Benjamin Elias Cabell (November 18, 1858 – February 8, 1931), attorney, was mayor of
Dallas
Dallas () is the List of municipalities in Texas, third largest city in Texas and the largest city in the Dallas–Fort Worth metroplex, the List of metropolitan statistical areas, fourth-largest metropolitan area in the United States at 7.5 ...
from 1900 to 1904.
Biography
Benjamin Elias Cabell was born November 18, 1858, in
Fort Smith, Arkansas
Fort Smith is the third-largest city in Arkansas and one of the two county seats of Sebastian County. As of the 2020 Census, the population was 89,142. It is the principal city of the Fort Smith, Arkansas–Oklahoma Metropolitan Statistical Are ...
, the oldest of eight children - of which 5 survived infancy - to the then future C.S. Army Brigadier General
William Lewis Cabell
William Lewis Cabell (January 1, 1827 – February 21, 1911) was an American engineer, lawyer, businessman, and politician who served as the 14th, 16th and 20th mayor of Dallas (1874–1876, 1877–1879 and 1883–1885). Prior to that, he ...
and Harriet Amanda Rector. In December 1872, he and his brothers and sisters were moved by his parents from Arkansas to Texas where the family would maintain their roots for the remainder of the 19th and through the 20th centuries.
He married Sadie E. Pearre, daughter of Judge Charles Baer Pearre and Harriet “Hallie” Kelly Earle, on November 26, 1896, in Waco, Texas. They had three surviving sons: Ben Elias Cabell, Jr.,
Charles Pearre Cabell
Charles Pearre Cabell (October 11, 1903 – May 25, 1971) was a United States Air Force general and Deputy Director of the Central Intelligence Agency (1953–1962).
Early life
Charles P. Cabell was born in Dallas, Texas on October 11, 1903, th ...
, and
Earle Cabell
Earle Cabell (October 27, 1906 – September 24, 1975) was a Texas politician who served as mayor of Dallas, Texas. Cabell was mayor at the time of the assassination of United States President John F. Kennedy and was later a member of the U.S. H ...
. A fourth son, William Lewis Cabell, who would have been the oldest, died at birth.
He spent part of his youth as a mining prospector in New Mexico, Arizona, California, and Lower California (Mexico). He returned to Dallas and entered the livery business. When his father was appointed U.S. Marshall for the Northern District of Texas, he was appointed Deputy Marshall. He was elected Sheriff of Dallas County in 1892 and held the office until 1900. He was elected mayor in 1900. His father,
William Lewis Cabell
William Lewis Cabell (January 1, 1827 – February 21, 1911) was an American engineer, lawyer, businessman, and politician who served as the 14th, 16th and 20th mayor of Dallas (1874–1876, 1877–1879 and 1883–1885). Prior to that, he ...
, and his son,
Earle Cabell
Earle Cabell (October 27, 1906 – September 24, 1975) was a Texas politician who served as mayor of Dallas, Texas. Cabell was mayor at the time of the assassination of United States President John F. Kennedy and was later a member of the U.S. H ...
, also served the city as mayor. While mayor he oversaw the construction of Bachman Lake dam as part of the city water system. He was director of the State Fair of Texas, chairman of the State Penitentiary Board. He was a member of the Sons of the Confederacy, Knights of Pythias and the Elks.
["Former Dallas Mayor And Ex-Pearce Office Ben E. Cabell Dies." ''The Dallas Morning News.'' February 3, 1931,p. 1, 16]
On February 8, 1931, Ben E. Cabell died at Fort Sam Houston, Bexar County, Texas. He was interred at Greenwood Cemetery, Dallas, Texas.
[Texas State Department of Health. Bureau of Vital Statistics. Standard Certificate of Death. Ben E. Cabell. No. 6250]
References
{{DEFAULTSORT:Cabell, Ben E.
1858 births
1931 deaths
Mayors of Dallas
Politicians from Fort Smith, Arkansas
Texas sheriffs
Cabell family