Francis Eugene Worley (October 10, 1908 – December 17, 1974) was a

United States 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 ...

from

Texas Texas (, ; Spanish language, Spanish: ''Texas'', ''Tejas'') is a state in the South Central United States, South Central region of the United States. At 268,596 square miles (695,662 km2), and with more than 29.1 million residents in 2 ...

and later an

Associate Judge Associate justice or associate judge (or simply associate) is a judicial panel member who is not the chief justice in some jurisdictions. The title "Associate Justice" is used for members of the Supreme Court of the United States and some state ...

and Chief Judge of the

United States Court of Customs and Patent Appeals The United States Court of Customs and Patent Appeals (CCPA) was a United States federal court which existed from 1909 to 1982 and had jurisdiction over certain types of civil disputes. History The CCPA began as the United States Court of Customs ...

Education and career

Born on October 10, 1908, in

Lone Wolf, Oklahoma Lone Wolf is a town in Kiowa County, Oklahoma, United States. The population was 438 at the 2010 census, a decline of 12.4 percent from 500 in 2000. The town was named for Chief Lone Wolf (1843–1923), a warrior chief of the Kiowa who fought to ...

, Worley moved to

Shamrock, Texas Shamrock is a city in Wheeler County, Texas, United States. As of the 2010 census, the city had a total population of 1,910. The city is located in the eastern portion of the Texas Panhandle centered along the crossroads of Interstate 40 (formerl ...

in 1922, attending the public schools. He attended the Agricultural and Mechanical College of Texas (now

Texas A&M University Texas A&M University (Texas A&M, A&M, or TAMU) is a public, land-grant, research university in College Station, Texas. It was founded in 1876 and became the flagship institution of the Texas A&M University System in 1948. As of late 2021, T ...

) in 1927 and 1928, and the

University of Texas School of Law The University of Texas School of Law (Texas Law) is the law school of the University of Texas at Austin. Texas Law is consistently ranked as one of the top law schools in the United States and is highly selective—registering the 8th lowest ac ...

from 1930 to 1935. He was admitted to the bar in 1935 and entered private practice in Shamrock from 1935 to 1941. He was a member of the

Texas House of Representatives The Texas House of Representatives is the lower house of the bicameral Texas Legislature. It consists of 150 members who are elected from single-member districts for two-year terms. As of the 2010 United States census, each member represents abou ...

from 1935 to 1940. He was a

from Texas from 1941 to 1950. He was a lieutenant commander in the

United States Naval Reserve The United States Navy Reserve (USNR), known as the United States Naval Reserve from 1915 to 2005, is the Reserve Component (RC) of the United States Navy. Members of the Navy Reserve, called Reservists, are categorized as being in either the Sele ...

during

World War II World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposin ...

from 1941 to 1942, while a Member of Congress.

Congressional service

Worley won the Democratic primary nomination following a mass campaign including many high school students. He was elected to the

77th United States Congress The 77th United States Congress was a meeting of the legislative branch of the United States federal government, composed of the United States Senate and the United States House of Representatives. It met in Washington, DC from January 3, 1941, ...

and reelected to the four succeeding Congresses and served from January 3, 1941, until his resignation April 3, 1950. He served as Chairman of the Committee on Election of President, Vice President, and Representatives in the

78th United States Congress The 78th United States Congress was a meeting of the legislative branch of the United States federal government, composed of the United States Senate and the United States House of Representatives. It met in Washington, DC from January 3, 1943, ...

. In the 1948 general election, Worley handily defeated the Republican Party nominee, Texas historian and rancher

J. Evetts Haley ''J. The Jewish News of Northern California'', formerly known as ''Jweekly'', is a weekly print newspaper in Northern California, with its online edition updated daily. It is owned and operated by San Francisco Jewish Community Publications In ...

, who ran for governor as a Democrat in 1956 and then returned to the GOP to support Barry M. Goldwater in 1964. Worley's most notable electoral opponent during his Congressional years was LaMarr Bailey, a World War II veteran who ran as an anti-New Dealer. Bailey campaigned around the district on a horse."Candidate Travels by Horseback to Avoid New Deal," The Canyon News, June 15, 1944, p. 1 Bailey lost the Democratic Primary to Worley in 1944.

Federal judicial service

Worley was nominated by President

Harry S. Truman Harry S. Truman (May 8, 1884December 26, 1972) was the 33rd president of the United States, serving from 1945 to 1953. A leader of the Democratic Party, he previously served as the 34th vice president from January to April 1945 under Franklin ...

on February 24, 1950, to an Associate Judge seat on the

vacated by Judge Charles Sherrod Hatfield. He was confirmed by the

United States Senate The United States Senate is the upper chamber of the United States Congress, with the House of Representatives being the lower chamber. Together they compose the national bicameral legislature of the United States. The composition and pow ...

on March 8, 1950, and received his commission on March 9, 1950. Worley was initially appointed as a Judge under

Article I Article One may refer to: Legal codes * Article One of the United States Constitution, pertaining to the powers of the United States Congress * Article One of the Constitution of India, pertaining to the federal nature of the republic Other us ...

, but the court was raised to Article III status by

operation of law The phrase "by operation of law" is a legal term that indicates that a right or liability has been created for a party, irrespective of the intent of that party, because it is dictated by existing legal principles. For example, if a person dies wi ...

on August 25, 1958, and Worley thereafter served as an Article III Judge. His service terminated on April 30, 1959, due to his elevation to be Chief Judge of the same court. Worley was nominated by President

Dwight D. Eisenhower Dwight David "Ike" Eisenhower (born David Dwight Eisenhower; ; October 14, 1890 – March 28, 1969) was an American military officer and statesman who served as the 34th president of the United States from 1953 to 1961. During World War II, ...

on March 25, 1959, to the Chief Judge seat on the

vacated by Judge

Noble J. Johnson Noble Jacob Johnson (August 23, 1887 – March 17, 1968) was a United States representative from Indiana and an United States federal judge, Associate Judge and Chief Judge of the United States Court of Customs and Patent Appeals. Education and ...

. He was confirmed by the

on April 29, 1959, and received his commission on April 30, 1959. He was a member of the

Judicial Conference of the United States The Judicial Conference of the United States, formerly known as the Conference of Senior Circuit Judges, was created by the United States Congress in 1922 with the principal objective of framing policy guidelines for administration of judicial cour ...

from 1961 to 1972. He assumed

senior status Senior status is a form of semi-retirement for United States federal judges. To qualify, a judge in the Federal judiciary of the United States, federal court system must be at least 65 years old, and the sum of the judge's age and years of servi ...

due to a certified disability on June 26, 1972. His service terminated on December 17, 1974, due to his death.

Death

Worley resided in

Arlington County, Virginia Arlington County is a County (United States), county in the Virginia, Commonwealth of Virginia. The county is situated in Northern Virginia on the southwestern bank of the Potomac River directly across from the Washington, D.C., District of Co ...

during his court service. He died on December 17, 1974, in

Naples Naples (; it, Napoli ; nap, Napule ), from grc, Νεάπολις, Neápolis, lit=new city. is the regional capital of Campania and the third-largest city of Italy, after Rome and Milan, with a population of 909,048 within the city's adminis ...

Florida Florida is a state located in the Southeastern region of the United States. Florida is bordered to the west by the Gulf of Mexico, to the northwest by Alabama, to the north by Georgia, to the east by the Bahamas and Atlantic Ocean, and to ...

. He was cremated and his ashes interred at

Columbia Gardens Cemetery The Columbia Gardens Cemetery is a cemetery located in the Ashton Heights Historic District of Arlington, Virginia Cemetery The Columbia Gardens Cemetery is located at the southern boundary of the Ashton Heights Historic District and is one o ...

in Arlington County.

References

Sources

External links

to the languase {{DEFAULTSORT:Worley, Francis Eugene 1908 births 1974 deaths 20th-century American lawyers Democratic Party members of the United States House of Representatives from Texas Judges of the United States Court of Customs and Patent Appeals Democratic Party members of the Texas House of Representatives People from Arlington County, Virginia People from Lone Wolf, Oklahoma People from Shamrock, Texas Texas A&M University alumni Texas lawyers United States Article I federal judges appointed by Harry S. Truman 20th-century American judges United States Navy officers 20th-century American politicians United States federal judges appointed by Dwight D. Eisenhower