James Curran Davis (May 17, 1895 – December 18, 1981) was an American lawyer,

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 ...

veteran, and

politician A politician is a person who participates in Public policy, policy-making processes, usually holding an elective position in government. Politicians represent the people, make decisions, and influence the formulation of public policy. The roles ...

from the

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Georgia Georgia most commonly refers to: * Georgia (country), a country in the South Caucasus * Georgia (U.S. state), a state in the southeastern United States Georgia may also refer to: People and fictional characters * Georgia (name), a list of pe ...

who served eight terms in the

U.S. House of Representatives 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 1947 to 1963. Davis unsuccessfully sought the presidential nomination at the

1956 Democratic National Convention The 1956 Democratic National Convention nominated former Governor Adlai Stevenson II, Adlai Stevenson of Illinois for president and United States Senate, Senator Estes Kefauver of Tennessee for vice president. It was held in the Internation ...

Early life

Davis was born on May 17, 1895, in

Franklin, Georgia Franklin is a city in Heard County, Georgia, United States. The population was 950 in 2020. Franklin is the county seat of Heard County. The city is named after Benjamin Franklin. History Franklin was settled in 1770, and was designated seat ...

to Viola (née Mooty) and Thomas Benjamin Davis. He attended Reinhardt College in Waleska, Georgia and Emory College in

Oxford, Georgia Oxford is a city in Newton County, Georgia, United States. The population was 2,308 as of the 2020 census. It is part of the Atlanta metropolitan area. It is the location of Oxford College of Emory University. Much of the city is part of the ...

. He was admitted to the bar in 1919 and started a practice in

Atlanta Atlanta ( ) is the List of capitals in the United States, capital and List of municipalities in Georgia (U.S. state), most populous city in the U.S. state of Georgia (U.S. state), Georgia. It is the county seat, seat of Fulton County, Georg ...

World War I and military

During

, Davis served in the

United States Marine Corps The United States Marine Corps (USMC), also referred to as the United States Marines or simply the Marines, is the maritime land force service branch of the United States Department of Defense. It is responsible for conducting expeditionar ...

as a private and sergeant from December 24, 1917, to January 11, 1919. He then served in the

Judge Advocate General's Corps The Judge Advocate General's Corps (JAG or JAG Corps) is the military justice branch or specialty of the United States Air Force, Army, Coast Guard, Marine Corps, and Navy. Officers serving in the JAG Corps are typically called judge advocates ...

as a first lieutenant and captain.

Career

He resumed practicing law after his military service. He served as a state representative of

DeKalb County DeKalb County may refer to one of several counties in the United States, all of which were named for Baron Johann de Kalb: * DeKalb County, Alabama DeKalb County is a County (United States), county in the Northeast Alabama, northeastern part ...

from 1924 to 1928. He then served as an attorney for the Georgia Department of Industrial Relations from 1928 to 1931 and DeKalb County from 1931 to 1934. He served as a judge of superior court in the Stone Mountain Judicial Circuit from 1934 to 1937.

Congress

He was elected to represent Georgia's 5th congressional district in the

House of Representatives House of Representatives is the name of legislative bodies in many countries and sub-national entities. In many countries, the House of Representatives is the lower house of a bicameral legislature, with the corresponding upper house often ...

as a Democrat. Davis served in Congress from January 3, 1947, to January 3, 1963. Davis was a delegate to the

1948 Democratic National Convention The 1948 Democratic National Convention was held at Philadelphia Convention Hall in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, from July 12 to July 15, 1948, and resulted in the nominations of President Harry S. Truman for a full term and Senator Alben W. ...

. At the

in August, he received 33 votes for

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. His nomination speech was given at the convention by Governor Marvin Griffin.

Opposition to Civil Rights

Davis was a signatory to the 1956

Southern Manifesto The Declaration of Constitutional Principles (known informally as the Southern Manifesto) was a document written in February and March 1956, during the 84th United States Congress, in opposition to racial integration of public places. The manife ...

, a document expressing the opposition of Southern congressional representatives to integration. He voted against the Civil Rights Act of 1957.

Later career

Davis was defeated in his bid for re-election to Congress in 1962 by Charles L. Weltner. He then resumed practicing law. He was the publisher for the '' Atlanta Times'', a conservative newspaper led by Roscoe Pickett, from June 1964 to its closing in September 1965. He also served on the board of directors for the Salem Campground and De Kalb Federal Savings and Loan Association.

Personal life

Davis married Mary Lou Martin on December 26, 1932, in

LaGrange, Georgia LaGrange is a city in and the county seat of Troup County, Georgia, United States. The population of the city was estimated to be 30,858 in 2020 by the U.S. Census Bureau. It is the principal city of the LaGrange, Georgia Micropolitan Statist ...

. She died in 1969. Together, they had one daughter, Mary Martin Davis. He was a member of the

Ku Klux Klan The Ku Klux Klan (), commonly shortened to KKK or Klan, is an American Protestant-led Christian terrorism, Christian extremist, white supremacist, Right-wing terrorism, far-right hate group. It was founded in 1865 during Reconstruction era, ...

Death

Davis died in Atlanta on December 18, 1981. He is interred at Oak Hill Cemetery in Newnan.

References

External links

James C. Davis papers (Emory University)
{{DEFAULTSORT:Davis, James C. 1895 births 1981 deaths Reinhardt University alumni Emory College alumni American Ku Klux Klan members Georgia (U.S. state) lawyers Democratic Party members of the United States House of Representatives from Georgia (U.S. state) Candidates in the 1956 United States presidential election Dixiecrats Democratic Party members of the Georgia House of Representatives Georgia (U.S. state) state court judges 20th-century Georgia (U.S. state) state court judges Signatories of the Southern Manifesto United States Marine Corps personnel of World War I 20th-century members of the United States House of Representatives 20th-century members of the Georgia General Assembly