Cato Sells (October 6, 1859 – December, 30 1948) was a commissioner at the

Bureau of Indian Affairs The Bureau of Indian Affairs (BIA), also known as Indian Affairs (IA), is a United States federal agency within the Department of the Interior. It is responsible for implementing federal laws and policies related to American Indians and A ...

from 1913 to 1921.

Life and career

He was born in Vinton, Iowa on October 6, 1859. He lost his father when he was young. He entered Cornell College in 1875. In 1878 he

read law Reading law was the method used in common law countries, particularly the United States, for people to prepare for and enter the legal profession before the advent of law schools. It consisted of an extended internship or apprenticeship under the ...

with

Charles Alvord Bishop Charles Alvord Bishop (May 22, 1854 – July 9, 1908) was a politician and jurist in the State of Iowa. Biography Bishop was born on May 22, 1854, to Roxana and Matthew Patrick Bishop in Waukesha County, Wisconsin. He married twice: first, on No ...

and in 1880 was admitted to

Iowa State Bar Association The Iowa State Bar Association is a voluntary bar association for the state of Iowa Iowa () is a state in the Midwestern region of the United States, bordered by the Mississippi River to the east and the Missouri River and Big Sioux River ...

and began practice at La Porte City, Iowa. In 1889 he moved to Vinton, Iowa and served on the Iowa State Central Committee. In 1887 he was chairman of the committee and was a delegate to the

1888 Democratic National Convention The 1888 Democratic National Convention was a nominating convention held June 5 to 7, 1888, in the St. Louis Exposition and Music Hall in St. Louis, Missouri. It nominated President Grover Cleveland for reelection and former Senator Allen G. Thurm ...

. He was a delegate to the

1892 Democratic National Convention The 1892 Democratic National Convention was held in Chicago, Illinois, June 21–June 23, and nominated former President Grover Cleveland, who had been the party's standard-bearer in 1884 and 1888. This marked the last time a former president was ...

as secretary. In 1892 was he was elected as a trustee of the Iowa State College of Agriculture. In 1893 he was president of the Iowa Democratic State Convention. In 1894 he was appointed by Grover Cleveland as United States Attorney for the United States District Court for the Northern District of Iowa. In 1899 he was again president of the Iowa Democratic State Convention and in 1900 chairman of the Iowa delegation in the

1900 Democratic National Convention The 1900 Democratic National Convention was a United States presidential nominating convention that took place the week of July 4, 1900, at Convention Hall in Kansas City, Missouri. The convention nominated William Jennings Bryan for president an ...

Kansas City The Kansas City metropolitan area is a bi-state metropolitan area anchored by Kansas City, Missouri. Its 14 counties straddle the border between the U.S. states of Missouri (9 counties) and Kansas (5 counties). With and a population of more ...

. He was a commissioner at the

from 1913 from 1921. In 1914 he banished books that taught anything concerning the Asian origins of Indigenous peoples of the Americas. He died October 30, 1948 and was buried in the Cleburne Memorial Cemetery in Cleburne, Texas.

Legacy

Sells is the namesake of the town of Sells, Arizona.

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Sells, Cato 1859 births 1948 deaths United States Bureau of Indian Affairs personnel Cornell College alumni People from Vinton, Iowa Iowa Democrats United States Attorneys for the Northern District of Iowa American lawyers admitted to the practice of law by reading law