Former congressman from Cedar Rapids dies; helped pass Civil Rights Act

James E. Bromwell, the Cedar Rapids attorney and two-term congressman who later encountered tax and legal problems, has died.

Bromwell, 89, died Friday at Mercy Hospice after a brief illness, according to his family.

“He had one of the best minds I've ever known,” said Bromwell's daughter, Catherine Blair. “Even at 89 he was extremely coherent and his memory was exceptional.”

Born and raised in Cedar Rapids, Bromwell graduated from the University of Iowa in 1942. After serving in the Army in New York and Paris during World War II, he earned an MBA from Harvard Business School and a law degree from the UI.

Bromwell was an assistant Linn County attorney when he was recruited by local Republicans to run for Congress.

“He'd been in the military, he'd been Harvard-educated. He was a prime candidate all around,” Blair said.

He served two terms representing Cedar Rapids and the surrounding area in the old Second District seat.

“I just think he felt a calling, and he felt he was capable,” said Blair, who now lives in Colorado. “He was extremely proud of Iowa.”

Bromwell was defeated by Democrat John Culver in 1964, but not before he'd helped write and pass the Civil Rights Act of 1964.

“That was his proudest achievement,” said Blair. “He felt like he had a lot to contribute to that” as a member of the House Judiciary Committee.

Bromwell mounted an unsuccessful bid for the U.S. Senate in 1968 and “remained interested in politics until the day he died,” Blair said.

After Congress, Bromwell returned to his Cedar Rapids law practice. In 1973 he pleaded guilty in federal court to failing to file income taxes. He was fined $10,000, and his license to practice law was suspended for 18 months, His law license was also suspended for six months in 1986, for neglecting an estate he was administering and failing to cooperate with investigators.