Thomas Chipman McRae (December 21, 1851June 2, 1929) was an American attorney and politician from Arkansas. He served as a

Democratic 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 ...

member of 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 chamber of the United States Congress, with the Senate being the upper chamber. Together the ...

(1885 to 1903) and the 26th

Governor of Arkansas A governor is an administrative leader and head of a polity or political region, ranking under the head of state and in some cases, such as governors-general, as the head of state's official representative. Depending on the type of political ...

, from 1921 to 1925.

Biography

Thomas Chipman McRae, the eldest of five siblings, was born to Duncan L. and Mary Ann (Chipman) McRae on December 21, 1851, at Mount Holly in

Union County, Arkansas Union County is a county located on the central southern border of the U.S. state of Arkansas. As of the 2010 census, the population was 41,639. The county seat is El Dorado. The county was formed on November 2, 1829, and named in recognitio ...

. He attended Soule Business College in

New Orleans, Louisiana New Orleans ( , ,New Orleans

Washington and Lee University , mottoeng = "Not Unmindful of the Future" , established = , type = Private liberal arts university , academic_affiliations = , endowment = $2.092 billion (2021) , president = William C. Dudley , provost = Lena Hill , city = Lexing ...

Lexington, Virginia Lexington is an independent city in the Commonwealth of Virginia. At the 2020 census, the population was 7,320. It is the county seat of Rockbridge County, although the two are separate jurisdictions. The Bureau of Economic Analysis combines ...

. He passed the Arkansas bar in 1873, and began his practice at Rosston in Nevada County, Arkansas. He married Amelia Ann White in December 1874, with whom he would go on to have six daughters and three sons. On May 19, 1877, Nevada County voters elected to move the county seat from Rosston, and construct a new courthouse in the newly created railroad town of Prescott. McRae relocated his family there to be closer to his center of business. In 1874, McRae was appointed to the post of Election Commissioner in Arkansas. From 1877 to 1879, he served in the

Arkansas House of Representatives The Arkansas State House of Representatives is the lower house of the Arkansas General Assembly, the state legislature of the US state of Arkansas. The House is composed of 100 members elected from an equal amount of constituencies across the s ...

and was a

presidential elector The United States Electoral College is the group of presidential electors required by the Constitution to form every four years for the sole purpose of appointing the president and vice president. Each state and the District of Columbia appo ...

in 1880. In 1884, 1896, and 1900, he was a delegate to the

Democratic National Convention The Democratic National Convention (DNC) is a series of presidential nominating conventions held every four years since 1832 by the United States Democratic Party. They have been administered by the Democratic National Committee since the 1852 ...

and served as president of the convention twice. From 1888 to 1902 he was a member of the

Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee The Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee (DCCC) is the Democratic Hill committee for the United States House of Representatives, working to elect Democrats to that body. The DCCC recruits candidates, raises funds, and organizes races in ...

. From 1885 to 1903, McRae served in the

. In 1902, McRae donated land for an

African American African Americans (also referred to as Black Americans and Afro-Americans) are an Race and ethnicity in the United States, ethnic group consisting of Americans with partial or total ancestry from sub-Saharan Africa. The term "African American ...

school in

Prescott, Arkansas Prescott is a city and the county seat of Nevada County, Arkansas, United States. The community had a population of 3,296 at the 2010 census. Prescott is part of the Hope Micropolitan Statistical Area. Located 100 miles southwest of Little Ro ...

. McRae's Elementary, Middle, and High School were integrated with the Prescott School District in 1969. In 1917 and 1918, McRae was president of the Arkansas Bar Association; in the latter year he took part in the Arkansas

Constitutional Convention Constitutional convention may refer to: * Constitutional convention (political custom), an informal and uncodified procedural agreement *Constitutional convention (political meeting), a meeting of delegates to adopt a new constitution or revise an e ...

. In 1920, McRae was elected to his first term as

. In the election, McRae represented the

Democratic Party Democratic Party most often refers to: *Democratic Party (United States) Democratic Party and similar terms may also refer to: Active parties Africa *Botswana Democratic Party *Democratic Party of Equatorial Guinea *Gabonese Democratic Party *Demo ...

, receiving 123,637 votes (66.6 percent).

Wallace Townsend Wallace Townsend (August 20, 1882 – January 7, 1979) was an American lawyer who was from 1928 to 1961 the Republican national committeeman for the U.S. state of Arkansas. When he left his party's national committee, he was succeeded by Win ...

represented the

Republican Party Republican Party is a name used by many political parties around the world, though the term most commonly refers to the United States' Republican Party. Republican Party may also refer to: Africa *Republican Party (Liberia) * Republican Part ...

, receiving 46,350 votes (25 percent), and

Josiah H. Blount Josiah ( or ) or Yoshiyahu; la, Iosias was the 16th king of Judah (–609 BCE) who, according to the Hebrew Bible, instituted major religious reforms by removing official worship of gods other than Yahweh. Josiah is credited by most biblical s ...

represented the

Independent Party Independent or Independents may refer to: Arts, entertainment, and media Artist groups * Independents (artist group), a group of modernist painters based in the New Hope, Pennsylvania, area of the United States during the early 1930s * Independen ...

, receiving 15,627 votes (8.4 percent). Blount, an African American school superintendent from Forest City, was the leader of a splinter GOP faction called the "Black-and-Tan Republicans," who protested the "lily-white" stand of its new leaders that included gubernatorial nominee Townsend. Blount was the first of his race to seek election as Arkansas's chief executive. McRae was elected to his second term in 1922. In that election, McRae received 99,987 votes (78.1 percent), and Republican John W. Grabiel received 28,055 votes (21.9 percent). During his tenure, the

Arkansas Railroad Commission The Arkansas Public Service Commission (APSC) regulates the service and rates of those utilities subject to its jurisdiction in the State of Arkansas, United States. It was originally created by the Arkansas General Assembly on March 11, 1899, as ...

was re-established, the Arkansas Corporation Commission was abolished, and the Arkansas Tuberculosis Sanitarium for Negroes was established. A severance tax was passed with its revenue funding public schools, the Arkansas Office of State Geologist was created, and a personal income tax law was enacted. Upon the end of his governorship, McRae was appointed special Chief Justice of the

Arkansas Supreme Court The Supreme Court of Arkansas is the highest court in the state judiciary of Arkansas. It has ultimate and largely discretionary appellate jurisdiction over all state court cases that involve a point of state law, and original jurisdiction ...

. He was elected a life member of the Arkansas Democratic State Convention in 1926. After serving four years as Governor of Arkansas, McRae returned to Prescott to be with his family. He resumed his law practice and he engaged in banking activities until his death on June 2, 1929. McRae is buried in the historic section of the De Ann Cemetery in Prescott. McRae was a cousin of

Thomas Banks Cabaniss Thomas Banks Cabaniss (August 31, 1835 – August 14, 1915) was a United States representative from Georgia. Biography Born in Forsyth, Georgia, he attended private schools and Penfield College (now Mercer University), graduated from the Univ ...

, a U.S. Representative from

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 t ...

. He was also the grandfather of Thomas C. "Tom" McRae, III, longtime President of the

Winthrop Rockefeller Foundation Winthrop may refer to: Places United States *Winthrop, Arkansas *Winthrop, Connecticut is a village in Deep River, Connecticut *Winthrop, Indiana *Winthrop, Iowa * Winthrop, Maine **Winthrop (CDP), Maine *Winthrop, Massachusetts * Winthrop, Minneso ...

who challenged

Bill Clinton William Jefferson Clinton (Birth name, né Blythe III; born August 19, 1946) is an American politician who served as the 42nd president of the United States from 1993 to 2001. He previously served as governor of Arkansas from 1979 to 1981 ...

for the Democratic Gubernatorial Nomination in 1990.

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:McRae, Thomas Chipman 1851 births 1929 deaths People from Union County, Arkansas People from Nevada County, Arkansas People from Prescott, Arkansas People from Lexington, Virginia Washington and Lee University School of Law alumni Democratic Party members of the Arkansas House of Representatives Democratic Party governors of Arkansas Chief Justices of the Arkansas Supreme Court Democratic Party members of the United States House of Representatives from Arkansas 1880 United States presidential electors