Joseph Franklin Wilson (March 18, 1901 – October 13, 1968) 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 Texas.

Early years

Joseph Franklin Wilson was born in Corsicana,

Navarro County, Texas Navarro County ( ) is a county in the U.S. state of Texas. As of the 2020 census, the population was 52,624. Its county seat is Corsicana. The county is named for José Antonio Navarro, a Tejano leader in the Texas Revolution who signed th ...

, March 18, 1901. He attended the elementary school at Corsicana. In 1913, he moved with his family to the Texas Panhandle community of Memphis, Texas in Hall County. Wilson attended the Memphis public schools until 1916. From September 1917 to June 1918, he was enrolled at Peacock Military College in San Antonio. From September 1918 to June 1919, Wilson attended the Tennessee Military Institute. In 1923, Wilson graduated from Baylor Law School in Waco, Texas and was admitted to the bar the same year. Wilson moved to Dallas and began his law practice.

Public service

Wilson was a delegate to the

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 ...

in 1936. He was chairman of the Dallas County Democratic Executive Committee 1942–1945. In the 1946 Texas Congressional election, Wilson defeated primary opponent

Sarah T. Hughes Sarah Tilghman Hughes (August 2, 1896 – April 23, 1985) was an American lawyer and federal judge who served on the United States District Court for the Northern District of Texas. She is best known as the judge who swore in Lyndon B. Johnson as ...

by 14,000 votes. Hughes years later would administer the oath of office to

President Lyndon B. Johnson Lyndon Baines Johnson (; August 27, 1908January 22, 1973), often referred to by his initials LBJ, was an American politician who served as the 36th president of the United States from 1963 to 1969. He had previously served as the 37th vice ...

aboard

Air Force One Air Force One is the official air traffic control designated call sign for a United States Air Force aircraft carrying the president of the United States. In common parlance, the term is used to denote U.S. Air Force aircraft modified and used ...

on November 22, 1963. Wilson defeated Republican L.W. Stayart in the 1946 general election. He was re-elected in 1948 by defeating Joe Bailey Irwin. In 1950 and 1952, Wilson ran unopposed for re-election. Wilson was not a candidate for renomination in 1954.

Judicial career

Wilson served as district judge of the criminal district court of Texas in 1943 and 1944, being known as Judge J. Frank Wilson. He was appointed judge of Criminal District Court No. 1, Dallas, Texas, in 1955, in which capacity he served until September 1968. During the

Jack Ruby Jack Leon Ruby (born Jacob Leon Rubenstein; April 25, 1911January 3, 1967) was an American nightclub owner and alleged associate of the Chicago Outfit who murdered Lee Harvey Oswald on November 24, 1963, two days after Oswald was accused of th ...

trial in Dallas, Wilson was granted a vacation so that his larger courtroom could accommodate Judge Joe B. Brown for the Ruby Trial. Wilson interrupted his vacation to fill in for the ailing Judge Brown.

Personal life

Wilson married Ruby Lee Hopkins in 1926. The couple had a son Joseph Franklin Wilson Jr, and a daughter Marion Sue. He retired due to illness and died in Dallas, Texas, October 13, 1968.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Wilson, Joseph Franklin 1901 births 1968 deaths People from Corsicana, Texas People from Memphis, Texas Politicians from Dallas Baylor Law School alumni Burials at Sparkman-Hillcrest Memorial Park Cemetery Texas state court judges Democratic Party members of the United States House of Representatives from Texas 20th-century American judges 20th-century American politicians