James Stuart McKnight (November 15, 1884 – December 25, 1950) was a

National Guard National guard is the name used by a wide variety of current and historical uniformed organizations in different countries. The original National Guard was formed during the French Revolution around a cadre of defectors from the French Guards. ...

officer who served in

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 ...

, an attorney and a member of the

City Council A municipal council is the legislative body of a municipality or local government area. Depending on the location and classification of the municipality it may be known as a city council, town council, town board, community council, borough counc ...

Los Angeles, California Los Angeles, often referred to by its initials L.A., is the List of municipalities in California, most populous city in the U.S. state of California, and the commercial, Financial District, Los Angeles, financial, and Culture of Los Angeles, ...

, in 1931 and 1932. He also served in the

California State Assembly The California State Assembly is the lower house of the California State Legislature (the upper house being the California State Senate). The Assembly convenes, along with the State Senate, at the California State Capitol in Sacramento, Califor ...

for the 75th district from 1915 to 1917.

Biography

A native of

Green Bay, Wisconsin Green Bay is a city in Brown County, Wisconsin, United States, and its county seat. It is located at the head of Green Bay (Lake Michigan), Green Bay (known locally as "the bay of Green Bay"), a sub-basin of Lake Michigan at the mouth of the F ...

, McKnight graduated from

Los Angeles High School Los Angeles High School is the oldest public high school in the Southern California region and in the Los Angeles Unified School District. Its colors are royal blue and white and the teams are called the Romans. Los Angeles High School is a publ ...

and from the

University of Southern California Law School The University of Southern California Gould School of Law located in Los Angeles, California, is the law school of the University of Southern California. The oldest law school in the Southwestern United States, USC Law traces its beginnings to 18 ...

."Military Services Set for James S. M'Knight," ''Los Angeles Times, December 28, 1950
/ref> In March 1919, McKnight was married in Paris, France, to motion picture actress

Anita King Anita King (born Anna Keppen; August 14, 1884 – June 10, 1963) was an American stunt driver, actress, and thoroughbred racehorse owner. In 1915, she became the first woman to drive a car unaccompanied across the United States, with her ...

. McKnight was known as a sharp dresser. "His clothes are always well pressed, his hanky peeks from the top coat pocket, his glasses are always polished, and his fair hair is always neatly brushed back from his high forehead." McKnight was a

Mason Mason may refer to: Occupations * Mason, brick mason, or bricklayer, a worker who lays bricks to assist in brickwork, or who lays any combination of stones, bricks, cinder blocks, or similar pieces * Stone mason, a craftsman in the stone-cutti ...

. He died on December 25, 1950, and was buried with military services at Sawtelle Cemetery in

West Los Angeles West Los Angeles is an area within the city of Los Angeles, California, United States. The residential and commercial neighborhood is divided by the Interstate 405 freeway, and each side is sometimes treated as a distinct neighborhood, mapped ...

. McKnight was survived by his widow, Velma, and a daughter, also named Velma, and a brother, Robert B. McKnight.

Professional life

Military

After earning his

law degree A law degree is an academic degree conferred for studies in law. Some law degrees are professional degrees that are prerequisites or serve as preparation for legal careers. These generally include the Bachelor of Civil Law, Bachelor of Laws, an ...

from the

University of Southern California The University of Southern California (USC, SC, or Southern Cal) is a Private university, private research university in Los Angeles, California, United States. Founded in 1880 by Robert M. Widney, it is the oldest private research university in ...

in 1908, McKnight was associated with Ralph A. Chase in a law practice for ten years. When the

California National Guard The California National Guard (Cal Guard) is part of the National Guard (United States), National Guard of the United States, a dual federal–state military reserve force in the state of California. It has three components: the California Army ...

was called up for duty on the

Mexico–United States border The international border separating Mexico and the United States extends from the Pacific Ocean in the west to the Gulf of Mexico in the east. The border traverses a variety of terrains, ranging from urban areas to deserts. It is the List of ...

in 1916, he joined the Guard as a

lieutenant A lieutenant ( , ; abbreviated Lt., Lt, LT, Lieut and similar) is a Junior officer, junior commissioned officer rank in the armed forces of many nations, as well as fire services, emergency medical services, Security agency, security services ...

, serving with the 7th California Infantry at

Nogales, Arizona Nogales (; English: or ) is a city in and the county seat of Santa Cruz County, Arizona. The population was 20,837 at the 2010 United States Census, 2010 census and estimated 20,103 in 2019. Nogales forms part of the larger Tucson–Nogales L ...

."McKnight for High State Guard Post," ''Los Angeles Times,'' November 18, 1919, page II-1
/ref> "In March, 1917, he was made a major, and in August he was sent to

Camp Kearny Camp Kearny was a U.S. military base located in Linda Vista, California. Established in 1917, it was named for Brigadier General Stephen W. Kearny. Camp Kearny closed in 1946. History Establishment and early years The camp was established ...

with the Third Battalion, becoming first commander of the camp and being in charge until Frederick Smith Strong took command of the division. . . . in July, 1918, Col. McKnight went overseas and attended the School of the Line at Langres, France. Returning to the One Hundred and Sixtieth Infantry he trained officers for a time and was then sent to the front with reserves for the First Army. When the

Armistice An armistice is a formal agreement of warring parties to stop fighting. It is not necessarily the end of a war, as it may constitute only a cessation of hostilities while an attempt is made to negotiate a lasting peace. It is derived from t ...

was signed he was assigned to duty with

Herbert Hoover Herbert Clark Hoover (August 10, 1874 – October 20, 1964) was the 31st president of the United States, serving from 1929 to 1933. A wealthy mining engineer before his presidency, Hoover led the wartime Commission for Relief in Belgium and ...

in Paris for service in the American food relief work." According to his wife, Anita, McKnight was promoted to lieutenant colonel in May 1919 and was retained in an executive capacity in Paris when "the

American Relief Administration American Relief Administration (ARA) was an American Humanitarian aid, relief mission to Europe and later Russian Civil War, post-revolutionary Russia after World War I. Herbert Hoover, future president of the United States, was the program dire ...

began to close all its missions and all financial matters were taken over by the United States Grain Corporation.""English Tots Most Ill-Fed," ''Los Angeles Times,'' October 12, 1919, page II-7
/ref> He was appointed assistant adjutant-general of the California

by Governor William Stephens on November 17, 1919. He later became president of the Los Angeles Infantry Regiment Association but resigned that position under duress when it was charged he had demanded a ten percent cut from a fund-raiser hired by the association. An investigation was undertaken by a board of inquiry and, after fifteen witnesses were heard, at the end McKnight was ordered by his superior, Adjutant-General Boree, to resign. His resignation in 1921 caused him to lose his National Guard rank of colonel; he "was a major in the Federal service before being appointed by the governor." He did, however, use the title of colonel when a member of the

American Legion The American Legion, commonly known as the Legion, is an Voluntary association, organization of United States, U.S. war veterans headquartered in Indianapolis, Indiana. It comprises U.S. state, state, Territories of the United States, U.S. terr ...

Long Beach, California Long Beach is a coastal city in southeastern Los Angeles County, California, United States. It is the list of United States cities by population, 44th-most populous city in the United States, with a population of 451,307 as of 2022. A charter ci ...

, and at other times.

Civilian

McKnight returned to his law practice in Los Angeles. In June 1930, McKnight represented Mrs. Anna Butcher, a sister of pioneer temperance advocate

Carrie Nation Caroline Amelia Nation (November 25, 1846June 9, 1911), often referred to as Carrie, Carry Nation, Carrie A. Nation, or Hatchet Granny, was an American who was a radical member of the temperance movement, which opposed alcohol before the advent ...

in a competence hearing. In June 1931 McKnight unseated incumbent councilman Ernest L. Webster in a victory in the Third District."M.Knight Path Is Thorny One," ''Los Angeles Times,'' May 20, 1933, page A-5
/ref> McKnight was one of the six council members who in July 1931 lost a vote to appeal a judge's decision ordering an end to racial restrictions in city-operated swimming pools. The pools had previously been restricted by race to certain days or hours. An appeal would have delayed or ended desegregation. In April 1933, a

jury A jury is a sworn body of people (jurors) convened to hear evidence, make Question of fact, findings of fact, and render an impartiality, impartial verdict officially submitted to them by a court, or to set a sentence (law), penalty or Judgmen ...

in Judge

Fletcher Bowron Fletcher Bowron (August 13, 1887 – September 11, 1968) was an American lawyer, judge, and politician. He was the 35th Mayor of Los Angeles from 1938 to 1953. A member of the Republican Party, he was at the time the city's longest-serving mayor ...

's court found him innocent of a criminal charge that he had lied to a

grand jury A grand jury is a jury empowered by law to conduct legal proceedings, investigate potential criminal conduct, and determine whether criminal charges should be brought. A grand jury may subpoena physical evidence or a person to testify. A grand ju ...

about the renewal of a city contract with a

Fontana, California Fontana is a city in San Bernardino County, California, United States. Founded by Azariel Blanchard Miller in 1913, it remained essentially rural until World War II, when entrepreneur Henry J. Kaiser built a large steel mill in the area. It ...

, company for garbage disposal,"M'Knight Cleared of Perjury," ''Los Angeles Times,'' April 15, 1933, page A-1
/ref> but in 1934 he and former Councilman Roy Donley were tried on a charge of agreeing to accept a $10,000 bribe to influence their votes on the garbage contract. Both were acquitted. McKnight lost his seat in the 1933 election to Stephen W. Cunningham, graduate manager of the Associated Students at

UCLA The University of California, Los Angeles (UCLA) is a public land-grant research university in Los Angeles, California, United States. Its academic roots were established in 1881 as a normal school then known as the southern branch of the C ...

. In December 1934, McKnight was found guilty of four counts of mailing " defamatory and libelous matter" about Cunningham through the mail and was sentenced by U.S. District Court Judge aul JohnMcCormick to six months in jail, suspended for two years."M'Knight Convicted," ''Los Angeles Times,'' December 20, 1934, page A-1
/ref>

References

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External links