William Joseph Sears (December 4, 1874 – March 30, 1944) was a lawyer and

U.S. Representative 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 c ...

from

Florida Florida is a state located in the Southeastern region of the United States. Florida is bordered to the west by the Gulf of Mexico, to the northwest by Alabama, to the north by Georgia, to the east by the Bahamas and Atlantic Ocean, and to ...

. A Democrat, he was an avowed white supremacist.

Early life and education

Born in Smithville, Georgia, Sears moved with his parents to Ellaville, Georgia, and thence to Kissimmee, Florida, in January 1881. He attended the public schools. He graduated from Florida State College at Lake City in 1895 and from Mercer University in

Macon, Georgia Macon ( ), officially Macon–Bibb County, is a consolidated city-county in the U.S. state of Georgia. Situated near the fall line of the Ocmulgee River, it is located southeast of Atlanta and lies near the geographic center of the state of Geo ...

, in 1896. He studied law and was admitted to the bar in 1905. He commenced his law practice in Kissimmee, and served as its mayor from 1907-1911. He was also the superintendent of public instruction of Osceola County 1905-1915.

Congress

Sears was elected as a

Democrat 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 ...

to the Sixty-fourth and to the six succeeding Congresses (March 4, 1915 – March 3, 1929). He served as chairman of the Committee on Education ( Sixty-fifth Congress). He was an unsuccessful candidate for renomination in 1928 and resumed the practice of his legal profession in Kissimmee. He moved to

Jacksonville, Florida Jacksonville is a city located on the Atlantic coast of northeast Florida, the most populous city proper in the state and is the largest city by area in the contiguous United States as of 2020. It is the seat of Duval County, with which the ...

, and continued the practice of law. Sears was again elected to the U.S. House for the Seventy-third and Seventy-fourth Congresses (March 4, 1933 – January 3, 1937), holding an

at-large At large (''before a noun'': at-large) is a description for members of a governing body who are elected or appointed to represent a whole membership or population (notably a city, county, state, province, nation, club or association), rather than ...

seat. He was an unsuccessful candidate for renomination in 1936, in a newly drawn district.

Later career and death

Sears served as an associate member of the Board of Veterans' Appeals of the Veterans' Administration in

Washington, D.C. ) , image_skyline = , image_caption = Clockwise from top left: the Washington Monument and Lincoln Memorial on the National Mall, United States Capitol, Logan Circle, Jefferson Memorial, White House, Adams Morgan, ...

, from 1937 until his retirement in October 1942. He died in Kissimmee on March 30, 1944 and was interred in Rose Hill Cemetery.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Sears, William Joseph 1874 births 1944 deaths Mayors of places in Florida Mercer University alumni People from Kissimmee, Florida Democratic Party members of the United States House of Representatives from Florida People from Lee County, Georgia People from Schley County, Georgia