John Jacob Riley (February 1, 1895 – January 1, 1962) 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
South Carolina
)''Animis opibusque parati'' ( for, , Latin, Prepared in mind and resources, links=no)
, anthem = " Carolina";" South Carolina On My Mind"
, Former = Province of South Carolina
, seat = Columbia
, LargestCity = Charleston
, LargestMetro = ...
, husband of
Corinne Boyd Riley
Corinne Boyd Riley (July 4, 1893 – April 12, 1979) was a U.S. Representative from South Carolina, wife of John Jacob Riley.
Born in Piedmont, South Carolina, Riley attended public school. She graduated from Converse College, Spartanburg, ...
.
Early life
Born on a farm near
Orangeburg, South Carolina
Orangeburg, also known as ''The Garden City'', is the principal city in and the county seat of Orangeburg County, South Carolina, United States. The population of the city was 13,964 according to the 2010 United States Census and declined to 12 ...
, Riley attended the public schools in Orangeburg County. His grandfather, Onan Beverly Riley (1844-1945), was a Confederate veteran. He graduated from
Wofford College
Wofford College is a private liberal arts college in Spartanburg, South Carolina. It was founded in 1854. The campus is a national arboretum and one of the few four-year institutions in the southeastern United States founded before the America ...
in
Spartanburg, South Carolina
Spartanburg is a city in and the county seat, seat of Spartanburg County, South Carolina, United States. The city of Spartanburg has a municipal population of 38,732 as of the 2020 United States census, 2020 census, making it the 11th-largest c ...
, in 1915. Riley taught in the Orangeburg city schools 1915–1917, and at
Clemson Agricultural and Mechanical College in 1917 and 1918.
During the First World War served in the
United States Navy
The United States Navy (USN) is the maritime service branch of the United States Armed Forces and one of the eight uniformed services of the United States. It is the largest and most powerful navy in the world, with the estimated tonnage ...
as a seaman, second class, and as a yeoman, third class, from 1918 to 1919. After the war, he engaged in the real estate and insurance business in
Sumter, South Carolina
Sumter ( ) is a city in and the county seat of Sumter County, South Carolina, United States. Known as the Sumter Metropolitan Statistical Area, the namesake county adjoins Clarendon and Lee to form the core of Sumter-Lee-Clarendon Tri-county (o ...
from 1919 to 1945, and served as secretary of a building and loan association from 1923 to 1945.
Political career
Riley served as delegate to the Democratic State conventions from 1928 to 1944. He was elected as a
Democrat
Democrat, Democrats, or Democratic may refer to:
Politics
*A proponent of democracy, or democratic government; a form of government involving rule by the people.
*A member of a Democratic Party:
**Democratic Party (United States) (D)
**Democratic ...
to the Seventy-ninth and Eightieth Congresses (January 3, 1945 – January 3, 1949). He was an unsuccessful candidate for renomination in 1948, but won the nomination again in 1950.
Riley was elected to the Eighty-second and to the five succeeding Congresses and served from January 3, 1951, until his death at Surfside, near
Myrtle Beach, South Carolina
Myrtle Beach is a resort city on the east coast of the United States in Horry County, South Carolina. It is located in the center of a long and continuous stretch of beach known as "The Grand Strand" in the northeastern part of the state. Its y ...
, January 1, 1962.
Riley Park (Sumter)
Riley Park is a stadium in Sumter, South Carolina, located at Church Street & DuBose Street, 29150. It is primarily used for baseball, has housed Sumter minor league baseball teams and is currently home to the University of South Carolina Sum ...
was named after him.
He was interred in Sumter Cemetery,
Sumter, South Carolina
Sumter ( ) is a city in and the county seat of Sumter County, South Carolina, United States. Known as the Sumter Metropolitan Statistical Area, the namesake county adjoins Clarendon and Lee to form the core of Sumter-Lee-Clarendon Tri-county (o ...
.
He was a signatory to the 1956
Southern Manifesto
The Declaration of Constitutional Principles (known informally as the Southern Manifesto) was a document written in February and March 1956, during the 84th United States Congress, in opposition to racial integration of public places. The manife ...
that opposed the desegregation of public schools ordered by the Supreme Court in ''
Brown v. Board of Education
''Brown v. Board of Education of Topeka'', 347 U.S. 483 (1954), was a landmark decision by the U.S. Supreme Court, which ruled that U.S. state laws establishing racial segregation in public schools are unconstitutional, even if the segregat ...
''.
See also
*
Sources
External links
*
{{DEFAULTSORT:Riley, John Jacob
1895 births
1962 deaths
Wofford College alumni
United States Navy sailors
Democratic Party members of the United States House of Representatives from South Carolina
20th-century American politicians
United States Navy personnel of World War I
American segregationists