William Emerson Brock (March 14, 1872August 5, 1950) was a Democratic

United States Senator 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 ...

from

Tennessee Tennessee ( , ), officially the State of Tennessee, is a landlocked state in the Southeastern region of the United States. Tennessee is the 36th-largest by area and the 15th-most populous of the 50 states. It is bordered by Kentucky to th ...

from 1929 to 1931.

Life and career

Brock was born in

Davie County, North Carolina Davie County is a county located in the U.S. state of North Carolina. As of the 2020 census, the population was 42,712. Its county seat is Mocksville. Davie County is included in the Winston-Salem, NC Metropolitan Statistical Area, which is ...

, the son of Mary Ann (Howell) and Richard Emerson Brock. He attended public school and engaged in agricultural pursuits until 1894. He then moved to

Winston-Salem, North Carolina Winston-Salem is a city and the county seat of Forsyth County, North Carolina, United States. In the 2020 census, the population was 249,545, making it the second-largest municipality in the Piedmont Triad region, the 5th most populous city in ...

, and became a clerk in a general store. From 1896 until 1901 he worked as a

tobacco Tobacco is the common name of several plants in the genus '' Nicotiana'' of the family Solanaceae, and the general term for any product prepared from the cured leaves of these plants. More than 70 species of tobacco are known, but the ...

sales Sales are activities related to selling or the number of goods sold in a given targeted time period. The delivery of a service for a cost is also considered a sale. The seller, or the provider of the goods or services, completes a sale in ...

man. In 1909 he moved to

Chattanooga, Tennessee Chattanooga ( ) is a city in and the county seat of Hamilton County, Tennessee, United States. Located along the Tennessee River bordering Georgia, it also extends into Marion County on its western end. With a population of 181,099 in 2020 ...

. In Chattanooga, Brock became involved in candy manufacturing, and also had involvements in

insurance Insurance is a means of protection from financial loss in which, in exchange for a fee, a party agrees to compensate another party in the event of a certain loss, damage, or injury. It is a form of risk management, primarily used to hedge ...

and

bank A bank is a financial institution that accepts deposits from the public and creates a demand deposit while simultaneously making loans. Lending activities can be directly performed by the bank or indirectly through capital markets. Because ...

ing interests. He became a trustee of the former University of Chattanooga, now the

University of Tennessee at Chattanooga The University of Tennessee at Chattanooga (UT-Chattanooga, UTC, or Chattanooga) is a public university in Chattanooga, Tennessee, United States. It was founded in 1886 and is one of four universities and two other affiliated institutions in the ...

Emory and Henry College Emory & Henry College (E&H or Emory) is a private liberal arts college in Emory, Virginia. The campus comprises of Washington County, which is part of the Appalachian highlands of Southwest Virginia. Founded in 1836, Emory & Henry College is ...

, and also Martha Washington College. On September 2, 1929, the Governor of Tennessee,

Henry Hollis Horton Henry Hollis Horton (February 17, 1866 – July 2, 1934) was an American attorney, farmer and politician who served as the 36th Governor of Tennessee from 1927 to 1933. He was elevated to the position when Governor Austin Peay died in office, ...

, appointed Brock to the vacancy in the U.S. Senate caused by the death of Lawrence D. Tyson; Horton had first offered the appointment to former Senator Luke Lea, who declined. On November 4, 1930, Brock was elected to the balance of this term. He did not run for the full six-year term that was on the ballot at the same time, and his service as a U.S. senator ended on March 3, 1931. He was succeeded by Cordell Hull. After leaving the Senate, Brock returned to his Chattanooga candy manufacturing business and remained involved in its operation until his death in 1950. He was buried at Forest Hills Cemetery in Chattanooga. Brock's grandson,

William Emerson Brock III William Emerson Brock III (November 23, 1930 – March 25, 2021) was an American Republican politician who served in both chambers of the United States Congress from 1963 to 1977 and later in the United States Cabinet from 1981 to 1987. He was ...

, 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 ...

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 ...

and a U.S. senator from

References

*
William Emerson Brock (1872-1950)
at ''Political Graveyard''

External links

* 1872 births 1950 deaths Democratic Party United States senators from Tennessee Tennessee Democrats Businesspeople in confectionery Businesspeople from Tennessee People from Mocksville, North Carolina Politicians from Chattanooga, Tennessee {{Tennessee-politician-stub