Harold Henderson "Doc" Earthman (April 13, 1900 – February 26, 1987) was an American politician and a

U.S. Representative The United States House of Representatives is a chamber of the bicameral United States Congress; it is the lower house, with the U.S. Senate being the upper house. Together, the House and Senate have the authority under Article One of th ...

from

Tennessee Tennessee (, ), officially the State of Tennessee, is a landlocked U.S. state, state in the Southeastern United States, Southeastern region of the United States. It borders Kentucky to the north, Virginia to the northeast, North Carolina t ...

Biography

Born in

Murfreesboro, Tennessee Murfreesboro is a city in Rutherford County, Tennessee, United States, and its county seat. Its population was 165,430 according to the 2023 census estimate, up from 108,755 residents certified in 2010 United States census, 2010. Murfreesboro i ...

, Earthman was the son of Vernon King Earthman, a physician, and his wife Virginia May Henderson Earthman. He attended the public schools, Webb School at

Bell Buckle, Tennessee Bell Buckle is a town in Bedford County, Tennessee, United States. The population was 410 at the 2020 census. The downtown area is listed on the National Register of Historic Places as the Bell Buckle Historic District. History The origin of th ...

Southern Methodist University Southern Methodist University (SMU) is a Private university, private research university in Dallas, Texas, United States, with a satellite campus in Taos County, New Mexico. SMU was founded on April 17, 1911, by the Methodist Episcopal Church, ...

Dallas, Texas Dallas () is a city in the U.S. state of Texas and the most populous city in the Dallas–Fort Worth metroplex, the List of Texas metropolitan areas, most populous metropolitan area in Texas and the Metropolitan statistical area, fourth-most ...

, and the

University of Texas at Austin The University of Texas at Austin (UT Austin, UT, or Texas) is a public university, public research university in Austin, Texas, United States. Founded in 1883, it is the flagship institution of the University of Texas System. With 53,082 stud ...

. He married Mary Wilson Moore in 1920, and they had four children: Harold, Mary, Virginia, and Ben.

Career

During

World War I World War I or the First World War (28 July 1914 – 11 November 1918), also known as the Great War, was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War I, Allies (or Entente) and the Central Powers. Fighting to ...

, Earthman served in the

United States Army The United States Army (USA) is the primary Land warfare, land service branch of the United States Department of Defense. It is designated as the Army of the United States in the United States Constitution.Article II, section 2, clause 1 of th ...

as a private and was assigned to the

Student Army Training Corps The Reserve Officers' Training Corps (ROTC; or ) is a group of college- and university-based officer-training programs for training commissioned officers of the United States Armed Forces. While ROTC graduate officers serve in all branches o ...

. After moving to

Nashville, Tennessee Nashville, often known as Music City, is the capital and List of municipalities in Tennessee, most populous city in the U.S. state of Tennessee. It is the county seat, seat of Davidson County, Tennessee, Davidson County in Middle Tennessee, locat ...

, he engaged in the banking business from 1921 to 1925.

Admitted to the bar An admission to practice law is acquired when a lawyer receives a license to practice law. In jurisdictions with two types of lawyer, as with barristers and solicitors, barristers must gain admission to the bar whereas for solicitors there are dist ...

in 1926, he commenced the practice of law in Murfreesboro, Tennessee, engaged in agricultural pursuits and was owner of Earthman Enterprises. He resumed the study of law and was graduated from

Cumberland School of Law The Cumberland School of Law is an American Bar Association, ABA-accredited law school at Samford University in Homewood, Alabama, United States. It was founded in 1847 at Cumberland University in Lebanon, Tennessee and is the 11th oldest law sch ...

Cumberland University Cumberland University is a private university in Lebanon, Tennessee, United States. It was founded in 1842. The oldest campus buildings were constructed between 1892 and 1896. History 1842–1861 The university was founded by the Cumberl ...

Lebanon, Tennessee Lebanon ( ) is the county seat of Wilson County, Tennessee, United States. The population was 38,431 at the 2020 census. Lebanon is located in Middle Tennessee, approximately east of downtown Nashville. Lebanon is part of the Nashville Metro ...

, in 1927. Earthman was a member of the

Tennessee House of Representatives The Tennessee House of Representatives is the lower house of the Tennessee General Assembly, the state legislature of the U.S. state of Tennessee. Constitutional requirements According to the state constitution of 1870, this body is to consis ...

in 1931 and 1932. In the Tennessee House, he aligned with himself with Tennessee political boss E. H. Crump. He served as associate administrator of

war bonds War bonds (sometimes referred to as victory bonds, particularly in propaganda) are debt securities issued by a government to finance military operations and other expenditure in times of war without raising taxes to an unpopular level. They are ...

for the State of Tennessee from 1940 to 1946, as well as judge of

Rutherford County, Tennessee Rutherford County is a county located in the U.S. state of Tennessee. It is located in Middle Tennessee. As of a 2023 estimate, the population was 367,101, making it the fifth-most populous county in Tennessee. A study conducted by the Univer ...

from 1942 to 1945. 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 (Cyprus) (DCY) **Democratic Part ...

to the Seventy-ninth Congress, Earthman served in that capacity from January 3, 1945, to January 3, 1947, representing

Tennessee's 5th congressional district The 5th congressional district of Tennessee is a congressional district in Middle Tennessee. It has been represented by Republican Andy Ogles since January 2023. In the past, the fifth district has been nearly synonymous with Tennessee's capi ...

. He sought renomination in 1946, but lost in the

primary Primary or primaries may refer to: Arts, entertainment, and media Music Groups and labels * Primary (band), from Australia * Primary (musician), hip hop musician and record producer from South Korea * Primary Music, Israeli record label Work ...

to Joe L. Evins. After leaving Congress, he resumed the practice of law and pursued business interests, establishing the first

self-service laundry A self-service laundry, coin laundry, or coin wash, is a facility where clothes and some household textiles are washed and dried without much personalized professional help. They are known in the United Kingdom as launderettes or laundrettes, ...

in Murfreesboro.

Death

Earthman died on February 26, 1987, in Murfreesboro. He is interred there at Evergreen Cemetery.

References

External links

{{DEFAULTSORT:Earthman, Harold 1900 births 1987 deaths Democratic Party members of the Tennessee House of Representatives People from Murfreesboro, Tennessee United States Army soldiers Webb School (Bell Buckle, Tennessee) alumni Democratic Party members of the United States House of Representatives from Tennessee United States Army personnel of World War I 20th-century members of the United States House of Representatives 20th-century members of the Tennessee General Assembly