Errett Power Scrivner (March 20, 1898 – May 5, 1978) was 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

Kansas Kansas ( ) is a landlocked U.S. state, state in the Midwestern United States, Midwestern region of the United States. It borders Nebraska to the north; Missouri to the east; Oklahoma to the south; and Colorado to the west. Kansas is named a ...

Biography

Born in

Newton, Kansas Newton is a city in and the county seat of Harvey County, Kansas, United States. As of the 2020 United States census, 2020 census, the population of the city was 18,602. Newton is located north of Wichita, Kansas, Wichita. The city of North ...

, Scrivner attended grade schools and was graduated from Manual Training High School,

Kansas City, Missouri Kansas City, Missouri, abbreviated KC or KCMO, is the largest city in the U.S. state of Missouri by List of cities in Missouri, population and area. The city lies within Jackson County, Missouri, Jackson, Clay County, Missouri, Clay, and Pl ...

. In July 1917, 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 ...

, he enlisted in Battery B of the One Hundred and Twenty-ninth Field Artillery; he served overseas in 1918 and 1919. He was awarded the

Silver Star The Silver Star Medal (SSM) is the United States Armed Forces' third-highest military decoration for valor in combat. The Silver Star Medal is awarded primarily to members of the United States Armed Forces for gallantry in action against a ...

and

Purple Heart Medal The Purple Heart (PH) is a United States military decoration awarded in the name of the president to those wounded or killed while serving, on or after 5 April 1917, with the U.S. military. With its forerunner, the Badge of Military Merit, ...

s. After promotion from the rank of private first class, he left military service as a

first lieutenant First lieutenant is a commissioned officer military rank in many armed forces; in some forces, it is an appointment. The rank of lieutenant has different meanings in different military formations, but in most forces it is sub-divided into a se ...

. He was graduated from the law department of the

University of Kansas The University of Kansas (KU) is a public research university with its main campus in Lawrence, Kansas, United States. Two branch campuses are in the Kansas City metropolitan area on the Kansas side: the university's medical school and hospital ...

Lawrence, Kansas Lawrence is a city in and the county seat of Douglas County, Kansas, United States, and the sixth-largest city in the state. It is in the northeastern sector of the state, astride Interstate 70 in Kansas, Interstate 70, between the Kansas River ...

with a Bachelor of Laws degree in 1925. He was

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 ...

the same year and commenced practice in

Kansas City, Kansas Kansas City (commonly known as KCK) is the third-most populous city in the U.S. state of Kansas and the county seat of Wyandotte County. It is an inner suburb of the older and more populous Kansas City, Missouri, after which it is named. As ...

. Scrivner was elected as a Republican to the Seventy-eight Congress, by special election, September 14, 1943, to fill the vacancy caused by the death of U.S. Guyer. He was reelected to the seven succeeding Congresses and served from September 14, 1943 to January 3, 1959. Scrivner voted in favor of the

Civil Rights Act of 1957 The Civil Rights Act of 1957 was the first federal civil rights law passed by the United States Congress since the Civil Rights Act of 1875. The bill was passed by the 85th United States Congress and signed into law by President Dwight D. E ...

. He was an unsuccessful candidate for reelection in 1958 to the Eighty-sixth Congress, largely due to his request for a vote for appropriations to continue construction on the controversial and wildly unpopular Tuttle Creek Dam along the Big Blue River. President Eisenhower had specifically chosen to leave out funding for the continuation of the dam, but Scrivner's insistence led to the displacement of thousands of families and the flooding of some of America's best crop land. He served as special assistant to the comptroller,

Department of Defense The United States Department of Defense (DoD, USDOD, or DOD) is an executive department of the U.S. federal government charged with coordinating and supervising the six U.S. armed services: the Army, Navy, Marines, Air Force, Space Force, ...

Washington, D.C. Washington, D.C., formally the District of Columbia and commonly known as Washington or D.C., is the capital city and federal district of the United States. The city is on the Potomac River, across from Virginia, and shares land borders with ...

, from January 1959 to March 1960. He served as Deputy Assistant Secretary of Defense, Public Affairs, from March 7, 1960, to January 20, 1961. He was City commissioner in 1970 in

Cocoa Beach, Florida Cocoa Beach is a city in Brevard County, Florida, United States. The population was 11,354 at the 2020 United States census, up from 11,231 at the 2010 census. It is part of the Palm Bay, Florida, Palm Bay–Melbourne, Florida, Melbourne–T ...

, where he resided until his death on May 5, 1978. He was cremated and entombed in Florida. In 1984, his remains were reinterred in the niches at

Arlington National Cemetery Arlington National Cemetery is the largest cemetery in the United States National Cemetery System, one of two maintained by the United States Army. More than 400,000 people are buried in its 639 acres (259 ha) in Arlington County, Virginia. ...

Personal

Scrivner was the son of Rev. William H. Scrivner and his wife Etta (West) Scrivner. He married Jean Lorraine Marshall in 1921 and they had one daughter.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Scrivner, Errett Power 1898 births 1978 deaths People from Newton, Kansas United States Army soldiers United States Army personnel of World War I Recipients of the Silver Star United States Army officers University of Kansas School of Law alumni Politicians from Kansas City, Kansas Republican Party members of the United States House of Representatives from Kansas United States Department of Defense officials Florida Republicans People from Cocoa Beach, Florida Burials at Arlington National Cemetery 20th-century members of the United States House of Representatives