William Clay Cole (August 29, 1897 – September 23, 1965) was a

Republican Republican can refer to: Political ideology * An advocate of a republic, a type of government that is not a monarchy or dictatorship, and is usually associated with the rule of law. ** Republicanism, the ideology in support of republics or agains ...

representative Representative may refer to: Politics * Representative democracy, type of democracy in which elected officials represent a group of people * House of Representatives, legislative body in various countries or sub-national entities * Legislator, som ...

from

Missouri's 3rd congressional district Missouri's third congressional district is in the eastern and central portion of the state. It surrounds but does not include St Louis City. Its current representative is Republican Blaine Luetkemeyer. The district took its current form in 20 ...

from 1943 to 1949 and

Missouri's 6th congressional district Missouri's 6th congressional district takes in a large swath of land in northern Missouri, stretching across nearly the entire width of the state from Kansas to Illinois. Its largest voting population is centered in the northern portion of the ...

from 1953 to 1955.

Background

William Clay Cole was born on August 29, 1897, on a farm near

Fillmore, Missouri Fillmore is a city in Andrew County, Missouri, United States. The population was 184 at the 2010 census. History Fillmore was laid out in 1845 and was named for Millard Fillmore, a statesman, and afterward 13th President of the United States. A ...

Career

In 1916, Cole was a mounted scout on the Mexican border with the Missouri National Guard during the

Pancho Villa Expedition The Pancho Villa Expedition—now known officially in the United States as the Mexican Expedition, but originally referred to as the "Punitive Expedition, U.S. Army"—was a military operation conducted by the United States Army against the p ...

and then served in France for 14 months 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 ...

. After the war he graduated from St. Joseph Law School (which operated under the auspices of the

YMCA YMCA, sometimes regionally called the Y, is a worldwide youth organization based in Geneva, Switzerland, with more than 64 million beneficiaries in 120 countries. It was founded on 6 June 1844 by George Williams in London, originally ...

St. Joseph, Missouri St. Joseph is a city in and the county seat of Buchanan County, Missouri. Small parts of St. Joseph extend into Andrew County. Located on the Missouri River, it is the principal city of the St. Joseph Metropolitan Statistical Area, which includ ...

from 1912 to 1938). Cole served in the

Missouri House of Representatives The Missouri House of Representatives is the lower chamber of the Missouri General Assembly. It has 163 members, representing districts with an average size of 37,000 residents. House members are elected for two-year terms during general elections ...

from 1942 to 1943, after winning a vacant seat in a special election. In 1942 he was elected to the U.S. House, and served 1943 to 1949. He ran unsuccessfully for reelection in 1948. He ran unsuccessfully in 1950, but won again in 1952, serving one term, 1953 to 1955. He ran unsuccessfully for reelection in 1954. Cole returned to his law practice in St. Joseph and was a member of the federal Board of Veterans Appeals from 1955 to 1960.

Personal life and death

Cole was a member of the

Lions Club The International Association of Lions Clubs, more commonly known as Lions Clubs International, is an international non-political service organization established originally in 1916 in Chicago, Illinois (''City in a Garden''); I Will , ...

, Odd Fellows;

Elks Club The Benevolent and Protective Order of Elks (BPOE; also often known as the Elks Lodge or simply The Elks) is an American fraternal order founded in 1868, originally as a social club in New York City. History The Elks began in 1868 as a soci ...

, Moose Club,

Brotherhood of Railroad Trainmen The Brotherhood of Railroad Trainmen (BRT) was a labor organization for railroad employees founded in 1883. Originally called the Brotherhood of Railroad Brakemen, its purpose was to negotiate contracts with railroad management and to provide in ...

American Legion The American Legion, commonly known as the Legion, is a non-profit organization of U.S. war War is an intense armed conflict between states, governments, societies, or paramilitary groups such as mercenaries, insurgents, and militi ...

, and Veterans of Foreign Wars. William Clay Cole died age 68 on September 23, 1965, in St. Joseph and was buried at Fillmore Cemetery in Fillmore.

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Cole, William 1897 births 1965 deaths People from Andrew County, Missouri Missouri lawyers American military personnel of World War I Republican Party members of the Missouri House of Representatives Republican Party members of the United States House of Representatives from Missouri 20th-century American politicians 20th-century American lawyers