Charles Allen Culberson

Charles Allen Culberson
United States Senator
from Texas
In office
March 4, 1899 – March 4, 1923
Preceded by Roger Q. Mills
Succeeded by Earle B. Mayfield
21st Governor of Texas
In office
January 15, 1895 – January 17, 1899
Lieutenant George Taylor Jester
Preceded by Jim Hogg
Succeeded by Joseph D. Sayers
Attorney General of Texas
In office
1891 – 1895
Personal details
Born (1855-06-10)June 10, 1855
Dadeville, Alabama
Died March 19, 1925(1925-03-19) (aged 69)
Washington, D.C.
Resting place Fort Worth, Texas
Political party Democrat
Spouse(s) Sally Harrison
Profession lawyer, public servant

Charles Allen Culberson (June 10, 1855 – March 19, 1925) was an American political figure and Democrat who served as the 21st Governor of Texas from 1895 to 1899, and as a United States Senator from Texas from 1899 to 1923.

Culberson was born to Eugenia and David Browning Culberson in Dadeville, Alabama, but in 1856 his family moved to Texas, settling first in Gilmer and later in Jefferson. He attended Virginia Military Institute, graduating in 1874, and subsequently studied law at the University of Virginia at Charlottesville in 1876 and 1877. In 1877 he was admitted to the bar in Daingerfield, Texas, and commenced practice in Jefferson. He moved to Dallas in 1887.

Culberson's former residence (right) in Washington, D.C.

Culberson's political career began with his election as Attorney General of Texas in 1890, a position he held until 1895, after campaigning for and winning the governor's race in November 1894. After two terms as governor, he was elected to the U.S. Senate as a Democrat on January 25, 1899. Early during his tenure, he served on the Lodge Committee investigating war crimes in the Philippine-American War. Later, he chaired several senate committees, including the judiciary committee, which he chaired from 1913 – 1919.

Culberson was reelected in 1905, 1911, and, again, by popular vote in 1916, when health problems and alcoholism prevented him from campaigning in Texas but did not prevent his reelection. However, his health and opposition to the Ku Klux Klan finally led to the loss of his seat in the Democratic primary in 1922.[1]He was succeeded by fellow Democrat Earle Bradford Mayfield, the outgoing member of the Texas Railroad Commission. Mayfield won a two-to-one general election victory over the Independent write-in candidate, George Peddy, a former state representative from Shelby County.[2]

Culberson lived in retirement until his death from pneumonia in Washington, D.C. on March 19, 1925. He is buried in East Oakwood Cemetery in Fort Worth, Texas.

Culberson was a distant cousin of current U.S. Representative John Culberson, who represents Texas' 7th congressional district.

References

  1. ↑ TSHA Online - Texas State Historical Association - Home at www.tshaonline.org
  2. ↑ ""The Election Case of George E. B. Peddy v. Earle B. Mayfield of Texas (1925)"". senate.gov. Retrieved April 16, 2013.
Political offices
Preceded by
Jim Hogg		 Governor of Texas
1895 – 1899 		Succeeded by
Joseph D. Sayers
Preceded by
Clarence D. Clark		 Chairman of the Senate Judiciary Committee
1912 – 1919 		Succeeded by
Knute Nelson
United States Senate
Preceded by
Roger Q. Mills		 U.S. Senator (Class 1) from Texas
1899 – 1923
Served alongside: Horace Chilton, Joseph W. Bailey,
Rienzi M. Johnston, Morris Sheppard		 Succeeded by
Earle B. Mayfield
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