Henry Clay "Happy" Sevier, Sr. (January 24, 1896 – June 1, 1974) was a

lawyer A lawyer is a person who practices law. The role of a lawyer varies greatly across different legal jurisdictions. A lawyer can be classified as an advocate, attorney, barrister, canon lawyer, civil law notary, counsel, counselor, solic ...

and politician from Tallulah,

Louisiana Louisiana , group=pronunciation (French: ''La Louisiane'') is a state in the Deep South and South Central regions of the United States. It is the 20th-smallest by area and the 25th most populous of the 50 U.S. states. Louisiana is borde ...

. One of a large political family, he served from 1936 to 1952 as a Democratic member of the

Louisiana House of Representatives The Louisiana House of Representatives (french: link=no, Chambre des Représentants de Louisiane) is the lower house in the Louisiana State Legislature, the state legislature of the U.S. state of Louisiana. This chamber is composed of 105 repr ...

from

Madison Parish Madison Parish ( French: ''Paroisse de Madison'') is a parish located on the northeastern border of the U.S. state of Louisiana, in the delta lowlands along the Mississippi River. As of the 2010 census, the population was 12,093. Its parish ...

Early life and family

Sevier was born in 1896 in

Madison Parish, Louisiana Madison Parish (French language, French: ''Paroisse de Madison'') is a List of parishes in Louisiana, parish located on the northeastern border of the U.S. state of Louisiana, in the delta lowlands along the Mississippi River. As of the 2010 ...

, a son of the former Roxie Roberta Allen and James Douglas Sevier, Sr., a native of

Port Gibson Port Gibson is a city in Claiborne County, Mississippi, United States. The population was 1,567 at the 2010 census. Port Gibson is the county seat of Claiborne County, which is bordered on the west by the Mississippi River. It is the site of th ...

, in Claiborne County in southwestern

Mississippi Mississippi () is a state in the Southeastern region of the United States, bordered to the north by Tennessee; to the east by Alabama; to the south by the Gulf of Mexico; to the southwest by Louisiana; and to the northwest by Arkansas. Miss ...

. His parents moved to Madison Parish in 1880, where his father became a planter. Sevier attended local segregated schools for his lower education. He graduated in 1917 from

Louisiana State University Louisiana State University (officially Louisiana State University and Agricultural and Mechanical College, commonly referred to as LSU) is a public land-grant research university in Baton Rouge, Louisiana. The university was founded in 1860 nea ...

Baton Rouge Baton Rouge ( ; ) is a city in and the capital of the U.S. state of Louisiana Louisiana , group=pronunciation (French: ''La Louisiane'') is a state in the Deep South and South Central regions of the United States. It is the 20th-sma ...

. His father's family were descended from

John Sevier John Sevier (September 23, 1745 September 24, 1815) was an American soldier, frontiersman, and politician, and one of the founding fathers of the State of Tennessee. A member of the Democratic-Republican Party, he played a leading role in Tennes ...

, a veteran of the

American Revolution The American Revolution was an ideological and political revolution that occurred in British America between 1765 and 1791. The Americans in the Thirteen Colonies formed independent states that defeated the British in the American Revolut ...

, and pioneer and first

governor of Tennessee The governor of Tennessee is the head of government of the U.S. state of Tennessee. The governor is the only official in Tennessee state government who is directly elected by the voters of the entire state. The current governor is Bill Lee, a ...

. He was the namesake of

Sevierville Sevierville ( ) is a city in and the county seat of Sevier County, Tennessee, located in eastern Tennessee. The population was 17,889 at the 2020 United States Census. History Native Americans of the Woodland period were among the first human ...

in Sevier County in eastern

Tennessee Tennessee ( , ), officially the State of Tennessee, is a landlocked state in the Southeastern region of the United States. Tennessee is the 36th-largest by area and the 15th-most populous of the 50 states. It is bordered by Kentucky to th ...

. His line became prominent in northeastern Louisiana. One of Henry's cousins was

Andrew L. Sevier Andrew is the English form of a given name common in many countries. In the 1990s, it was among the top ten most popular names given to boys in English-speaking countries. "Andrew" is frequently shortened to "Andy" or "Drew". The word is derived ...

, who served as a

Louisiana State Senator The Louisiana State Senate (french: Sénat de Louisiane) is the upper house of the state legislature of Louisiana. All senators serve four-year terms and are assigned to multiple committees. Composition The Louisiana State Senate is compose ...

with repeated reelection, from 1932 until his death in office in 1962. During World War I, Henry Sevier served as a

second lieutenant Second lieutenant is a junior commissioned officer military rank in many armed forces, comparable to NATO OF-1 rank. Australia The rank of second lieutenant existed in the military forces of the Australian colonies and Australian Army until ...

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 ...

. He was wounded sixteen times in

France France (), officially the French Republic ( ), is a country primarily located in Western Europe. It also comprises of Overseas France, overseas regions and territories in the Americas and the Atlantic Ocean, Atlantic, Pacific Ocean, Pac ...

, and received the

Purple Heart The Purple Heart (PH) is a United States military decoration awarded in the name of the President to those wounded or killed while serving, on or after 5 April 1917, with the U.S. military. With its forerunner, the Badge of Military Merit, w ...

and the

Silver Star The Silver Star Medal (SSM) is the United States Armed Forces' third-highest military decoration for valor in combat. The Silver Star Medal is awarded primarily to members of the United States Armed Forces for gallantry in action against an e ...

medals.

Marriage and family

After the war, in 1918 Sevier married the former Retta Brooks (1899-1992) of

Shreveport Shreveport ( ) is a city in the U.S. state of Louisiana. It is the third most populous city in Louisiana after New Orleans and Baton Rouge, Louisiana, Baton Rouge, respectively. The Shreveport–Bossier City metropolitan area, with a population o ...

in northwestern Louisiana. The couple had three children: Carolyn S. Yerger (1921-1997), who married Rufus Taft Yerger, Sr. (1914-1973); Roberta Sevier Gandy (1924-2006), who married Robert Wyly Gandy, Jr. (1915-1987), and Henry Clay Sevier, Jr. (born c. 1926), who became an attorney and a partner in his father's law firm for a time. He later moved to Covington in

St. Tammany Parish St. Tammany Parish (french: Paroisse de Saint-Tammany) is a parish located in the U.S. state of Louisiana named after Tamanend, the legendary Lenape Chief of Chiefs and the "Patron Saint of America." At the 2020 census, the population was 2 ...

Graduate school and career

Sevier and his wife went to New York City, where he completed postgraduate work at

Columbia University Columbia University (also known as Columbia, and officially as Columbia University in the City of New York) is a private research university in New York City. Established in 1754 as King's College on the grounds of Trinity Church in Manhatt ...

in 1921. He graduated from the

Louisiana State University Law Center The Paul M. Hebert Law Center, often styled "LSU Law", is a public law school in Baton Rouge, Louisiana. It is part of the Louisiana State University System and located on the main campus of Louisiana State University. Because Louisiana is a ci ...

, and they settled in Tallulah. There Sevier entered into practice with

Jefferson B. Snyder Jefferson B. Snyder (January 19, 1859 – October 18, 1951), was a lawyer and politician from the Mississippi River River delta, delta country of northeastern Louisiana. Snyder became a virtual political boss of Madison Parish, Louisiana, Mad ...

of Tallulah, the

political boss In politics, a boss is a person who controls a faction or local branch of a political party. They do not necessarily hold public office themselves; most historical bosses did not, at least during the times of their greatest influence. Numerous off ...

of the

delta Delta commonly refers to: * Delta (letter) (Δ or δ), a letter of the Greek alphabet * River delta, at a river mouth * D (NATO phonetic alphabet: "Delta") * Delta Air Lines, US * Delta variant of SARS-CoV-2 that causes COVID-19 Delta may also re ...

parishes in northeastern Louisiana. Snyder wielded power for more than 40 years as the regional

district attorney In the United States, a district attorney (DA), county attorney, state's attorney, prosecuting attorney, commonwealth's attorney, or state attorney is the chief prosecutor and/or chief law enforcement officer representing a U.S. state in a l ...

, from 1904 to 1948."Jeff B. Snyder Succumbs Thursday At Vicksburg Hospital: Body of Prominent Figure Lay In State at Tallulah Courthouse Thursday", ''Madison Journal'', October 19, 1951, p. 1 Sevier decided to enter politics. A member of the Democratic Party, in 1936 Sevier was elected to the Louisiana House from Madison Parish to succeed fellow Democrat,

Mason Spencer Leonard Mason Spencer (June 11, 1892 – June 12, 1962) was a lawyer and planter from Tallulah, Louisiana, who was from 1924 to 1936 a Democratic member of the Louisiana House of Representatives for Madison Parish, located alongside t ...

of Tallulah. Spencer was the husband of his Sevier cousin, Rosa Vertner Sevier Spencer (1891-1978). Sevier was elected a few months after the assassination of Governor

Huey Pierce Long, Jr. Huey Pierce Long Jr. (August 30, 1893September 10, 1935), nicknamed "the Kingfish", was an American politician who served as the 40th governor of Louisiana from 1928 to 1932 and as a United States senator from 1932 until his assassination ...

At the time, there was much voter sympathy for the pro-Long faction. The staunchly anti-

Long Long may refer to: Measurement * Long, characteristic of something of great duration * Long, characteristic of something of great length * Longitude (abbreviation: long.), a geographic coordinate * Longa (music), note value in early music mensur ...

Mason Spencer had earlier announced that he would run for governor, but he withdrew before the election.

Richard Leche Richard Webster Leche (May 17, 1898 – February 22, 1965) was an American attorney, judge, and politician, elected as the 44th Governor of the U.S. state of Louisiana. He served from 1936 until 1939, when he resigned. Convicted on federal ...

New Orleans New Orleans ( , ,New Orleans
Merriam-Webster. ; french: La Nouvelle-Orléans , es, Nuev ...

, the choice of the Long faction, won the election uncontested. After his law partner Snyder died in 1951, Sevier formed the Sevier, Yerger, and Sevier law firm in Tallulah. (His son Henry became an attorney and his partner in the firm for a period of time.) The senior Sevier was also president of the Tallulah State Bank and Trust Company. Given these additional responsibilities, and having served eight terms in the state house, he chose not to run again after his term ending in 1952. Like Snyder, Sevier was active in the Democratic State Central Committee. He was the national committeeman during the first administration of Governor

Jimmie Davis James Houston Davis (September 11, 1899 – November 5, 2000) was an American politician, singer and songwriter of both sacred and popular songs. Davis was elected for two nonconsecutive terms from 1944 to 1948 and from 1960 to 1964 as the ...

.''

Baton Rouge Morning Advocate ''The Advocate'' is Louisiana's largest daily newspaper. Based in Baton Rouge, it serves the southern portion of the state. Separate editions for New Orleans, '' The Times-Picayune The New Orleans Advocate'', and for Acadiana, ''The Acadiana ...

'', June 2, 1974 Afterward he was selected as the state Democratic Party chairman under Governor

Earl Kemp Long Earl Kemp Long (August 26, 1895 – September 5, 1960) was an American politician and the 45th governor of Louisiana, serving three nonconsecutive terms. Long, known as "Uncle Earl", connected with voters through his folksy demeanor and c ...

. He belonged to the

Presbyterian Presbyterianism is a part of the Reformed tradition within Protestantism that broke from the Roman Catholic Church in Scotland by John Knox, who was a priest at St. Giles Cathedral (Church of Scotland). Presbyterian churches derive their nam ...

church with his wife. He was affiliated with the 6th Judicial District Bar Association,

Rotary International Rotary International is one of the largest service organizations in the world. Its stated mission is to "provide service to others, promote integrity, and advance world understanding, goodwill, and peace through hefellowship of business, prof ...

, and the

Masonic lodge A Masonic lodge, often termed a private lodge or constituent lodge, is the basic organisational unit of Freemasonry. It is also commonly used as a term for a building in which such a unit meets. Every new lodge must be warranted or chartered ...

. Sevier died in 1974 in Mercy Hospital in

Vicksburg Vicksburg most commonly refers to: * Vicksburg, Mississippi, a city in western Mississippi, United States * The Vicksburg Campaign, an American Civil War campaign * The Siege of Vicksburg, an American Civil War battle Vicksburg is also the name of ...

, Mississippi. Along with many Sevier family members, Sevier and his wife are interred at Silver Cross Cemetery in Tallulah.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Sevier, Henry Clay 1896 births 1974 deaths People from Tallulah, Louisiana Democratic Party members of the Louisiana House of Representatives Louisiana lawyers American bankers American Presbyterians United States Army personnel of World War I United States Army officers Recipients of the Silver Star Louisiana State University alumni Columbia University alumni Louisiana State University Law Center alumni 20th-century American politicians 20th-century American lawyers