 2002.

Also named in Natcher's honor is [[Interstate 165 (Kentucky)|Interstate 165]], the '''William H. Natcher Expressway''', a Kentucky [[Interstate highway]] (formerly a [[toll road]]) that runs between Bowling Green and Owensboro. From its 1972 opening until 1997, the road was known as the [[Green River Parkway]], then the [[William H. Natcher Parkway]] until the Interstate designation was granted to the road in 2019.

Building 45 of the [[National Institutes of Health]] (NIH) in [[Bethesda, Maryland]], is named in his honor.

During his congressional career, Natcher was a passionate believer in libraries and literacy. He fought for continued federal funding for library construction and initiatives. These programs continue today; the Kentucky Library Association presents the William H. Natcher Award annually for acts of philanthropy and support of libraries within the Commonwealth.