Joseph Taggart (June 15, 1867 – December 3, 1938) was a lawyer and a Democratic member of the

U.S. House of Representatives 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 ...

, representing the 2nd Congressional District of Kansas from November 7, 1911, to March 3, 1917. He was born near

Waukon, Iowa Waukon is a city in Makee Township, Allamakee County, Iowa, United States, and the county seat of Allamakee County. The population was 3,827 at the time of the 2020 census. History Waukon is often said to be named for Waukon Decorah, a Ho C ...

, the son of John and Bridget (née McDavitt) Taggart. His mother died when he was an infant. He moved with his father to

Saline County, Kansas Saline County (standard abbreviation: SA) is located in the U.S. state of Kansas. As of the 2020 census, the county population was 54,303. The largest city and county seat is Salina. History Early history For many millennia, the Great Pla ...

in 1885, and attended

Salina Normal University Salina Normal University, sometimes called Salina Normal College, was an independent coeducational normal school established in 1884 in Salina, Kansas, United States. It offered collegiate, normal, business, science, and fine arts courses. The ...

in Salina, graduating in 1890. He taught school in nearby

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in 1892 and 1893, studying law during his evenings and vacations. He was admitted to the bar in 1893, and practiced law in Salina for several years before moving to

Kansas City, Kansas Kansas City, abbreviated as "KCK", is the third-largest city in the U.S. state of Kansas, and the county seat of Wyandotte County. It is an inner suburb of the older and more populous Kansas City, Missouri, after which it is named. As of ...

in 1900. Four years later he was the Democratic nominee for

Wyandotte County Wyandotte County (; county code WY) is a county in the U.S. state of Kansas. As of the 2020 census, the population was 169,245, making it Kansas's fourth-most populous county. Its county seat and most populous city is Kansas City, with which ...

, losing in a close election. He won the office two years later, and was re-elected in 1908 and 1910. He was elected in 1911 to the U.S. House of Representatives, filling a vacancy caused by the death of Alexander C. Mitchell, and was reelected twice. He served in the

Quartermaster Corps Following is a list of Quartermaster Corps, military units, active and defunct, with logistics duties: * Egyptian Army Quartermaster Corps - see Structure of the Egyptian Army * Hellenic Army Quartermaster Corps (''Σώμα Φροντιστών ...

of the

United States Army The United States Army (USA) is the land warfare, land military branch, service branch of the United States Armed Forces. It is one of the eight Uniformed services of the United States, U.S. uniformed services, and is designated as the Army o ...

during

World War I World War I (28 July 1914 11 November 1918), often abbreviated as WWI, was one of the deadliest global conflicts in history. Belligerents included much of Europe, the Russian Empire, the United States, and the Ottoman Empire, with fightin ...

, then resumed his law practice in Kansas City. He was appointed judge of the controversial Kansas Court of Industrial Relations in 1924, serving during its last year of existence.

Death

Taggart died in Wadsworth, Kansas, and is buried in Mount Vernon Cemetery,

Atchison, Kansas Atchison is a city and county seat of Atchison County, Kansas, United States, along the Missouri River. As of the 2020 census, the population of the city was 10,885. The city is named in honor of US Senator David Rice Atchison from Missouri ...

Legacy

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planted in 1917 on the East Grounds of the

U.S. Capitol The United States Capitol, often called The Capitol or the Capitol Building, is the seat of the legislative branch of the United States federal government, which is formally known as the United States Congress. It is located on Capitol Hill at ...

to honor Taggart was assessed as "in poor condition and in decline" by the

Architect of the Capitol The Architect of the Capitol (AOC) is the federal agency responsible for the maintenance, operation, development, and preservation of the United States Capitol Complex. It is an agency of the legislative branch of the federal government and is ...

. It was located at the planned entrance to a new subterranean Capitol Visitor Center scheduled to open in 2006. It was chopped down in 2002, with plans to plant a replacement memorial elsewhere on the Capitol grounds.

External links and sources

Biography
from ''History of Wyandotte County Kansas and its people'' ( published in 1911), transcription hosted by the Kansas State Library * Memorial tree on Capitol grounds:
Capitol Visitor Center Tree Facts
mentioning the assessment of the Taggart memorial tree
Subterranean visitor center taking shape
an AP news article from the

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website mentioning the Taggart memorial tree {{DEFAULTSORT:Taggart, Joseph 1867 births 1938 deaths United States Army personnel of World War I Kansas state court judges Kansas lawyers Democratic Party members of the United States House of Representatives from Kansas Politicians from Salina, Kansas People from Wyandotte County, Kansas