David Ratliff

Full Name: David Wade Ratliff
Date of birth: April 20, 1912
Date of death: March 21, 1995

Terms of Service
Biographical Notes
Committee Information
Legislation

Terms of Service top

Chamber	District	Dates of Service	Legislatures	Party	City/County	Note	Counties in District
S	24	Jan 12, 1971 - Apr 26, 1972	62nd ⁽²⁾ ⁽³⁾ ⁽⁴⁾	Democrat	Stamford / Jones		Borden, Callahan, Coke, Coleman, Fisher, Garza, Glasscock, Haskell, Howard, Jones, Kent, Mitchell, Nolan, Runnels, Scurry, Shackelford, Sterling, Stonewall, Taylor, Throckmorton, Young
S	24	Jan 10, 1967 - Jan 12, 1971	60th ⁽⁵⁾ 61st	Democrat	Stamford / Jones		Borden, Callahan, Coke, Coleman, Fisher, Garza, Glasscock, Haskell, Howard, Jones, Kent, Mitchell, Nolan, Runnels, Scurry, Shackelford, Sterling, Stonewall, Taylor, Throckmorton, Young
S	24	Jan 12, 1965 - Jan 10, 1967	59th ⁽⁶⁾	Democrat	Stamford / Jones		Borden, Fisher, Garza, Haskell, Howard, Jones, Kent, Mitchell, Nolan, Scurry, Shackelford, Stonewall, Taylor
S	24	Jan 8, 1963 - Jan 12, 1965	58th ⁽⁷⁾	Democrat	Stamford / Jones		Borden, Fisher, Garza, Haskell, Howard, Jones, Kent, Mitchell, Nolan, Scurry, Shackelford, Stonewall, Taylor
S	24	Jan 13, 1959 - Jan 8, 1963	57th ⁽⁸⁾ 56th 57th ⁽⁸⁾	Democrat	Stamford / Jones	Senate President Pro Tempore (57th)	Borden, Dickens, Fisher, Garza, Howard, Jones, Kent, Mitchell, Nolan, Scurry, Shackelford, Stonewall, Taylor
S	24	Jan 11, 1955 - Jan 13, 1959	54th ⁽⁹⁾ ⁽¹⁰⁾ 55th	Democrat	Stamford / Jones		Borden, Dickens, Fisher, Garza, Howard, Jones, Kent, Mitchell, Nolan, Scurry, Shackelford, Stonewall, Taylor
H	85	Jan 13, 1953 - Dec 12, 1954	53rd ⁽¹¹⁾	Democrat	Stamford / Jones		Dickens, Jones, King, Stonewall
H	115	Jan 9, 1951 - Jan 13, 1953	52nd	Democrat	Stamford / Jones		Jones, Shackelford

(1) "Sen. David Ratliff Quits After Nepotism Charges," 4/27/1972. Resignation date 4/26/1972. Dallas Morning News.
(2) "Sen. Ratliff Resigns Post Over Hirings," 4/26/1972. Resignation date 4/26/1972. Dallas Times Herald.
(3) Bill Tippen, in special election 6/6/1972, sworn 6/14/1972, succeeded David W. Ratliff, resigned 4/25/1972. Members of the Texas Congress 1836-1845; Members of the Texas Legislature 1846-1992, 1992.
(4) Bill Tippen, in special election 6/6/1972, sworn 6/14/1972, succeeded David W. Ratliff, resigned 4/26/1972. Members of the Texas Congress 1836-1845; Members of the Texas Legislature 1846-2004, 2005.
(5) 60th Legislature - Drawing for Terms of Office, 1/11/1967, p. 19. Drew 4-year term. Senate Journal.
(6) 2-year term; entire Senate went up for reelection in 1966 due to redistricting. Reapportionment of Senate districts occurred in the 59th Legislature, Regular Session (1965), ch. 324 (SB 547). Texas Constitution Art. III, §3, Election and term of office of Senators.
(7) 58th Legislature - Drawing for Terms of Office, 1/9/1963, p. 16. Drew 2-year term. Senate Journal.
(8) 57th Legislature - Senate President Pro Tempore, Ad Interim R.S., elected 5/29/1961. Senate Journal.
(9) Moyne L. Kelly, in special election 1/8/1955, sworn 1/12/1955, succeeded David W. Ratliff, resigned 12/12/1954. Members of the Texas Congress 1836-1845; Members of the Texas Legislature 1846-2004, 2005.
(10) 54th Legislature - Oath of Office Administered to Senators-elect, 1/11/1955, pp. 7-9. Senate Journal.
(11) David Ratliff, in special election 12/11/1954, succeeded to unexpired term of Harley Sadler, died 10/14/1954. Members of the Texas Congress 1836-1845; Members of the Texas Legislature 1846-2004, 2005.

Terms of Service top

Senate District 24
Jan 12, 1971 - Apr 26, 1972
Legislatures: 62nd ⁽²⁾ ⁽³⁾ ⁽⁴⁾
Party: Democrat
Home City/County: Stamford / Jones
Counties in district: Borden, Callahan, Coke, Coleman, Fisher, Garza, Glasscock, Haskell, Howard, Jones, Kent, Mitchell, Nolan, Runnels, Scurry, Shackelford, Sterling, Stonewall, Taylor, Throckmorton, Young

Senate District 24
Jan 10, 1967 - Jan 12, 1971
Legislatures: 60th ⁽⁵⁾ 61st
Party: Democrat
Home City/County: Stamford / Jones
Counties in district: Borden, Callahan, Coke, Coleman, Fisher, Garza, Glasscock, Haskell, Howard, Jones, Kent, Mitchell, Nolan, Runnels, Scurry, Shackelford, Sterling, Stonewall, Taylor, Throckmorton, Young

Senate District 24
Jan 12, 1965 - Jan 10, 1967
Legislatures: 59th ⁽⁶⁾
Party: Democrat
Home City/County: Stamford / Jones
Counties in district: Borden, Fisher, Garza, Haskell, Howard, Jones, Kent, Mitchell, Nolan, Scurry, Shackelford, Stonewall, Taylor

Senate District 24
Jan 8, 1963 - Jan 12, 1965
Legislatures: 58th ⁽⁷⁾
Party: Democrat
Home City/County: Stamford / Jones
Counties in district: Borden, Fisher, Garza, Haskell, Howard, Jones, Kent, Mitchell, Nolan, Scurry, Shackelford, Stonewall, Taylor

Senate District 24
Jan 13, 1959 - Jan 8, 1963
Legislatures: 57th ⁽⁸⁾ 56th 57th ⁽⁸⁾
Senate President Pro Tempore (57th)
(57th)
(57th)
Party: Democrat
Home City/County: Stamford / Jones
Counties in district: Borden, Dickens, Fisher, Garza, Howard, Jones, Kent, Mitchell, Nolan, Scurry, Shackelford, Stonewall, Taylor

Senate District 24
Jan 11, 1955 - Jan 13, 1959
Legislatures: 54th ⁽⁹⁾ ⁽¹⁰⁾ 55th
Party: Democrat
Home City/County: Stamford / Jones
Counties in district: Borden, Dickens, Fisher, Garza, Howard, Jones, Kent, Mitchell, Nolan, Scurry, Shackelford, Stonewall, Taylor

House District 85
Jan 13, 1953 - Dec 12, 1954
Legislatures: 53rd ⁽¹¹⁾
Party: Democrat
Home City/County: Stamford / Jones
Counties in district: Dickens, Jones, King, Stonewall

House District 115
Jan 9, 1951 - Jan 13, 1953
Legislatures: 52nd
Party: Democrat
Home City/County: Stamford / Jones
Counties in district: Jones, Shackelford

Biographical Information top

Selected newspaper articles

Resolutions and Journal entries

54th Legislature, R.S., SR 257. Resolutions - Congratulatory and Honorary.
56th Legislature, R.S., SR 391. Resolutions - Congratulatory and Honorary.
57th Legislature, R.S., SR 343. Resolutions - Congratulatory and Honorary.
60th Legislature, R.S., SR 450. Resolutions - Congratulatory and Honorary.
61st Legislature, R.S., SR 624. Resolutions - Congratulatory and Honorary.
62nd Legislature, R.S., SR 1018. Resolutions - Congratulatory and Honorary.
74th Legislature, R.S., HR 1059. Memorializing 35 members who died in the past two years. Resolutions - Memorial.
74th Legislature, R.S., HR 535. Resolutions - Memorial.

Other Resources

David W. Ratliff, death date 3/21/1995 in Jones County. FamilySearch Texas Death Index, 1964-1998.
David Wade Ratliff, birth date 4/20/1912, death date 3/21/1995, burial in Willow Cemetery, Haskell, Haskell County. Find a Grave.
Mentioned in Curtis Bishop, "Historic Names in the 54th: Descendants of many who made early Texas history carry on family traditions of service to their State as members of the 54th Legislature," Volume XVI, Number 1, June 1955, pp. 37, 38, 40. Texas Parade.

Photographs

Photograph. David W. Ratliff, 62nd Legislature, State Preservation Board
Photograph. David Ratliff, 61st Legislature, State Preservation Board
Photograph. David Ratliff, 60th Legislature, State Preservation Board
Photograph. David Ratliff, 59th Legislature, State Preservation Board
Photograph. David Ratliff, 58th Legislature, State Preservation Board
Photograph. David W. Ratliff, 57th Legislature, State Preservation Board
Photograph. David W. Ratliff, 56th Legislature, Texas Yearbook, 56th Legislature
Photograph. David W. Ratliff, 56th Legislature, State Preservation Board
Photograph. David W. Ratliff, 55th Legislature, State Preservation Board
Photograph. David W. Ratliff, 54th Legislature, State Preservation Board
Photograph. David W. Ratliff, 53rd Legislature, State Preservation Board
Photograph. David W. Ratliff, 52nd Legislature, State Preservation Board

Composite Photographs on Display in the Capitol

54th session composite photo of Senate members (Ground floor corridor, south wall. GE.C1). State Preservation Board.
55th session composite photo of Senate members (Ground floor corridor, south wall. GE.C1). State Preservation Board.
56th session composite photo of Senate members (Ground floor corridor, south wall. GE.C1). State Preservation Board.
57th session composite photo of Senate members (Ground floor corridor, south wall. GE.C1). State Preservation Board.
58th session composite photo of Senate members (Ground floor corridor, south wall. GE.C1). State Preservation Board.
59th session composite photo of Senate members (Ground floor corridor, south wall. GE.C1). State Preservation Board.
60th session composite photo of Senate members (Ground floor corridor, south wall. GE.C1). State Preservation Board.
61st session composite photo of Senate members (Ground floor corridor, south wall. GE.C1). State Preservation Board.
62nd session composite photo of Senate members (Ground floor corridor, south wall. GE.C1). State Preservation Board.
52nd session composite photo of House members (Ground floor corridor, south wall. GW.C1). State Preservation Board.
53rd session composite photo of House members (Ground floor corridor, south wall. GW.C1). State Preservation Board.

Committee Information top

62nd R.S. - 1971 Administration Agriculture and Drought Disaster Relief, Special Agriculture and Livestock Banking (Chair) County, District and Urban Affairs (Vice Chair) General Investigating, Special Labor and Management Relations Legislative, Congressional and Judicial Districts Licensing and Examining Boards, Interim Local and Uncontested Bills, Special Occupational Education, Interim Oil and Gas Parks and Wildlife Rules Rules of the Senate Transportation Water and Conservation Youth Affairs
61st R.S. - 1969 Agricultural Potential for the '70s Automobile Insurance Rates Banking Education Insurance Labor and Management Relations Nominations Oil and Gas (Chair) Parks and Wildlife State Affairs State and Local Tax Policy Transportation Vocational-Technical Education Water and Conservation
60th R.S. - 1967 Contingent Expenses Counties, Cities, and Towns Education Finance Game and Fish General Investigating Labor and Management Relations (Chair) Legislative, Congressional and Judicial Districts Local and Uncontested Bills, Special Oil and Gas (Chair) Privileges and Elections Public Health Rules Rules of the Senate State Affairs State and Local Tax Policy Transportation Vocational-Technical Education Water and Conservation
59th R.S. - 1965 Banking Contingent Expense Counties, Cities and Towns (Chair) Insurance Labor and Management Relations Legislative, Congressional and Judicial Districts Local and Uncontested Bills, Special Oil and Gas (Vice Chair) Poet Laureate Selection, Special Public Health State Affairs State and Local Tax Policy Transportation Water and Conservation
58th R.S. - 1963 Banking Contingent Expense Counties, Cities and Towns Finance General Investigating Insurance (Chair) Interstate-Cooperation Labor and Management Relations Legislative, Congressional, and Judicial Districts Oil and Gas State Affairs Transportation Water and Conservation
57th R.S. - 1961 Agriculture and Livestock Claims Cost of Government Education Finance Insurance Interstate Cooperation (Vice Chair) Labor and Management Relations (Chair) Legislative, Congressional and Judicial Districts Nominations Oil and Gas State Affairs Water and Conservation
56th R.S. - 1959 Aged Conservation of Paintings, Interim Cost of Government Education Insurance Legislative, Congressional and Judicial Districts (Vice Chair) Nominations Oil and Gas State Affairs
55th R.S. - 1957 Claims (Chair) Education Finance Legislative, Congressional and Judicial Districts Nominations Oil and Gas State Affairs (Vice Chair) State Tax Study Commission
54th R.S. - 1955 Agriculture Commerce and Manufacturing Enrolled and Engrossed Bills (Chair) Judicial Districts Oil, Gas and Conservation Public Debts, Claims and Accounts (Chair) Representative Districts Segregation in Public Schools, Advisory State Affairs State Institutions and Departments (Chair) State Penitentiaries (Vice Chair) State Planning Commission Water Rights, Irrigation and Drainage
53rd R.S. - 1953 Federal Relations (Vice Chair) Labor (Chair) Liquor Regulation Oil, Gas and Mining State Affairs State Planning Commission Texas Commission for Educational Television
52nd R.S. - 1951 Aeronautics Appropriations Common Carriers Interstate Cooperation (Vice Chair) Labor

This website is a work in progress. Information on this website is provided as a public service by the Legislative Reference Library. The Legislative Reference Library makes no representation as to its completeness or accuracy and makes no warranty in regard to its use. Users assume all risk of reliance on the information included on this site.

Party information is not available for the 1st-11th Legislatures.

Have a question, comment or contribution? Email the Library or call 512-463-1252.

Many photos in Texas Legislators: Past and Present are used with permission of the Texas State Preservation Board. For permission to reproduce these photos, please contact the Texas State Preservation Board graphics coordinator at 512-475-3060.