https://indianpedia.org/index.php?action=history&feed=atom&title=Benjamin_GilmanBenjamin Gilman - Revision history2026-07-30T11:57:11ZRevision history for this page on the wikiMediaWiki 1.45.4https://indianpedia.org/index.php?title=Benjamin_Gilman&diff=470687&oldid=prevSddhvnkengineering at 20:33, 9 March 20262026-03-09T20:33:11Z<p></p>
<p><b>New page</b></p><div>{{Short description|American politician (1922–2016)}}<br />
{{for|the American museum curator (1852–1933)|Benjamin Ives Gilman}}<br />
<br />
{{Infobox officeholder<br />
| smallimage = Benjamin A. Gilman.jpg<br />
| order1 = Chair of the [[United States House Committee on Foreign Affairs|House International Relations Committee]]<br />
| term_start1 = January 3, 1995<br />
| term_end1 = January 3, 2001<br />
| predecessor1 = [[Lee H. Hamilton]]<br />
| successor1 = [[Henry Hyde]]<br />
| office2 = Member of the<br>[[United States House of Representatives|U.S. House of Representatives]]<br>from [[New York (state)|New York]]<br />
| constituency2 = {{ushr|NY|26|26th district}} (1973–1983)<br />{{ushr|NY|22|22nd district}} (1983–1993)<br />{{ushr|NY|20|20th district}} (1993–2003)<br />
| term_start2 = January 3, 1973<br />
| term_end2 = January 3, 2003<br />
| preceded2 = [[Ogden Reid]]<br />
| succeeded2 = [[John E. Sweeney]]<br />
| state_assembly3 = New York <br />
| district3 = [[New York's 95th State Assembly district|95th]]<br />
| term_start3 = January 1, 1967<br />
| term_end3 = December 31, 1972<br />
| predecessor3 = [[Benjamin Altman]]<br />
| successor3 = [[Eugene Levy (politician)|Eugene Levy]]<br />
| birth_name = Benjamin Arthur Gilman<br />
| birth_date = {{Birth date|1922|12|6|mf=y}}<br />
| birth_place = [[Poughkeepsie, New York]], U.S.<br />
| death_date = {{Death date and age|2016|12|17|1922|12|6|mf=y}}<br />
| death_place = [[Wappingers Falls, New York]], U.S.<br />
| party =[[Republican Party (United States)|Republican]]<br />
| alma_mater=[[Wharton School of the University of Pennsylvania|University of Pennsylvania]] ([[Bachelor of Science|BS]])<br>[[New York Law School]] ([[Bachelor of Laws|LLB]])<br />
| spouse = {{marriage|Jane Prizant|1954|1978|reason=divorced}}<br />{{marriage|Rita Kelhofer|1984|1997|reason=divorced}}<br />{{marriage|Georgia Tingus|1997}}<br />
| children = 5 {{small|(With Prizant)}}<br />
| module = {{Listen|pos=center|embed=yes|filename=Rep. Benjamin Gilman on Legislation to Admit Former Warsaw Pact Nations into NATO.ogg|title=Benjamin Gilman's voice|type=speech|description=Gilman, as chair of the [[House International Relations Committee]], on legislation allowing former [[Warsaw Pact]] nations to join [[NATO]]<br/>Recorded July 23, 1996}}<br />
}}<br />
<br />
'''Benjamin Arthur Gilman''' (December 6, 1922 – December 17, 2016) was an American politician and Republican member of the [[United States House of Representatives]] from Middletown, [[New York (state)|New York]], from January 3, 1973, to January 3, 2003.<br />
<br />
==Early life==<br />
Gilman was born in [[Poughkeepsie, New York]], the son of Esther (Gold) and Harry Gilman. His parents were Austrian Jewish immigrants.{{citation needed|date=January 2017}} Gilman graduated from [[Middletown High School (New York)|Middletown High School]] in [[Middletown, Orange County, New York|Middletown, New York]], in 1941 and received a B.S. from the [[Wharton School of the University of Pennsylvania|Wharton School of Business]] at the [[University of Pennsylvania]] in 1946. He also earned an [[LL.B.]] from [[New York Law School]]. He was a brother of [[Zeta Beta Tau]].<ref>{{cite web|url=https://zbt.org/about-zbt/notable-brothers/|publisher=[[Zeta Beta Tau]]|title= Notable Brothers|language=en-US|url-status=live|archive-date=September 30, 2025|archive-url=https://archive.today/20250930060311/https://zbt.org/about-zbt/notable-brothers/}}</ref> Gilman served in the [[United States Army Air Corps]] from 1942 until 1945 during [[World War II]]. During that conflict, he flew 35 missions over Japan, earning the [[Distinguished Flying Cross (United States)|Distinguished Flying Cross]] and the [[Air Medal]] with Oak Leaf Clusters.<ref>{{cite web |last=Anderson |first=Jane |date=19 December 2016 |url=https://hvmag.com/life-style/beloved-former-congressman-benjamin-gilman-dies-at-94/ |title=Beloved Former Congressman Benjamin Gilman Dies at 94 |website=Hudson Valley Magazine |access-date=18 February 2025}}</ref><br />
<br />
==Early career==<br />
After graduating [[New York Law School]] in 1950, Gilman served as assistant attorney general to the [[Attorney General of New York]] from 1953 until 1955. Following this, he practiced law privately in his hometown of Middletown, New York.<br />
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Gilman was a member of the [[New York State Assembly]] from 1967 to 1972, sitting in the [[177th New York State Legislature|177th]], [[178th New York State Legislature|178th]] and [[179th New York State Legislature]]s. He was a member of the New York State Southeastern Water Commission.<br />
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==Tenure==<br />
[[File:Benjamin Netanyahu and Benjamin Gilman.jpg|thumb|Gilman with [[Benjamin Netanyahu]]]]<br />
Gilman first won election to Congress in 1972 to represent [[New York's 26th congressional district]]. New York's congressional districts had been redrawn in reapportionment, and in the general election Gilman defeated incumbent congressman [[John G. Dow]], a Democrat who had been serving in [[New York's 27th congressional district]], (which included most of the territory and population of the new 26th district). Gilman subsequently served in Congress from January 3, 1973, until January 3, 2003. During his time in Congress, he was chair of the [[United States House Committee on Foreign Affairs|House Committee on International Relations]] ([[104th United States Congress|104th]] through [[106th United States Congress|106th]] Congresses).<br />
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He was widely regarded as a moderate Republican in the mold of New York's [[Nelson Rockefeller]]<ref>{{cite news |url=https://www.nytimes.com/2016/12/17/nyregion/ben-gilman-dead.html|title=Gilman obituary in New York Times|work=The New York Times |date=18 December 2016 |last1=Fried |first1=Joseph P. }}</ref> He was active on foreign affairs issues, serving as a Congressional delegate to the United Nations, serving under Ambassador [[Jeane Kirkpatrick]] in 1981. He was a Member of the [[Ukraine]] Famine Commission, a member of the U.S., European, Canadian and Mexican Interparliamentary conferences, and a Congressional Advisor to the U.N. Law of the Sea Conference. He was co-chair of the Committee on Irish Affairs and participated on the International Task Force on Narcotics. He was a recipient of the [[Secretary's Distinguished Service Award]], a gold medal and certificate which represents the highest civilian honor bestowed by the State Department.<br />
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Throughout his years in Congress, he was a member of the House Post Office and Civil Service Committee, the name of which evolved into the Government Reform and Oversight Committee in the 1990s. As a co-founder of the House Select Committee on Narcotics, he served as a senior member on that Committee (1977–1989) and continued to serve as a member until the committee was abolished in 1993.<br />
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During the 1970s, Gilman became closely identified with the issue of Prisoners of War and Missing in Action in [[Southeast Asia]]. He served on the Select Congressional Committee on that problem, and was one of only two Members of Congress to vote in opposition to closing the book on the POW/MIA situation.<br />
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He also became involved with [[world hunger]] in the 1970s, authoring the legislation creating a presidential Commission Against Hunger, to which he was subsequently appointed by President [[Jimmy Carter]].<br />
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As the chair of the House Committee on Foreign Affairs, from 1995 to 2002, Congressman Gilman consistently advocated stronger ties with [[India]]<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.savetibet.org/congressman-benjamin-gilman-friend-of-tibet-passes-away/|title=Congressman Benjamin Gilman, friend of Tibet passes away {{!}} International Campaign for Tibet|date=2017-04-18|access-date=2017-07-04|url-status=bot: unknown|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170418161049/https://www.savetibet.org/congressman-benjamin-gilman-friend-of-tibet-passes-away/|archive-date=2017-04-18}}</ref><ref name=India>{{cite news|last=Haniffa|first=Aziz|title=Lawmaker Slams Pak, China|work=rediff.com|date=2001-07-18|url=http://www.rediff.com/us/2001/jul/18us2.htm|access-date=2009-02-02|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20080726101304/http://www.rediff.com/us/2001/jul/18us2.htm|archive-date=2008-07-26|url-status=live}}</ref><br />
, as a counterweight against Chinese influence in the region, particularly in [[Pakistan]]. During the [[Kargil War]] against Pakistan, he urged American lawmakers to pressure the Pakistani government to withdraw from the conflict, stating that he held Pakistan solely responsible for the conflict.<ref name=letter>{{Cite web|last1=Gilman|first1=Benjamin|last2=Gejdenson|first2=Sam|date=1999-06-21|title=Letter on Kargil Situation|url=http://www.indianembassy.org/indusrel/Kargil_US/Gilman_Gejdenson_June_21_1999.htm|access-date=2009-02-03|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20001213105000/http://www.indianembassy.org/indusrel/Kargil_US/Gilman_Gejdenson_June_21_1999.htm|archive-date=2000-12-13|url-status=dead}}</ref> During a Hearing on the Status of Negotiations between China and Tibet in April 2000, Congressman Gilman said, “The Tibetan cause enjoys the global support that it does because it is a courageous attempt by a Nation and a people who are trying to regain what is rightfully theirs by throwing off the repression of colonization. It is in the interest of international stability to have Tibet once again serve as it had for 2000 years as a buffer zone strategically placed between India and China.”<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.savetibet.org/congressman-benjamin-gilman-friend-of-tibet-passes-away/|title=Congressman Benjamin Gilman, friend of Tibet passes away {{!}} International Campaign for Tibet|date=2017-04-18|access-date=2017-07-04|url-status=bot: unknown|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170418161049/https://www.savetibet.org/congressman-benjamin-gilman-friend-of-tibet-passes-away/|archive-date=2017-04-18}}</ref> In recognition of his contribution to furthering U.S. ties with India, he was awarded that country's second-highest civilian honor, the [[Padma Vibhushan]], in 2001.<ref name=Padma>{{cite web|url=http://mha.nic.in/uniquepage.asp?ID_PK=490&#PADMA%20VIBHUSHAN|title=Ministry of Home Affairs: Padma Awards|access-date=2009-02-02|date=2001-01-26|publisher=Ministry of Home Affairs, Government of India|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120214233653/http://mha.nic.in/uniquepage.asp?ID_PK=490&#PADMA%20VIBHUSHAN|archive-date=2012-02-14|url-status=dead}}</ref> He is one of only 12 foreigners, and one of only 3 Americans not of Indian origin, to have received the award. In his later years in Congress, Gilman was a vociferous and frequent critic of President [[Bill Clinton]], particularly on matters related to American foreign policy.<ref>{{cite news |url= https://www.nytimes.com/2016/12/17/nyregion/ben-gilman-dead.html|title=Gilman obituary in New York Times|work=The New York Times |date=18 December 2016 |last1=Fried |first1=Joseph P. }}</ref><br />
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Congressman Gilman helped gain passage of the International Academic Opportunity Act of 2000, establishing exchange programs for American students to study abroad. Named after Gilman is the [[Benjamin A. Gilman International Scholarship]], a program for Pell Grant eligible American college students to study or intern abroad administered by the [[United States Department of State]].<ref>{{cite web |title=Program Overview |url=https://www.gilmanscholarship.org/program/program-overview/ |website=Benjamin A. Gilman International Scholarship |access-date=17 October 2020}}</ref><br />
<br />
{{Blockquote<br />
|text=Study abroad is a special experience for every student who participates. Living and learning in a vastly different environment of another nation not only exposes our students to alternate views, but also adds an enriching social and cultural experience. It also provides our students with the opportunity to return home with a deeper understanding of their place in the world, encouraging them to be a contributor, rather than a spectator in the international community.<br />
|author=Benjamin A. Gilman<br />
}}<ref>{{cite web |title=Program Overview |url=https://www.gilmanscholarship.org/program/program-overview/ |website=Benjamin A. Gilman International Scholarship |access-date=17 October 2020}}</ref><br />
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Congressman Gilman retired from Congress in 2003 after [[New York's 20th congressional district]], which he had represented, was broken up and dispersed among the 17th, 18th, 19th and 22nd Congressional Districts in the [[redistricting]] that followed the 2000 census and [[reapportionment]]. At the time of his retirement, Gilman was the oldest sitting representative in the U.S. House (in all of Congress, only Senators [[Strom Thurmond]] and [[Robert Byrd]] were older). He was the senior Republican representing New York, and the second-most senior Member from New York overall, behind only [[Charles B. Rangel]]. In 2003, following his retirement from Congress, the Dalai Lama bestowed upon Congressman Gilman the International Campaign for Tibet's Light of Truth Award.<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.savetibet.org/congressman-benjamin-gilman-friend-of-tibet-passes-away/|title=Congressman Benjamin Gilman, friend of Tibet passes away {{!}} International Campaign for Tibet|date=2017-04-18|access-date=2017-07-04|url-status=bot: unknown|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170418161049/https://www.savetibet.org/congressman-benjamin-gilman-friend-of-tibet-passes-away/|archive-date=2017-04-18}}</ref><br />
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On March 28, 2008, Gilman participated in the ribbon cutting ceremony for the Gilman Center for International Education in his hometown of Middletown, New York, on the campus of SUNY Orange, also known as [[Orange County Community College]].<ref>{{Cite web |date=2024-03-12 |title=College celebrates expansion of Newburgh Nursing Program |url=https://www.timeshudsonvalley.com/mid-hudson-times/stories/college-celebrates-expansion-of-newburgh-nursing-program,118861 |access-date=2024-04-12 |website=Mid Hudson Times |language=en}}</ref> This modern new facility for international studies is expected to attract students from throughout the world, and houses Gilman's public papers from throughout his 36 years in elective office. Various photographs and memorabilia from throughout his career are on display.<br />
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On Jun 14, 2011, Gilman was awarded the Top Honor Prize, and recognized by the [[World Peace Prize]] Awarding Council for being a lifelong champion of human rights: fighting world hunger, narcotic abuse and trafficking.<ref>{{Cite web |url=http://worldpeaceprize.org/2010-award/ |title=World Peace Prize |access-date=2017-11-19 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150103162942/http://worldpeaceprize.org/2010-award/ |archive-date=2015-01-03 |url-status=dead }}</ref><br />
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==Personal life==<br />
Gilman was married three times: to the former Jane Prizant (1927–2000), a lawyer and daughter of a well-known actor of the [[Yiddish theater]], [[:ru:Призант, Хаим|Hyman Prizant]], to Rita Kelhofer, and to Georgia Tingus. His children from the first marriage were Jonathan Gilman, Susan Gilman-Harts, Harrison Gilman, David Gilman (deceased) and Ellen Gilman (deceased). After his retirement, he continued to live in Middletown, his home in the [[Hudson Valley]] district that he represented.<br />
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Gilman was a 33 Degree [[Scottish Rite]] [[Freemasonry|Freemason]].<ref>{{Cite web |last=Gross |first=Hank |date=2022-01-15 |title=Freemasons honor late Rep. Ben Gilman |url=https://midhudsonnews.com/2022/01/15/freemasons-honor-late-rep-ben-gilman/ |access-date=2023-10-29 |website=Mid Hudson News |language=en-US}}</ref> A local Scottish Rite organization in Middletown, New York, the Benjamin Gilman Lodge of Perfection, is named in his honor and memory.<ref>{{Cite web |last=Gross |first=Hank |date=2022-12-25 |title=Hudson Valley Masons remember Congressman Ben Gilman |url=https://midhudsonnews.com/2022/12/25/hudson-valley-masons-remember-congressman-ben-gilman/ |access-date=2023-10-29 |website=Mid Hudson News |language=en-US}}</ref><br />
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==Death==<br />
Gilman died on December 17, 2016, at the Castle Point Veteran's Hospital in [[Fishkill (town), New York]] from surgical complications, eleven days after his 94th birthday.<ref>{{cite web|title=Former Congressman Gilman dies|url=http://www.midhudsonnews.com/News/2016/December/17/Gilman_obit-17Dec16.htm|website=midhudsonnews.com|publisher=Mid-Hudson News Network|date=December 17, 2016|access-date=18 December 2016|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20161229023539/http://www.midhudsonnews.com/News/2016/December/17/Gilman_obit-17Dec16.htm|archive-date=29 December 2016|url-status=dead}}</ref> He was married three times and had five children.<ref>{{cite news|last1=Fried|first1=Joseph P.|title=Benjamin Gilman, a New York Congressman for 30 Years, Dies at 94|url=https://www.nytimes.com/2016/12/17/nyregion/ben-gilman-dead.html?partner=rssnyt&emc=rss|access-date=18 December 2016|newspaper=New York Times|date=December 18, 2016|page=A29|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180126012509/https://www.nytimes.com/2016/12/17/nyregion/ben-gilman-dead.html?partner=rssnyt&emc=rss|archive-date=26 January 2018|url-status=live}}</ref><br />
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==See also==<br />
{{Portal|Biography}}<br />
* [[List of Jewish members of the United States Congress]]<br />
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==References==<br />
{{Reflist}}<br />
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==External links==<br />
{{Commons category}}<br />
{{wikisource|works=or}}<br />
{{CongBio|G000212}}<br />
* {{C-SPAN|2195}}<br />
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{{Succession box | title = Member of the [[New York State Assembly]]<br>from the [[New York's 95th State Assembly district|95th]] district | before = [[Benjamin Altman]] | years = 1967–1972 | after = [[Eugene Levy (New York)|Eugene Levy]]}}<br />
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{{Succession box | before = [[William Broomfield]]<br />Michigan | title = Ranking Member of the [[United States House Committee on Foreign Affairs|House International Relations Committee]] | years = 1993–1995| after = [[Lee H. Hamilton]]<br />Indiana}}<br />
{{Succession box | before = [[Lee H. Hamilton]]<br />Indiana | title = Chairman of the [[United States House Committee on Foreign Affairs|House International Relations Committee]] | years = 1995–2001| after = [[Henry Hyde]]<br />Illinois}}<br />
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[[Category:1922 births]]<br />
[[Category:2016 deaths]]<br />
[[Category:Jewish American military personnel]]<br />
[[Category:Republican Party members of the New York State Assembly]]<br />
[[Category:Wharton School alumni]]<br />
[[Category:New York Law School alumni]]<br />
[[Category:Jewish United States representatives]]<br />
[[Category:Politicians from Orange County, New York]]<br />
[[Category:Recipients of the Padma Vibhushan in public affairs]]<br />
[[Category:United States Army Air Forces pilots of World War II]]<br />
[[Category:Recipients of the Distinguished Flying Cross (United States)]]<br />
[[Category:Recipients of the Air Medal]]<br />
[[Category:Military personnel from New York (state)]]<br />
[[Category:People from Middletown, Orange County, New York]]<br />
[[Category:Republican Party United States representatives from New York (state)]]<br />
[[Category:21st-century American Jews]]<br />
[[Category:Members of the United States Congress who became lobbyists]]<br />
[[Category:21st-century United States representatives]]<br />
[[Category:20th-century members of the New York State Legislature]]<br />
[[Category:Jewish state legislators in New York (state)]]</div>Sddhvnkengineering