John Netherland Heiskell (November 2, 1872 – December 28, 1972) was a prominent American newspaper editor who served briefly in 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 ...

after being appointed to fill a vacancy. He was the editor of the ''

Arkansas Gazette The ''Arkansas Gazette'' was a newspaper in Little Rock, Arkansas, that was published from 1819 to 1991. It was known as the oldest newspaper west of the Mississippi River. It was located from 1908 until its closing at the now historic Gazette ...

'' from 1902 until his death, and served in the

from

Arkansas Arkansas ( ) is a landlocked state in the South Central United States. It is bordered by Missouri to the north, Tennessee and Mississippi to the east, Louisiana to the south, and Texas and Oklahoma to the west. Its name is from the Osage ...

briefly in 1913. As the result of his long life, Heiskell attained several Senate longevity records, and was the second U.S. Senator to reach the age of 100.

Early life

Heiskell was born in

Rogersville, Tennessee Rogersville is a town in, and the county seat of, Hawkins County, Tennessee, United States. It was settled in 1775 by the grandparents of Davy Crockett. It is named for its founder, Joseph Rogers. Tennessee's second oldest courthouse, the Hawk ...

on November 2, 1872, the son of Carrick White Heiskell and Eliza (Netherland) Heiskell. He was educated at public and private schools in the

Knoxville Knoxville is a city in and the county seat of Knox County in the U.S. state of Tennessee. As of the 2020 United States census, Knoxville's population was 190,740, making it the largest city in the East Tennessee Grand Division and the state's ...

area, and graduated from the

University of Tennessee The University of Tennessee (officially The University of Tennessee, Knoxville; or UT Knoxville; UTK; or UT) is a public land-grant research university in Knoxville, Tennessee. Founded in 1794, two years before Tennessee became the 16th state, ...

in 1893.

Start of career

Heiskell's family had been involved in newspaper publishing and editing for several generations, and Heiskell also pursued a career in journalism. He worked as a reporter for newspapers in Knoxville and

Memphis Memphis most commonly refers to: * Memphis, Egypt, a former capital of ancient Egypt * Memphis, Tennessee, a major American city Memphis may also refer to: Places United States * Memphis, Alabama * Memphis, Florida * Memphis, Indiana * Memp ...

, and reported for the

Associated Press The Associated Press (AP) is an American non-profit news agency headquartered in New York City. Founded in 1846, it operates as a cooperative, unincorporated association. It produces news reports that are distributed to its members, U.S. newspa ...

Chicago (''City in a Garden''); I Will , image_map = , map_caption = Interactive Map of Chicago , coordinates = , coordinates_footnotes = , subdivision_type = Country , subdivision_name ...

and

Louisville Louisville ( , , ) is the largest city in the Commonwealth of Kentucky and the 28th most-populous city in the United States. Louisville is the historical seat and, since 2003, the nominal seat of Jefferson County, on the Indiana border. ...

. In 1902, the Heiskell family bought a controlling interest in the ''

'', and Heiskell became the editor, with his brother Fred taking the position of managing editor. The ''Gazette'' became known for issues-oriented reporting, and Heiskell used it as a platform to advocate for civic and charitable causes. In 1907, he published several editorials calling for construction of a public library in

Little Rock ( The "Little Rock") , government_type = Council-manager , leader_title = Mayor , leader_name = Frank Scott Jr. , leader_party = D , leader_title2 = Council , leader_name2 ...

. His advocacy was successful, and when the library opened, Heiskell received its first library card and an appointment to the board of directors, on which he served until his death. Heiskell's activism also included service on the state Civil Service Commission and Planning Board and the Pulaski County Planning Board. Under the leadership of the Heiskell brothers, their newspaper's circulation nearly doubled in four years. As part of their issues-oriented approach, they remained neutral in Democratic primary contests (then

tantamount to election A safe seat is an electoral district (constituency) in a legislative body (e.g. Congress, Parliament, City Council) which is regarded as fully secure, for either a certain political party, or the incumbent representative personally or a combinati ...

in most of the South) and supported Democratic candidates against Republicans in general elections. An exception was Heiskell's long-term editorial page feud with Governor Jeff Davis, in which Heskiell criticized Davis' record in office, and Davis accused Heskiell of operating a newspaper financed by and beholden to outsiders.

United States Senator

On January 3, 1913, Jeff Davis, who had been elected to the U.S. Senate in 1907, died in office. On January 6, Governor

George Washington Donaghey George Washington Donaghey (July 1, 1856 – December 15, 1937) was an American businessman and the 22nd Governor of the U.S. state of Arkansas from 1909 to 1913. Early life and education Donaghey was born as the oldest of five children to Chri ...

appointed Heiskell to temporarily fill the vacancy until the

Arkansas General Assembly The General Assembly of Arkansas is the state legislature of the U.S. state of Arkansas. The legislature is a bicameral body composed of the upper house Arkansas Senate with 35 members, and the lower Arkansas House of Representatives with 100 ...

could meet to choose a successor. On January 29, the Assembly chose

William Marmaduke Kavanaugh William Marmaduke Kavanaugh (March 3, 1866February 21, 1915) was a Democratic United States Senator from the State of Arkansas. Biography William Marmaduke Kavanaugh was born near Eutaw, Alabama on March 3, 1866. Kavanaugh attended public scho ...

to complete Davis' term, which was scheduled to end on March 3. The legislature also chose Governor

Joseph Taylor Robinson Joseph Taylor Robinson (August 26, 1872 – July 14, 1937), also known as Joe T. Robinson, was an American politician from Arkansas. A member of the Democratic Party, he represented Arkansas in the United States Senate from 1913 to 1937, serving ...

for the full six year Senate term that began on March 4, 1913. As a result of this political maneuvering, Heiskell served as a Senator for 23 days, which remains the shortest period of service ever in the U.S. Senate.

Later career

Heiskell continued to serve as editor of the ''Gazette'', and produced editorials on a wide variety of issues. He advocated for city planning and for the commission form of municipal government. He opposed the Little Rock School Board’s decision to drop German language classes during World War I, and opposed anti-Semitism, though he favored limits on immigration so that recent arrivals could be more easily assimilated. His was also a supporter of Prohibition and women's suffrage, while continuing to advocate for traditional cultural morality. On the issue of race relations, Heskiell's editorials supported segregation with the argument that "separate but equal" was legal and would cause the least conflict. Despite this paternalistic attitude, Heskiell was also an opponent of lynching and called for a grand jury investigation into the Little Rock mob violence that led to John Carter's lynching in 1927. As an avid student of Arkansas history and collector mementos and ephemera, Heskiell created an archive and library which was stored at the Gazette offices, and the Gazette was believed to be the country's only newspaper that employed a full-time staff historian. In 1947, Heskiell selected Harry S. Ashmore to succeed him as executive editor, though Heskiell continued as editor and maintained an active interest in the Gazette's management. When the 1957 desegregation of Little Rock’s Central High School became a contentious issue, Heiskell supported Ashmore's advocacy for obedience to the federal courts. Ashmore's editorials and the Gazette's news coverage of the events surrounding the school's desegregation resulted in the award of two

Pulitzer Prize The Pulitzer Prize () is an award for achievements in newspaper, magazine, online journalism, literature, and musical composition within the United States. It was established in 1917 by provisions in the will of Joseph Pulitzer, who had made h ...

Death and burial

He died in Little Rock on December 28, 1972. He was buried at

Mount Holly Cemetery Mount Holly Cemetery is a historic cemetery located in the Quapaw Quarter area of downtown Little Rock in the U.S. state of Arkansas, and is the burial place for numerous Arkansans of note. It was listed on the National Register of Historic ...

in Little Rock.

Legacy

In 1958, Heiskell received the

Elijah Parish Lovejoy Award The Elijah Parish Lovejoy Award is presented annually by Colby College to a member of the newspaper profession who has contributed to the country's journalistic achievement. The award is named for Elijah Parish Lovejoy, and established in 1952. ...

and the

honorary degree An honorary degree is an academic degree for which a university (or other degree-awarding institution) has waived all of the usual requirements. It is also known by the Latin phrases ''honoris causa'' ("for the sake of the honour") or ''ad hono ...

LL.D. Legum Doctor (Latin: “teacher of the laws”) (LL.D.) or, in English, Doctor of Laws, is a doctorate-level academic degree in law or an honorary degree, depending on the jurisdiction. The double “L” in the abbreviation refers to the early ...

degree from

Colby College Colby College is a private liberal arts college in Waterville, Maine. It was founded in 1813 as the Maine Literary and Theological Institution, then renamed Waterville College after the city where it resides. The donations of Christian philanthr ...

. In addition, he received honorary degrees from

Syracuse University Syracuse University (informally 'Cuse or SU) is a Private university, private research university in Syracuse, New York. Established in 1870 with roots in the Methodist Episcopal Church, the university has been nonsectarian since 1920. Locate ...

Columbia University Columbia University (also known as Columbia, and officially as Columbia University in the City of New York) is a private research university in New York City. Established in 1754 as King's College on the grounds of Trinity Church in Manhatt ...

, and the

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

. In addition, he received the

John Peter Zenger John Peter Zenger (October 26, 1697 – July 28, 1746) was a German printer and journalist in New York City. Zenger printed '' The New York Weekly Journal''. He was accused of libel in 1734 by William Cosby, the royal governor of New York, but ...

Award and an honorary degree from the

University of Arizona The University of Arizona (Arizona, U of A, UArizona, or UA) is a public land-grant research university in Tucson, Arizona. Founded in 1885 by the 13th Arizona Territorial Legislature, it was the first university in the Arizona Territory. T ...

. Despite his short time in the Senate, Heiskell's long life made him the oldest living former Senator from 1966 until his death, and he was the last Senator to have served in the 1910s.

Family

On June 28, 1910, Heiskell married Wilhelmina Mann, the daughter of

George R. Mann George Richard Mann (July 12, 1856 – March 20, 1939) was an American architect, trained at MIT, whose designs included the Arkansas State Capitol. He was the leading architect in Arkansas from 1900 until 1930, and his designs were among the fi ...

, a nationally prominent architect. Their children included Elizabeth (1912-1974), Louise (1921-1990), John Jr. (b. 1914), and Carrick (1917-1943). Elizabeth Keiskell was the wife of screenwriter

Whitfield Cook George Whitfield Cook III (April 9, 1909 – November 12, 2003) was an American writer of screenplays, stage plays, short stories and novels, best known for his contributions to two Alfred Hitchcock films, ''Stage Fright'' and '' Strangers on ...

. Louise was the wife of Hugh B. Patterson, the longtime business manager of the ''Arkansas Gazette''. John Jr. died reaching adulthood. Carrick died in an airplane crash while serving in

World War II World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposin ...

. Heiskell was a grandson of two prominent Tennessee politicians,

John Netherland John Netherland (September 20, 1808 – October 4, 1887) was an American attorney and politician, active primarily in mid-19th century Tennessee. A leader of the state's Whigs, he served in both the Tennessee Senate and Tennessee House of R ...

and

Frederick Heiskell Frederick Steidinger Heiskell (1786 – November 29, 1882) was an American newspaper publisher, politician, and civic leader, active primarily in Knoxville, Tennessee, throughout much of the 19th century. He cofounded the ''Knoxville Register ...

.Marvin Byrd,
A Unionist in East Tennessee: Captain William K. Byrd and the Mysterious Raid of 1861
' (The History Press, 2011), pp. 87, 137.

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Heiskell, John Netherland 1872 births 1972 deaths Politicians from Little Rock, Arkansas People from Rogersville, Tennessee Editors of Arkansas newspapers Elijah Parish Lovejoy Award recipients American newspaper publishers (people) American male journalists American centenarians Democratic Party United States senators from Arkansas Arkansas Democrats Men centenarians