Gilbert Gude papers

Gilbert Gude (1923-2007) had a long and distinguished career as a legislator from Maryland. He was elected to the Maryland House of Delegates in 1953, to the Maryland Senate in 1962, and was then elected as a Republican to Congress, serving from 1967-76 as the Representative from the Maryland's 8th district. Gude defined himself as "a liberal on civil rights and a moderate on fiscal matters." During his time in office he supported D.C. home rule, limits on cigarette advertising, and sponsored legislation that led to the construction of the Metro system. He was known for his support of the environment, and perhaps his crowning achievement was the effort to save the C&O Canal and create the Chesapeake and Ohio Canal National Park.

During his time in Congress, Gude served on the Government Operations Committee and its Conservation, Energy, and Natural Resources Subcommittee; the House Environmental Study; the F.D.R. Memorial Commission; the Select Committee on Aging and its Retirement Income and Employment Subcommittee; and the House District of Columbia Committee and its Commerce, Housing and Transportation Subcommittee. Gude was the ranking Republican member of the D.C. Committee. He retired from Congress at the end of the 94th's second session to assume the directorship of the Library of Congress's Congressional Research Service. In 1986 he retired from the Congressional Research Service. He also taught courses on history and the environment at Georgetown University.

Gilbert Gude was born March 9, 1923 and died on June 7, 2007. He was an alumnus of George Washington University having received his M.A. in Public Administration in 1958. In 1971, he was awarded the Alumni Achievement Award in recognition of his "understanding of the financial dilemma of private education institutions in the District of Columbia." He also served on the Catholic University of America's Board of Trustees.