Joseph Edwin Lockridge (July 15, 1932 – May 3, 1968) was one of the first African Americans to serve in the Texas House of Representatives since

Reconstruction Reconstruction may refer to: Politics, history, and sociology *Reconstruction (law), the transfer of a company's (or several companies') business to a new company *''Perestroika'' (Russian for "reconstruction"), a late 20th century Soviet Union ...

, representing the 33rd District in

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 nin ...

. He was elected alongside State Senator

Barbara Jordan Barbara Charline Jordan (February 21, 1936 – January 17, 1996) was an American lawyer, educator, and politician. A Democrat, she was the first African American elected to the Texas Senate after Reconstruction and the first Southern African-A ...

and state representative

Curtis Graves Curtis M. Graves (August 26, 1938 – July 26, 2023) was an American civil rights activist and politician in the state of Texas. He was one of the first African Americans to serve in the Texas House of Representatives since the Reconstruction. ...

Early life

Lockridge was born to Reverend Leroy R. Lockridge and Demover (Gregory) Lockridge on July 15, 1932, in Waco, Texas. He received a bachelor's degree from

Southern University Southern University and A&M College (Southern University, Southern, SUBR or SU) is a public historically black land-grant university in Baton Rouge, Louisiana. It is the largest historically black college or university (HBCU) in Louisiana, a ...

, in

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 ...

, and a

Juris Doctor The Juris Doctor (J.D. or JD), also known as Doctor of Jurisprudence (J.D., JD, D.Jur., or DJur), is a graduate-entry professional degree in law and one of several Doctor of Law degrees. The J.D. is the standard degree obtained to practice law ...

from

Howard University Howard University (Howard) is a private, federally chartered historically black research university in Washington, D.C. It is classified among "R2: Doctoral Universities – High research activity" and accredited by the Middle States Commissi ...

Washington, D.C. ) , image_skyline = , image_caption = Clockwise from top left: the Washington Monument and Lincoln Memorial on the National Mall, United States Capitol, Logan Circle, Jefferson Memorial, White House, Adams Morgan, ...

He was 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 ...

during the

Korean War , date = {{Ubl, 25 June 1950 – 27 July 1953 (''de facto'')({{Age in years, months, weeks and days, month1=6, day1=25, year1=1950, month2=7, day2=27, year2=1953), 25 June 1950 – present (''de jure'')({{Age in years, months, weeks a ...

. In 1960, he was admitted to the

Texas State Bar The State Bar of Texas (the Texas Bar) is an agency of the judiciary under the administrative control of the Texas Supreme Court. It is responsible for assisting the Texas Supreme Court in overseeing all attorneys licensed to practice law in Te ...

. He worked in private legal practice until 1966, when he was elected to the Texas State House.

Legislative career

Lockridge was a member of the 60th Texan legislature. He received committee assignments to the Education, House State Affairs, Federal Relations, Mental Retardation and Penitentiary committees. His legislative focus was on mental health. His primary legislative accomplishment was a law that created

halfway houses A halfway house is an institute for people with criminal backgrounds or substance use disorder problems to learn (or relearn) the necessary skills to re-integrate into society and better support and care for themselves. As well as serving as a ...

to aid recovering mental health patients in re-integrating into communities. By resolution, his colleagues in the legislature named him "Rookie

reshman Reshma ( ur, ; c.1947 – 3 November 2013), was a Pakistani folk singer. Awarded with Sitara-e-Imtiaz (Star of Distinction), the third highest honour and civilian award in Pakistan among other honours, she is remembered for folk songs and ...

of the Year". His service in the legislature was abruptly cut short when he died in the crash of

Braniff Flight 352 Braniff International Airways Flight 352 was a scheduled domestic flight from William P. Hobby Airport in Houston, Texas, United States, to Dallas Love Field in Dallas; on May 3, 1968, a Lockheed L-188A Electra flying on the route, registration ...

Death and legacy

Lockridge died on May 3, 1968, when

broke up in the air. He was returning to Dallas from an event at

Prairie View A&M College Prairie View A&M University (PVAMU or PV) is a Public university, public Historically black colleges and universities, historically black land-grant university in Prairie View, Texas. Founded in 1876, it is one of Texas's two land-grant univers ...

(now

Prairie View A&M University Prairie View A&M University (PVAMU or PV) is a public historically black land-grant university in Prairie View, Texas. Founded in 1876, it is one of Texas's two land-grant universities and the second oldest public institution of higher learnin ...

). There were calls for his wife, Eva Lockridge, to replace him, but she declined. A special election was held June 18, 1968. Lockridge was succeeded by Zan Holmes. After his death, he was honored by members of the Golden Gate Missionary Baptist Church through the creation of the Golden Gate Joseph E. Lockridge Scholarship Foundation. The first scholarships were given in 1970. As of 2012, there have been 190 Lockridge Scholars. Recipients are selected from high school graduating classes in or near Dallas County. The foundation restricts its scholarships to Christian applicants who are US citizens, and selects based on academic performance.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Lockridge, Joe Democratic Party members of the Texas House of Representatives African-American state legislators in Texas Texas Southern University alumni 1932 births 1968 deaths 20th-century American politicians 20th-century African-American politicians