Frank Parks Briggs (February 25, 1894September 23, 1992) was a

United States senator The United States Senate is the Upper house, upper chamber of the United States Congress, with the United States House of Representatives, House of Representatives being the Lower house, lower chamber. Together they compose the national Bica ...

from

Missouri Missouri is a U.S. state, state in the Midwestern United States, Midwestern region of the United States. Ranking List of U.S. states and territories by area, 21st in land area, it is bordered by eight states (tied for the most with Tennessee ...

, and succeeded

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 ...

when Truman was elected vice president.

Biography

Frank P. Briggs was born in

Armstrong, Missouri Armstrong is a city in Howard County, Missouri, United States. The population was 243 at the 2020 census. It is part of the Columbia, Missouri Metropolitan Statistical Area. History Armstrong was platted in 1878, and named after one Mr. Armstro ...

on February 25, 1894. He attended the schools of Armstrong and Fayette, and was a student at Central College from 1911 to 1914. He graduated from the

University of Missouri The University of Missouri (Mizzou, MU, or Missouri) is a public university, public Land-grant university, land-grant research university in Columbia, Missouri. It is Missouri's largest university and the flagship of the four-campus Universit ...

in Columbia in 1915. Briggs became active in the newspaper and publishing businesses in

Macon, Missouri Macon is a city in and the county seat of Macon County, Missouri, United States. The population was 5,457 at the 2020 census. History Macon was platted in 1856. Like the county, Macon was named for Nathaniel Macon. A post office called Macon Cit ...

as owner of the '' Macon Chronicle-Herald''. In addition to serving as editor and publisher, Briggs was also the author of a regular column, "It Seems to B". 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 ...

, he was mayor of Macon from 1930 to 1932, and a member of the

Missouri Senate The Missouri Senate is the upper chamber of the Missouri General Assembly. It has 34 members, representing districts with an average population of 174,000. Its members serve four-year terms, with half the seats being up for election every two yea ...

from 1933 to 1944. On January 18, 1945, Briggs was appointed to the U.S. Senate to fill the vacancy caused by the resignation of

. He served from January 18, 1945 to January 3, 1947, and was an unsuccessful candidate for election to the full term in 1946. After leaving the Senate, Briggs resumed work in his newspaper and publishing businesses. He was a longtime member of the Missouri State Conservation Commission, and served four terms as its chairman. From 1961 to 1965 he was United States Assistant

Secretary of the Interior Secretary of the Interior may refer to: * Secretary of the Interior (Mexico) * Interior Secretary of Pakistan * Secretary of the Interior and Local Government (Philippines) * United States Secretary of the Interior See also

*Interior ministry ...

for Fish and Wildlife. Briggs sold his newspaper in 1973, after which he lived in retirement in Macon. He died at Samaritan Hospital in Macon on September 23, 1992, and was buried at Walnut Ridge Cemetery in Fayette.

Family

Briggs was married to the former Catherine Shull. They were the parents of three daughters, Ruth, Betty, Dorothy and two sons Eugene, and Tommy.

References

* * {{DEFAULTSORT:Briggs, Frank P. 1894 births 1992 deaths Mayors of places in Missouri Democratic Party Missouri state senators University of Missouri alumni Politicians from Columbia, Missouri Democratic Party United States senators from Missouri 20th-century American politicians Businesspeople from Columbia, Missouri People from Howard County, Missouri People from Macon, Missouri 20th-century American businesspeople