James William Good (September 24, 1866 – November 18, 1929) was an American politician and lawyer from the state of

Iowa Iowa () is a state in the Midwestern region of the United States, bordered by the Mississippi River to the east and the Missouri River and Big Sioux River to the west. It is bordered by six states: Wisconsin to the northeast, Illinois to th ...

, who served in the U.S. House of Representatives and the Cabinet of President

Herbert Hoover Herbert Clark Hoover (August 10, 1874 – October 20, 1964) was an American politician who served as the 31st president of the United States from 1929 to 1933 and a member of the Republican Party, holding office during the onset of the Gr ...

Secretary of War The secretary of war was a member of the U.S. president's Cabinet, beginning with George Washington's administration. A similar position, called either "Secretary at War" or "Secretary of War", had been appointed to serve the Congress of the ...

. He was a member of the Republican Party.

Biography

James William Good was born near Cedar Rapids, Iowa, to Henry and Margaret Combs Good. He studied at

Coe College Coe College is a private liberal arts college in Cedar Rapids, Iowa. It was founded in 1851 and is historically affiliated with the Presbyterian Church (USA). The college is a member of the Associated Colleges of the Midwest and the Associatio ...

, graduating in 1892. He later studied at

University of Michigan Law School The University of Michigan Law School (Michigan Law) is the law school of the University of Michigan, a public research university in Ann Arbor, Michigan. Founded in 1859, the school offers Master of Laws (LLM), Master of Comparative Law (MCL ...

, graduating in 1893. He 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 1893 and began practice in

Indianapolis, Indiana Indianapolis (), colloquially known as Indy, is the state capital and most populous city of the U.S. state of Indiana and the seat of Marion County. According to the U.S. Census Bureau, the consolidated population of Indianapolis and Mari ...

, the same year. He married Lucy Deacon on October 4, 1894. They had two sons, James William, Jr. and Robert Edmund Good. In 1896, Good returned to Cedar Rapids, where he continued to practice law. Good served as the Cedar Rapids City Attorney from 1906 to 1908. Good was a member of the

United States House of Representatives 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 1909 to 1921, where he represented

Iowa's 5th congressional district Iowa's 5th congressional district is an obsolete congressional district in the U.S. state of Iowa. It was last represented by Republican Steve King in 2013, who continued to serve in the U.S. House of Representatives after the district's obsole ...

(then made up of Linn, Grundy, Benton, Marshall, Tama, Jones, and Cedar counties). He became chairman of the

House Appropriations Committee The United States House Committee on Appropriations is a committee of the United States House of Representatives that is responsible for passing appropriation bills along with its Senate counterpart. The bills passed by the Appropriations Commi ...

in 1919, and continued to serve in that position until the end of his service. He was re-elected seven times, and never defeated. But soon after his fellow Republican,

Warren G. Harding Warren Gamaliel Harding (November 2, 1865 – August 2, 1923) was the 29th president of the United States, serving from 1921 until his death in 1923. A member of the Republican Party, he was one of the most popular sitting U.S. presidents. A ...

, was elected president in November 1920, Good disclosed that he would likely resign his seat in Congress and join a

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, law firm, once Good's plan to reorganize the budgetary process was adopted. Good resigned on June 10, 1921.Good Resigns House Seat
" New York Times, 1921-06-10. Republican

Cyrenus Cole Cyrenus Cole (January 13, 1863 – November 14, 1939) was a newspaper editor, newspaper columnist, columnist and historian, then a Republican Party (United States), Republican United States House of Representatives, U.S. Representative from Iowa' ...

of Cedar Rapids won a special election to fill his vacancy, and was sworn in August 1, 1921. In 1928 Good worked to elect

, a fellow Iowa Republican, as President of the United States. When Hoover took office in March 1929, he appointed Good to be the

United States Secretary of War The secretary of war was a member of the U.S. president's Cabinet, beginning with George Washington's administration. A similar position, called either "Secretary at War" or "Secretary of War", had been appointed to serve the Congress of the ...

and Good was soon 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 ...

. He served in that position for eight months until his sudden death from

peritonitis Peritonitis is inflammation of the localized or generalized peritoneum, the lining of the inner wall of the abdomen and cover of the abdominal organs. Symptoms may include severe pain, swelling of the abdomen, fever, or weight loss. One part o ...

caused by a ruptured appendix. He died in

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, on November 18, 1929, shortly after the

Wall Street Crash of 1929 The Wall Street Crash of 1929, also known as the Great Crash, was a major American stock market crash that occurred in the autumn of 1929. It started in September and ended late in October, when share prices on the New York Stock Exchange coll ...

, at the beginning of the Great Depression. He was succeeded by the Under Secretary of War Patrick J. Hurley.

References

, - , - {{DEFAULTSORT:Good, James W. 1866 births 1929 deaths Politicians from Cedar Rapids, Iowa University of Michigan Law School alumni United States Secretaries of War Deaths from peritonitis Coe College alumni Hoover administration cabinet members 20th-century American politicians Illinois Republicans Republican Party members of the United States House of Representatives from Iowa American people of Swiss-German descent