Seaborn Anderson Roddenbery (January 12, 1870 - September 25, 1913) was 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 ...
from the state of
Georgia
Georgia most commonly refers to:
* Georgia (country), a country in the Caucasus region of Eurasia
* Georgia (U.S. state), a state in the Southeast United States
Georgia may also refer to:
Places
Historical states and entities
* Related to the ...
, known for his proposal of an
anti-miscegenation amendment to the
United States Constitution
The Constitution of the United States is the Supremacy Clause, supreme law of the United States, United States of America. It superseded the Articles of Confederation, the nation's first constitution, in 1789. Originally comprising seven ar ...
. He was elected to the
61st Congress
The 61st United States Congress was a meeting of the legislative branch of the United States federal government, composed of the United States Senate and the United States House of Representatives. It met in Washington, D.C., Washington, DC from ...
to replace the deceased
James M. Griggs, and re-elected to the
62nd and
63rd Congresses before dying in office.
Early life and career
Roddenbery was born on a farm in
Decatur County, Georgia
Decatur County is a county located in the U.S. state of Georgia. As of the 2010 census, the population was 27,842. The county seat is Bainbridge.
Decatur County comprises the Bainbridge, GA Micropolitan Statistical Area, which is included ...
, January 12, 1870 to Dr. Seaborn Anderson Roddenbery and Martha America ''Braswell'' Roddenbery.
The name is sometimes misspelled ''Roddenberry''. His grandfather changed the spelling from ''Roddenbury''. The senior Roddenbery was described as a
jack of all trades
Jack of all trades may refer to:
*Jack of all trades, master of none, an aphorism
*"Jack of All Trades", a term to reference one with the ability to be proficient in many areas of life
Film and television
*Jack of All Trades (TV series), ''Jack of ...
, who started making batches of open kettle
sugar cane
Sugarcane or sugar cane is a species of (often hybrid) tall, perennial grass (in the genus ''Saccharum'', tribe Andropogoneae) that is used for sugar production. The plants are 2–6 m (6–20 ft) tall with stout, jointed, fibrous stalks t ...
syrup, in addition to practicing medicine on horseback. As the syrup business grew, Dr. Roddenbery quit the practice of medicine to concentrate on syrup.
That business eventually grew into the W.B. Roddenbery Company, based in
Cairo, Georgia
Cairo () is a city in Grady County, Georgia, United States. As of the 2020 census, the city had a population of 10,179. The city is the county seat of Grady County.
History
Cairo was founded in 1835. It was incorporated as a town in 1870 and as ...
.
The young Roddenbery attended public schools before enrolling at
Mercer University
Mercer University is a private research university with its main campus in Macon, Georgia. Founded in 1833 as Mercer Institute and gaining university status in 1837, it is the oldest private university in the state and enrolls more than 9,000 ...
.
His studies there only lasted three years, when he was forced to withdraw due to family finances.
In 1891, he was elected to represent his home district in the
Georgia House of Representatives
The Georgia House of Representatives is the lower house of the Georgia General Assembly (the state legislature) of the U.S. state of Georgia. There are currently 180 elected members. Republicans have had a majority in the chamber since 2005. T ...
.
After two terms, he was appointed professor of Language and Mathematics at
South Georgia College, in
McRae, Georgia.
Political office
In 1894, after
reading law
Reading law was the method used in common law countries, particularly the United States, for people to prepare for and enter the legal profession before the advent of law schools. It consisted of an extended internship or apprenticeship under the ...
and being admitted to the practice of law in Georgia, Roddenbery resigned his academic position. He spent the next few years building a private practice and networking within the Georgia political structure. During this time, Rodenbery was the president of the
Thomas County, Georgia
Thomas County is a county located in the U.S. state of Georgia. As of the 2010 census the population was 44,720. The county seat is Thomasville.
Thomas County comprises the Thomasville, GA Micropolitan Statistical Area.
History
Thomas Count ...
, Board of Education from 1895 to 1898 and was appointed to that county's court as a judge from 1897 to 1901.
Rodenbery was elected mayor of
Thomasville, Georgia
Thomasville is the county seat of Thomas County, Georgia, United States. The population was 18,413 at the 2010 United States Census, making it the second largest city in southwest Georgia after Albany, Georgia, Albany.
The city deems itself the "C ...
, and served in that position from 1903 to 1904.
Congressman
In 1910, Roddenbery was elected to represent
Georgia's 2nd congressional district
Georgia's 2nd congressional district is a congressional district in the U.S. state of Georgia. The district is currently represented by Democrat Sanford D. Bishop, Jr.
Georgia's largest district by land area, it comprises much of the southwe ...
in the
United States 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 house, lower chamber of the United States Congress, with the United States Senate, Senate being ...
for the remainder of the
61st United States Congress
The 61st United States Congress was a meeting of the legislative branch of the United States federal government, composed of the United States Senate and the United States House of Representatives. It met in Washington, DC from March 4, 1909, to ...
when that seat fell vacant due to the death of
James M. Griggs.
In 1912, Roddenbery demanded Congress fire the black employees of the Pension Office and replace them with white Spanish-American War veterans.
Roddenbery was reelected to the
62nd and
63rd Congresses. He died while in office, on September 25, 1913.
The reputation Roddenbery had already garnered in Georgia as a skillful and inspiring orator was renewed in the nation's capitol.
Fighting "pension buccaneers"
Roddenbery was a conservative on fiscal matters. He earned a reputation for taking on powerful interests which fought to expand the retirement benefits of certain groups which Roddenbery labeled as "pension buccaneers".
He was particularly militant in his opposition to increasing the pensions of Civil War Union veterans, while thousands of surviving Confederate veterans in Georgia, a state that endured some of the worst destruction of the war, were ineligible for Federal pensions under the 14th Amendment.
Georgians were adamantly opposed to having their tax dollars subsidize the pensions of former enemies.
Skilled parliamentarian
Roddenbery was known as a skilled parliamentarian, who was given to
filibuster
A filibuster is a political procedure in which one or more members of a legislative body prolong debate on proposed legislation so as to delay or entirely prevent decision. It is sometimes referred to as "talking a bill to death" or "talking out ...
ing when faced with legislation he opposed.
At the time of his death, he was considered to be one of the top three parliamentarians in the
United States 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 house, lower chamber of the United States Congress, with the United States Senate, Senate being ...
.
Anti-miscegenation amendment
Roddenbery's most lasting reputation was as a passionate opponent of
miscegenation
Miscegenation ( ) is the interbreeding of people who are considered to be members of different races. The word, now usually considered pejorative, is derived from a combination of the Latin terms ''miscere'' ("to mix") and ''genus'' ("race") ...
(interracial marriage), views that were on the more conservative end of the spectrum even in the early 20th century. The marriage of African American boxer
Jack Johnson to white woman Lucille Cameron motivated Roddenbery to introduced H.J. Res 368, in January 1913. The bill proposing a
Constitutional amendment
A constitutional amendment is a modification of the constitution of a polity, organization or other type of entity. Amendments are often interwoven into the relevant sections of an existing constitution, directly altering the text. Conversely, t ...
to outlaw interracial marriages in the states where it was legal and ban it nationwide. In his appeal to Congress, Roddenberry stated that:
Private life
Roddenbery married Johnnie Butler on November 5, 1891. They had five children.
The year after Roddenberry's death, his wife received a federal appointment to the position of
postmaster
A postmaster is the head of an individual post office, responsible for all postal activities in a specific post office. When a postmaster is responsible for an entire mail distribution organization (usually sponsored by a national government), ...
(now "postmistress") of
Thomasville, Georgia
Thomasville is the county seat of Thomas County, Georgia, United States. The population was 18,413 at the 2010 United States Census, making it the second largest city in southwest Georgia after Albany, Georgia, Albany.
The city deems itself the "C ...
. She held that post through successive four-year appointments under three Presidents:
Wilson,
Harding, and
Coolidge.
The last appointment was announced on December 20, 1928.
Retirement and death
A heavy smoker of cigars, Roddenbery's political career was cut short by
throat cancer
Head and neck cancer develops from tissues in the lip and oral cavity (mouth), larynx (throat), salivary glands, nose, sinuses or the skin of the face. The most common types of head and neck cancers occur in the lip, mouth, and larynx. Symptoms ...
that forced his retirement from active participation in Congress only a few weeks after the failure of H.J. Res 368.
Seemingly unaware of the gravity of his illness, he returned home to Georgia only days before his death, telling colleagues that he hoped to return after a period of rest.
Memorial addresses given in the U.S. House and Senate were published.
Influenced by Roddenbery, anti-miscegenation bills were introduced in 1913 in half of the twenty states where this law did not already exist, though only one, in
Wyoming
Wyoming () is a U.S. state, state in the Mountain states, Mountain West subregion of the Western United States. It is bordered by Montana to the north and northwest, South Dakota and Nebraska to the east, Idaho to the west, Utah to the south ...
, passed.
References
External links
*
W.B. Roddenbery Company - New Georgia Encyclopedia
Further reading
*
*
Seaborn Roddenberry - Entire Memorial addresses delivered in the House of Representatives and Senate 1915
{{DEFAULTSORT:Roddenbery, Seaborn
1870 births
1913 deaths
Georgia (U.S. state) lawyers
Georgia (U.S. state) state court judges
Mayors of places in Georgia (U.S. state)
Democratic Party members of the Georgia House of Representatives
School board members in Georgia (U.S. state)
Democratic Party members of the United States House of Representatives from Georgia (U.S. state)
19th-century American politicians
American lawyers admitted to the practice of law by reading law
19th-century American judges
19th-century American lawyers
American white supremacists