Ossee Lee Bodenhamer (June 27, 1891 – June 19, 1933) was an American businessman who served as the 12th national commander of

The American Legion The American Legion, commonly known as the Legion, is a non-profit organization of U.S. war veterans headquartered in Indianapolis, Indiana. It is made up of state, U.S. territory, and overseas departments, and these are in turn made up of lo ...

from 1929 to 1930.

Biography

Ossee Lee Bodenhamer was born in Goldthwaite,

Texas Texas (, ; Spanish language, Spanish: ''Texas'', ''Tejas'') is a state in the South Central United States, South Central region of the United States. At 268,596 square miles (695,662 km2), and with more than 29.1 million residents in 2 ...

, graduating from

Baylor University Baylor University is a private Baptist Christian research university in Waco, Texas. Baylor was chartered in 1845 by the last Congress of the Republic of Texas. Baylor is the oldest continuously operating university in Texas and one of the fir ...

with a

bachelor's degree A bachelor's degree (from Middle Latin ''baccalaureus'') or baccalaureate (from Modern Latin ''baccalaureatus'') is an undergraduate academic degree awarded by colleges and universities upon completion of a course of study lasting three to six ...

in 1914. 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 ...

, he served in Georgia, Ohio, and Texas as an infantry officer. After the war, Bodenhamer moved to

El Dorado El Dorado (, ; Spanish for "the golden"), originally ''El Hombre Dorado'' ("The Golden Man") or ''El Rey Dorado'' ("The Golden King"), was the term used by the Spanish in the 16th century to describe a mythical tribal chief (''zipa'') or king o ...

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 ...

, where he established a successful real estate company. At the 11th national convention in 1929, he was unanimously elected national commander of The American Legion. In 1932, he unsuccessfully sought the Democratic nomination for the

U.S. 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 powe ...

, losing in the

primary election Primary elections, or direct primary are a voting process by which voters can indicate their preference for their party's candidate, or a candidate in general, in an upcoming general election, local election, or by-election. Depending on the ...

Hattie Caraway Hattie Ophelia Wyatt Caraway (February 1, 1878 – December 21, 1950) was an Americans, American politician who became the first woman elected to serve a full term as a United States Senate, United States Senator. Caraway represented Arkansas. Sh ...

. He died in

Shreveport Shreveport ( ) is a city in the U.S. state of Louisiana. It is the third most populous city in Louisiana after New Orleans and Baton Rouge, Louisiana, Baton Rouge, respectively. The Shreveport–Bossier City metropolitan area, with a population o ...

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-smallest by area and the 25th most populous of the 50 U.S. states. Louisiana is borde ...

, on June 19, 1933.

Honors

Doctor of Laws A Doctor of Law is a degree in law. The application of the term varies from country to country and includes degrees such as the Doctor of Juridical Science (J.S.D. or S.J.D), Juris Doctor (J.D.), Doctor of Philosophy (Ph.D.), and Legum Doctor (LL. ...

(''

honoris causa 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 ...

''),

, 1930

Notes

References

External links

* *
O. L. Bodenhamer
at

The Political Graveyard The Political Graveyard is a website and database that catalogues information on more than 277,000 American political figures and political families, along with other information. The name comes from the website's inclusion of burial locations of ...

{{DEFAULTSORT:Bodenhamer, O. L. 20th-century American businesspeople 20th-century American educators 20th-century Baptists American real estate brokers Arkansas Democrats Baptists from Texas Baylor University alumni Burials in Arkansas Deaths from fire in the United States Howard Payne University alumni Language teachers Lions Clubs International Military personnel from Texas National Commanders of the American Legion People from Brownwood, Texas People from El Dorado, Arkansas People from Goldthwaite, Texas People from Mason, Texas Schoolteachers from Texas Southern Baptists Texas Oil Boom people United States Army officers United States Army personnel of World War I

Biography

Honors

See also

Notes

References

External links