William Courtland Lantaff (July 31, 1913 – January 28, 1970) was an American lawyer, jurist, and politician who served as a Democratic

U.S. Representative The United States House of Representatives, often referred to as the House of Representatives, the U.S. House, or simply the House, is the lower chamber of the United States Congress, with the Senate being the upper chamber. Together they c ...

from Florida. He also served as State court judge in Florida and as a member of the

Florida House of Representatives The Florida House of Representatives is the lower house of the Florida Legislature, the state legislature of the U.S. state of Florida, the Florida Senate being the upper house. Article III, Section 1 of the Constitution of Florida, adopted ...

Life and career

Lantaff's family moved to Jacksonville, Florida in 1921 and to Miami, Florida in 1929. He graduated from the University of Florida (where he was a member of Phi Kappa Tau fraternity) in 1935 and from the University of Florida College of Law in 1936. He was admitted to the Florida bar in 1937 and practiced law in Miami, serving as assistant city judge of

Miami Beach Miami Beach is a coastal resort city in Miami-Dade County, Florida. It was incorporated on March 26, 1915. The municipality is located on natural and man-made barrier islands between the Atlantic Ocean and Biscayne Bay, the latter of which sep ...

in 1939 and 1940. He was inducted into the Florida National Guard as a first lieutenant in January 1941 where he served as executive officer for the Military Intelligence Division of the War Department General Staff. He was discharged as a lieutenant colonel in November 1945 but returned to active duty from September through December 1950, while he was running for Congress. He appeared on the January 25, 1953 episode of the panel show What's My Line? as a contestant.What's My Line? - Margaret Truman (Jan 25, 1953)
/ref> Lantaff was a delegate to the 1956 and 1960

Democratic National Convention The Democratic National Convention (DNC) is a series of presidential nominating conventions held every four years since 1832 by the United States Democratic Party. They have been administered by the Democratic National Committee since the 1852 ...

s. At the conclusion of his political career, he returned to the law and was involved in banking and advertising. In 1967, he became a founding board member of the Dade Community Foundation.

Death

He died in 1970 at the age of 56 and is buried in Woodlawn Park Cemetery and Mausoleum (now

Caballero Rivero Woodlawn North Park Cemetery and Mausoleum Caballero Rivero Woodlawn North Park Cemetery and Mausoleum is one of the oldest cemeteries in Miami, Florida. Woodlawn Park Cemetery-North was established in 1913 by three pioneers in Miami’s early history – Thomas O. Wilson, William N. Urme ...

), Miami.

References

External links

* 1913 births 1970 deaths Politicians from Buffalo, New York Florida state court judges Democratic Party members of the Florida House of Representatives University of Florida alumni Businesspeople from Florida Democratic Party members of the United States House of Representatives from Florida Florida lawyers 20th-century American businesspeople 20th-century American politicians 20th-century American judges Lawyers from Buffalo, New York Fredric G. Levin College of Law alumni 20th-century American lawyers {{Florida-state-judge-stub