Emmet O'Neal (April 14, 1887 – July 18, 1967) was a

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

Kentucky Kentucky ( , ), officially the Commonwealth of Kentucky, is a state in the Southeastern region of the United States and one of the states of the Upper South. It borders Illinois, Indiana, and Ohio to the north; West Virginia and Virginia to ...

and an ambassador to the

Philippines The Philippines (; fil, Pilipinas, links=no), officially the Republic of the Philippines ( fil, Republika ng Pilipinas, links=no), * bik, Republika kan Filipinas * ceb, Republika sa Pilipinas * cbk, República de Filipinas * hil, Republ ...

. A member of the

Centre College Centre College is a private liberal arts college in Danville, Kentucky. It is an undergraduate college with an enrollment of approximately 1,400 students. Centre was officially chartered by the Kentucky General Assembly in 1819. The college is ...

Athletic Hall of Fame, his brother was

Louisville Louisville ( , , ) is the largest city in the Commonwealth of Kentucky and the 28th most-populous city in the United States. Louisville is the historical seat and, since 2003, the nominal seat of Jefferson County, on the Indiana border. ...

Mayor Joseph T. O'Neal. O'Neal was born in Louisville to Joseph T. O'Neal, Sr. and Lydia Elizabeth (Wright). O'Neal was the youngest of four children in his family and he graduated from Centre College in

Danville, Kentucky Danville is a home rule-class city in Boyle County, Kentucky, United States. It is the seat of its county. The population was 17,236 at the 2020 Census. Danville is the principal city of the Danville Micropolitan Statistical Area, which includes ...

in 1907. During his tenure at Centre College, he participated in

football Football is a family of team sports that involve, to varying degrees, kicking a ball to score a goal. Unqualified, the word ''football'' normally means the form of football that is the most popular where the word is used. Sports commonly c ...

basketball Basketball is a team sport in which two teams, most commonly of five players each, opposing one another on a rectangular Basketball court, court, compete with the primary objective of #Shooting, shooting a basketball (ball), basketball (appr ...

baseball Baseball is a bat-and-ball sport played between two teams of nine players each, taking turns batting and fielding. The game occurs over the course of several plays, with each play generally beginning when a player on the fielding tea ...

, and

tennis Tennis is a racket sport that is played either individually against a single opponent ( singles) or between two teams of two players each ( doubles). Each player uses a tennis racket that is strung with cord to strike a hollow rubber ball ...

in which he won a championship title. In 1906–07, he led the football, basketball and baseball squad. He kicked one drop kick for 48 yards. O'Neal would be inducted into the Centre College Athletic Hall of Fame in 2006. O'Neal graduated from

Yale University Yale University is a private research university in New Haven, Connecticut. Established in 1701 as the Collegiate School, it is the third-oldest institution of higher education in the United States and among the most prestigious in the wo ...

in 1908 and from the law department of the

University of Louisville The University of Louisville (UofL) is a public research university in Louisville, Kentucky. It is part of the Kentucky state university system. When founded in 1798, it was the first city-owned public university in the United States and one of ...

in 1910. He was following his father and brothers' footsteps as they were all lawyers. O'Neal was

admitted to the bar An admission to practice law is acquired when a lawyer receives a license to practice law. In jurisdictions with two types of lawyer, as with barristers and solicitors, barristers must gain admission to the bar whereas for solicitors there are dist ...

in 1910 and started his law practice in Louisville. During

World War I World War I (28 July 1914 11 November 1918), often abbreviated as WWI, was one of the deadliest global conflicts in history. Belligerents included much of Europe, the Russian Empire, the United States, and the Ottoman Empire, with fightin ...

, O'Neal served overseas in the

United States Army The United States Army (USA) is the land service branch of the United States Armed Forces. It is one of the eight U.S. uniformed services, and is designated as the Army of the United States in the U.S. Constitution.Article II, section 2, cla ...

. O'Neal was enlisted in the Fifth Field Artillery in the First Division and as an officer in the One Hundred and Third Field Artillery in the Twenty-sixth Division from 1917 to 1919. Following the war he resumed the practice of law in Louisville and later became involved in banking. O'Neal went into politics being elected as a

Democrat Democrat, Democrats, or Democratic may refer to: Politics *A proponent of democracy, or democratic government; a form of government involving rule by the people. *A member of a Democratic Party: **Democratic Party (United States) (D) **Democratic ...

to the

Seventy-fourth Congress The 74th 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, 1935, ...

from Kentucky's 3rd District and to the five succeeding Congresses (January 3, 1935 - January 3, 1947). He was an unsuccessful candidate for reelection in 1946 to the Eightieth Congress losing to

Thruston Ballard Morton Thruston Ballard Morton (August 19, 1907 – August 14, 1982) was an American politician. A Republican, Morton represented Kentucky in the U.S. House of Representatives and the U.S. Senate. Early life Morton was born on August 19, 1907, ...

. The following year, he served as an ambassador to the Philippines from September 22, 1947 to April 28, 1948. After serving as an ambassador O'Neal resumed the practice of law in

Washington, D.C. ) , image_skyline = , image_caption = Clockwise from top left: the Washington Monument and Lincoln Memorial on the National Mall, United States Capitol, Logan Circle, Jefferson Memorial, White House, Adams Morgan, ...

He became active in the Corregidor-Bataan Memorial Commission and would eventually become a

chairman The chairperson, also chairman, chairwoman or chair, is the presiding officer of an organized group such as a board, committee, or deliberative assembly. The person holding the office, who is typically elected or appointed by members of the grou ...

for the commission. O'Neal died in Washington and was interred in

Cave Hill Cemetery Cave Hill Cemetery is a Victorian era National Cemetery and arboretum located at Louisville, Kentucky. Its main entrance is on Baxter Avenue and there is a secondary one on Grinstead Drive. It is the largest cemetery by area and number of buria ...

in Louisville.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Oneal, Emmet 1887 births 1967 deaths Politicians from Louisville, Kentucky United States Army officers Democratic Party members of the United States House of Representatives from Kentucky University of Louisville School of Law alumni Yale University alumni Ambassadors of the United States to the Philippines Baseball players from Louisville, Kentucky Players of American football from Louisville, Kentucky American athlete-politicians American football drop kickers Centre Colonels football players Centre Colonels baseball players 20th-century American politicians 20th-century American diplomats Burials at Cave Hill Cemetery

See also

References