James Spainhower (August 3, 1928 – December 12, 2018) was an American Democratic politician from

Missouri Missouri is a state in the Midwestern region of the United States. Ranking 21st in land area, it is bordered by eight states (tied for the most with Tennessee): Iowa to the north, Illinois, Kentucky and Tennessee to the east, Arkansas t ...

. He served four terms in the

Missouri House of Representatives The Missouri House of Representatives is the lower chamber of the Missouri General Assembly. It has 163 members, representing districts with an average size of 37,000 residents. House members are elected for two-year terms during general elections ...

and two terms as the State Treasurer of Missouri.

Early life

Jim Spainhower was born in Stanberry, Missouri, the youngest of fourteen children. He attended in elementary school in Stanberry, and attended Maryville High School in

Maryville, Missouri Maryville is a city and county seat of Nodaway County, Missouri, United States. Located in the "Missouri Point" region, As of the 2020 census, the city population was 10,633. Maryville is home to Northwest Missouri State University and Northwes ...

, graduating in 1946. Following graduation from high school, he attended

Phillips University Phillips University was a private university Enid, Oklahoma. It opened in 1906 and closed in 1998. It was affiliated with the Christian Church (Disciples of Christ). It included an undergraduate college and a graduate seminary. The university wa ...

Enid, Oklahoma Enid ( ) is the ninth-largest city in the U.S. state of Oklahoma. It is the county seat of Garfield County. As of the 2020 census, the population was 51,308. Enid was founded during the opening of the Cherokee Outlet in the Land Run of 1893, a ...

, earning a bachelor's degree in history in 1950. Three years later, in 1953, he earned a bachelor's degree in divinity from Lexington Theological Seminary. On June 10, 1950, he married the former Joanne Steanson of

Ponca City, Oklahoma Ponca City ( iow, Chína Uhánⁿdhe) is a city in Kay County in the U.S. state of Oklahoma. The city was named after the Ponca tribe. Ponca City had a population of 25,387 at the time of the 2010 census- and a population of 24,424 in the 2020 ...

. The couple has two children. Prior to entering politics, he served as an ordained Disciples of Christ minister, serving pastorates in Fayetteville, Arkansas,

Marshall, Missouri Marshall is a city in Saline County, Missouri, United States. The population was 13,065 at the 2010 census. It is the county seat of Saline County. The Marshall Micropolitan Statistical Area consists of Saline County. It is home to Missouri Val ...

Bosworth, Missouri Bosworth is a city in Carroll County, Missouri, Carroll County, Missouri, United States. The population was 213 at the 2020 United States census, 2020 U.S. Census. History Bosworth was laid out in 1888, and named for a settler. A post office call ...

Mendon, Missouri Mendon is a city in western Chariton County, Missouri, United States. The population was 163 at the 2020 census. History Mendon was laid out in 1871 by Christopher Shupe. However, the area had previously had some homes, and businesses were in o ...

Grand Pass, Missouri Grand Pass is a village in Saline County, Missouri, United States. The population was 66 at the 2010 census. History Grand Pass was named from the Great Osage Trail that passed through the town. In 1943, German and Italian prisoners of World ...

and

Oakland, Missouri Oakland is a city in St. Louis County, Missouri, United States. The population was 1,381 at the 2010 census. Geography Oakland is located at (38.575869, -90.384539). According to the United States Census Bureau, the city has a total area of , ...

. He received both his master's degree and Ph.D in Political Science from the

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

, as well as numerous honorary doctorates from colleges and universities throughout the country. Jim's brother, John Spainhower, a long-time coach and athletic director at Kirksville

High School A secondary school describes an institution that provides secondary education and also usually includes the building where this takes place. Some secondary schools provide both '' lower secondary education'' (ages 11 to 14) and ''upper seconda ...

is a member of the Missouri Football Coaches Association Hall of Fame.

Political career

From 1963 to 1970, he served in the

, where he was a member of the House Appropriations Committee and Chairman of the House Education Committee. During his tenure in the state legislature, he also earned master's and doctoral degrees in political science from the

. In 1972, he was elected as State Treasurer of Missouri, and served from 1973 to 1981 in that post. Unable to seek a third term as State Treasurer in 1980, he was an unsuccessful candidate for

Governor of Missouri 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 ...

, losing 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 ...

nomination to incumbent Joseph P. Teasdale. Spainhower threw his hat into the ring for the 1976 United States Senate election in Missouri after the initial Democratic nominee

Jerry Litton Jerry Lon Litton (May 12, 1937 – August 3, 1976) was an American politician from Missouri who served as a member of the United States House of Representatives representing Missouri's 6th congressional district from 1973 until his death in ...

was killed while flying to the victory party. On August 21, the Democratic state committee selected

Warren E. Hearnes Warren Eastman Hearnes (July 24, 1923 – August 16, 2009) was an American politician who served as the 46th governor of Missouri from 1965 to 1973. A member of the Democratic Party, he was the first officeholder eligible to serve two consecuti ...

as the replacement nominee over Spainhower by a 38 to 22 vote. Hearnes lost the general election to

John Danforth John Claggett Danforth (born September 5, 1936) is an American politician, attorney and diplomat who began his career in 1968 as the Attorney General of Missouri and served three terms as United States Senator from Missouri. In 2004, he served br ...

who garnered 56.9% of the vote.

Later career

Following his tenure as State Treasurer, he held the posts of President of the

College of the Ozarks College of the Ozarks is a private Christian college in Point Lookout, Missouri. The college has an enrollment of 1,426 and over 30 academic majors in Bachelor of Arts and Bachelor of Science programs.https://www.usnews.com/best-colleges/college ...

Point Lookout, Missouri Point Lookout is an unincorporated community in Oliver Township, Taney County, Missouri, United States, near Branson and Hollister. Point Lookout is in U.S. post office ZIP code 65726. Point Lookout is part of the Branson Micropolitan Statistica ...

, President of

Lindenwood University Lindenwood University is a private university in St. Charles, Missouri. Founded in 1827 by George Champlin Sibley and Mary Easton Sibley as The Lindenwood School for Girls, it is the second-oldest higher-education institution west of the Mis ...

St. Charles, Missouri Saint Charles (commonly abbreviated St. Charles) is a city in, and the county seat of, St. Charles County, Missouri, United States. The population was 65,794 at the 2010 census, making St. Charles the ninth-largest city in Missouri. Situated on t ...

and President of the Division of Higher Education for the Disciples of Christ denomination. He and his wife subsequently moved to

Rogers, Arkansas Rogers is a city in Benton County, Arkansas, United States. Located in the Ozarks, it is part of the Northwest Arkansas region, one of the fastest growing metro areas in the country. Rogers was the location of the first Walmart store, whose cor ...

, where he served as interim pastor at several churches in

Bella Vista, Arkansas Bella Vista is a city in Benton County, Arkansas, United States. First established in 1917 as a summer resort destination, Bella Vista has evolved and redesigned itself over the succeeding years. Bella Vista became a retirement community in 1965 ...

Harrison, Arkansas Harrison is a city and the county seat of Boone County, Arkansas, United States. It is named after General Marcus LaRue Harrison, a surveyor who laid out the city along Crooked Creek at Stifler Springs. According to 2019 Census Bureau estima ...

and

Bentonville, Arkansas Bentonville is the tenth-largest city in Arkansas, United States and the county seat of Benton County. The city is centrally located in the county with Rogers adjacent to the east. The city is the birthplace of and world headquarters locatio ...

. He and his wife lived in

Raymore, Missouri Raymore is a city in Cass County, Missouri, United States, within the Kansas City Metropolitan Area. Raymore is one of the fastest-growing cities in the state of Missouri. The population was 21,676 at the 2020 census. History Raymore was plat ...

until the time of his death.Obituary , James I. Spainhower of Raymore, Missouri , Cullen Funeral Home, Inc.
Retrieved 2019-04-12.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Spainhower, Jim 1928 births 2018 deaths Phillips University alumni Lexington Theological Seminary alumni People from Gentry County, Missouri People from Maryville, Missouri People from Raymore, Missouri University of Missouri alumni Christian Church (Disciples of Christ) clergy Democratic Party members of the Missouri House of Representatives State treasurers of Missouri American Disciples of Christ College of the Ozarks alumni People from Rogers, Arkansas Presidents of Lindenwood University