Josiah Dickenson Hank Jr. (April 19, 1875 – July 29, 1924) was an American attorney and politician. Appointed assistant

Attorney General of Virginia The attorney general of Virginia is an elected constitutional position that holds an executive office in the government of Virginia. Attorneys general are elected for a four-year term in the year following a presidential election. There are no ...

in August 1917, he served as Attorney General after

John Garland Pollard John Garland Pollard (August 4, 1871April 28, 1937) was a Virginia lawyer and American Democratic politician, who served as the 21st Attorney General of Virginia (1914-1918) and as the 51st Governor of Virginia (1930 to 1934), as well as on t ...

resigned the following year.

Early life and education

The son of Rev. Josiah Dickenson Hank, a Methodist minister, and his wife Laura Wailes, daughter of a Maryland physician, was born in

Saluda, Virginia Saluda is a census-designated place (CDP) in and the county seat of Middlesex County, Virginia, United States. The population as of the 2010 Census was 769. The Middlesex County Courthouse was built between 1850 and 1874 by architects William R. ...

He had at least three brothers, one also a lawyer. Educated in private schools in

Salisbury, Maryland Salisbury () is a city in and the county seat of Wicomico County, Maryland, United States, and the largest city in the state's Eastern Shore region. The population was 33,050 at the 2020 census. Salisbury is the principal city of the Salisbury ...

, he returned to Virginia and received degrees from Randolph-Macon College and the

University of Virginia School of Law The University of Virginia School of Law (Virginia Law or UVA Law) is the law school of the University of Virginia, a public research university in Charlottesville, Virginia. It was founded in 1819 by Thomas Jefferson as part of his "academical v ...

. His uncle served as chief of staff for Confederate General Joseph Wheeler, and his wife's grandfather was Confederate Major John Pelham.

Career

He taught Greek and English from 1895 until 1899, then from 1901 until 1903 edited legal texts for the Michie Company, until beginning a private legal practice in

Norfolk, Virginia Norfolk ( ) is an independent city (United States), independent city in the Commonwealth (U.S. state), Commonwealth of Virginia in the United States. Incorporated in 1705, it had a population of 238,005 at the 2020 United States Census, 2020 cen ...

. In 1907 he published ''Hank's Annotations''. In August 1917 he accepted an appointment as Assistant Attorney General, and briefly served as Attorney General when John Garland Pollard resigned to campaign for governor.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Hank, Josiah D. Jr. 1875 births 1924 deaths 20th-century American politicians Virginia Attorneys General Virginia Democrats Virginia lawyers