Hervey Machen

Who was Hervey Machen?

Hervey Gilbert Machen represented the fifth district of the state of Maryland in the United States House of Representatives for two terms from 1965 to 1969.

Machen was born in Washington, D.C., and graduated from Hyattsville, Maryland, High School. He received his B.A. degree from the University of Maryland, College Park, his LL.B. degree and LL.M. degree from Southeastern University in 1939 and 1941 respectively.

During World War II, Machen served in the United States Army from 1941 to 1946. After the War, he became a banker and a lawyer, later serving as a member of the Maryland House of Delegates from 1954 to 1962. He served as assistant attorney in the Office of the Maryland State’s Attorney of Prince Georges County, Maryland from 1947 to 1951. He was city attorney for Cheverly, Maryland and Hyattsville from 1949 to 1958.

Machen was elected as a Democrat to the U.S. Congress in 1964, serving two terms from January 3, 1965 to January 3, 1969. He was an unsuccessful candidate for re-election in 1968, and an unsuccessful candidate for nomination to Congress again in 1970. He died in Annapolis, Maryland, and is interred in St. Barnabas Episcopal Church Cemetery of Upper Marlboro, Maryland.