Jesse William James (October 10, 1904 – September 29, 1977) was an American politician from
Texas
Texas (, ; Spanish language, Spanish: ''Texas'', ''Tejas'') is a state in the South Central United States, South Central region of the United States. At 268,596 square miles (695,662 km2), and with more than 29.1 million residents in 2 ...
. A member of the
Democratic Party Democratic Party most often refers to:
*Democratic Party (United States)
Democratic Party and similar terms may also refer to:
Active parties Africa
*Botswana Democratic Party
*Democratic Party of Equatorial Guinea
*Gabonese Democratic Party
*Demo ...
, James served as
Texas State Treasurer
Texas State Treasurer was an elected constitutional officer in the executive branch of the state government of Texas, responsible for overseeing the financial operations of state government. The position was established in the Constitution of ...
from 1941 until his death in 1977. His near 36-year tenure made him the longest serving Texas State Treasurer.
James served in the
Texas House of Representatives
The Texas House of Representatives is the lower house of the bicameral Texas Legislature. It consists of 150 members who are elected from single-member districts for two-year terms. As of the 2010 United States census, each member represents abou ...
from 1933 to 1937, when he resigned to accept a position in the office of the state treasurer. When the incumbent state treasurer,
Charley Lockhart Charley R. Lockhart (August 1876 - 1954) was Texas State Treasurer from 1931 - 1941. He was the shortest Texas elected official at 3'9" (114 cm) tall.
Early life
Lockhart born in Dallas County, Texas in August 1876 to John C. R. and Lucretia L ...
, resigned due to poor health,
Governor
A governor is an administrative leader and head of a polity or political region, ranking under the head of state and in some cases, such as governors-general, as the head of state's official representative. Depending on the type of political ...
Coke R. Stevenson
Coke Robert Stevenson (March 20, 1888 – June 28, 1975) was an American politician who served as the 35th governor of Texas from 1941 to 1947. He was the first Texan politician to hold its three highest offices (Speaker of the Texas House ...
appointed James to the office. James continued to be reelected as state treasurer until he died in office. He was succeeded by
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 ...
, whom James had defeated for reelection in 1956.
Early life
James was born on October 10, 1904, in Sand Grove, south of
Milano, Texas
Milano is a city in Milam County, Texas, United States, located at the intersection of U.S. Route 79 and State Highway 36, twelve miles southeast of Cameron, the county seat. Its population was 390 at the 2020 census.
On November 5, 1960, countr ...
, in
Milam County
Milam County is a county located in the U.S. state of Texas. As of the 2020 census, its population was 24,754. The county seat is Cameron. The county was created in 1834 as a municipality in Mexico and organized as a county in 1837. Milam Cou ...
, to John A. and Delia James. Jesse was one of 11 children. His father worked on a local railroad and was called "
Jesse James
Jesse Woodson James (September 5, 1847April 3, 1882) was an American outlaw, bank and train robber, guerrilla and leader of the James–Younger Gang. Raised in the " Little Dixie" area of Western Missouri, James and his family maintained stro ...
" by his associates; as a result, he decided to name his son after the bank- and train-robber.
James was raised in
Thorndale, Texas
Thorndale is a city in Milam County, Texas, with a small part in Williamson County. The population was 1,263 at the 2020 census. It was founded in 1878 about 3 miles west of its present site, and moved to its current site in 1880.
History
Ant ...
.
His father died when he was young, and Jesse assisted his mother in raising his ten siblings.
[ He graduated college with a degree in business administration and graduated from ]Jefferson Law School
+Law schools
Texas
Law schools
A law school (also known as a law centre or college of law) is an institution specializing in legal education, usually involved as part of a process for becoming a lawyer within a given jurisdiction.
Law ...
. He became a merchant in his home county.
Career
In 1932, James was nominated by the Democratic Party Democratic Party most often refers to:
*Democratic Party (United States)
Democratic Party and similar terms may also refer to:
Active parties Africa
*Botswana Democratic Party
*Democratic Party of Equatorial Guinea
*Gabonese Democratic Party
*Demo ...
for the Texas House of Representatives
The Texas House of Representatives is the lower house of the bicameral Texas Legislature. It consists of 150 members who are elected from single-member districts for two-year terms. As of the 2010 United States census, each member represents abou ...
seat for District 65, representing parts of Milam, Burleson, and Lee
Lee may refer to:
Name
Given name
* Lee (given name), a given name in English
Surname
* Chinese surnames romanized as Li or Lee:
** Li (surname 李) or Lee (Hanzi ), a common Chinese surname
** Li (surname 利) or Lee (Hanzi ), a Chinese ...
counties. He won the election, and was sworn into the House in 1933. He was reelected twice. In 1937, Charley Lockhart Charley R. Lockhart (August 1876 - 1954) was Texas State Treasurer from 1931 - 1941. He was the shortest Texas elected official at 3'9" (114 cm) tall.
Early life
Lockhart born in Dallas County, Texas in August 1876 to John C. R. and Lucretia L ...
, the Texas State Treasurer
Texas State Treasurer was an elected constitutional officer in the executive branch of the state government of Texas, responsible for overseeing the financial operations of state government. The position was established in the Constitution of ...
, appointed James as the first assistant chief clerk. James resigned from the Texas House to take the role on September 1.
In October 1941, Lockhart resigned from office due to poor health.[ ]Coke R. Stevenson
Coke Robert Stevenson (March 20, 1888 – June 28, 1975) was an American politician who served as the 35th governor of Texas from 1941 to 1947. He was the first Texan politician to hold its three highest offices (Speaker of the Texas House ...
, the Governor of Texas
The governor of Texas heads the state government of Texas. The governor is the leader of the executive and legislative branch of the state government and is the commander in chief of the Texas Military. The current governor is Greg Abbott, who ...
, appointed James to succeed him on October 25. 1941.[ In James' first election as Texas State Treasurer in 1942, he finished in second place out of five candidates in the ]primary election
Primary elections, or direct primary are a voting process by which voters can indicate their preference for their party's candidate, or a candidate in general, in an upcoming general election, local election, or by-election. Depending on the ...
, but emerged victorious in the runoff election
The two-round system (TRS), also known as runoff voting, second ballot, or ballotage, is a voting method used to elect a single candidate, where voters cast a single vote for their preferred candidate. It generally ensures a majoritarian resul ...
. In 1950, he was selected as the first vice president of the National Association of State Auditors, Comptrollers and Treasurers. Later in his career, he was criticized for keeping the state's funds in checking accounts rather than savings accounts, with one political challenger claiming that this cost the state an estimated $91 million in interest.[
James faced few strong challenges for reelection after his initial election in 1942, often running unopposed in the general election as no ]Republican Party
Republican Party is a name used by many political parties around the world, though the term most commonly refers to the United States' Republican Party.
Republican Party may also refer to:
Africa
*Republican Party (Liberia)
* Republican Part ...
candidate would file to run against him.[ He was challenged by ]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 ...
, then the county treasurer for Dallas County Dallas County may refer to:
Places in the USA:
* Dallas County, Alabama, founded in 1818, the first county in the United States by that name
* Dallas County, Arkansas
* Dallas County, Iowa
* Dallas County, Missouri
* Dallas County, Texas, the nint ...
in the Democratic primary in 1956, who James defeated. James drew Democratic and Republican challengers in 1974, receiving only 54% of the vote in the Democratic primary that year due to the strong challenge from Don Yarbrough
Donald Burt Yarbrough (born August 5, 1941 in Dallas, Texas) served as a justice of the Texas Supreme Court until being forced to resign on charges of crimes for which he later spent six years in prison.
Yarbrough ran for the Texas Supreme Court ...
.[ In total, James was re-elected 18 times, a Texas state record.]
Personal life
James married Mary Zana Belle, who was from Mansfield, Texas
Mansfield is a suburban city in the U.S. state of Texas, and is part of the Dallas–Fort Worth metroplex area. The city is located mostly in Tarrant county, with small parts in Ellis and Johnson counties. Its location is approximately 30 miles f ...
, and worked as a teacher in Thorndale. They lived in Milam County,[ and had a daughter named Doris and two grandchildren.] James also sold boats and developed the Lake Travis Lodges.
Later in life, James developed health complications. He had diabetes, causing poor blood circulation and had two amputations performed on his left leg: around the calf muscle in December 1976 and above the knee in January 1977. He was hospitalized at Seton Medical Center in Austin, Texas
Austin is the capital city of the U.S. state of Texas, as well as the county seat, seat and largest city of Travis County, Texas, Travis County, with portions extending into Hays County, Texas, Hays and Williamson County, Texas, Williamson co ...
, on September 19. He suffered a fatal heart attack on September 29, and was buried in the Texas State Cemetery
The Texas State Cemetery (TSC) is a cemetery located on about just east of downtown Austin, the capital of the U.S. state of Texas. Originally the burial place of Edward Burleson, Texas Revolutionary general and vice-president of the Republic of ...
in Austin.
References
External links
*
{{DEFAULTSORT:James, Jesse
1904 births
1977 deaths
Burials at Texas State Cemetery
Democratic Party members of the Texas House of Representatives
State treasurers of Texas
20th-century American politicians
People from Milam County, Texas
Businesspeople from Texas
20th-century American businesspeople