James Yancy Callahan (December 19, 1852 – May 3, 1935) was an American

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 ...

, and a Delegate to the

United States House of Representatives The United States House of Representatives is a chamber of the Bicameralism, 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 Artic ...

from 1897 to 1899, representing the

Oklahoma Territory The Territory of Oklahoma was an organized incorporated territory of the United States that existed from May 2, 1890, until November 16, 1907, when it was joined with the Indian Territory under a new constitution and admitted to the Union as ...

He was a member of the Free Silver party, and is the only

third party Third party may refer to: Business * Third-party source, a supplier company not owned by the buyer or seller * Third-party beneficiary, a person who could sue on a contract, despite not being an active party * Third-party insurance, such as a veh ...

politician to represent

Oklahoma Oklahoma ( ; Choctaw language, Choctaw: , ) is a landlocked U.S. state, state in the South Central United States, South Central region of the United States. It borders Texas to the south and west, Kansas to the north, Missouri to the northea ...

at the federal level.

Biography

Callahan was born near Salem, Dent County,

Missouri Missouri (''see #Etymology and pronunciation, pronunciation'') is a U.S. state, state in the Midwestern United States, Midwestern region of the United States. Ranking List of U.S. states and territories by area, 21st in land area, it border ...

, on December 19, 1852. He was reared on the farm where he was born, educated in the

common school A common school was a public school in the United States during the 19th century. Horace Mann (1796–1859) was a strong advocate for public education and the common school. In 1837, the state of Massachusetts appointed Mann as the first secretar ...

s, and worked on a farm. He married Margaret Asbreen Mitchell on February 19, 1872, and they had eleven children, Agnes Elmer, Mary Magadelene, Rufus Omar, Anna Ida, Florence Palestine, Alvin Kenneth, Lillie Effie, Orville Palmer, Lacey Edith, Eunice Minnie, and Eris Carleton.

Career

Entering the ministry in the Methodist Episcopal Church in 1880, Callahan continued to engage in

agricultural Agriculture encompasses crop and livestock production, aquaculture, and forestry for food and non-food products. Agriculture was a key factor in the rise of sedentary human civilization, whereby farming of domesticated species created f ...

pursuits,

sawmill A sawmill (saw mill, saw-mill) or lumber mill is a facility where logging, logs are cut into lumber. Modern sawmills use a motorized saw to cut logs lengthwise to make long pieces, and crosswise to length depending on standard or custom sizes ...

ing, and

mining Mining is the Resource extraction, extraction of valuable geological materials and minerals from the surface of the Earth. Mining is required to obtain most materials that cannot be grown through agriculture, agricultural processes, or feasib ...

. In 1885 he moved to

Stanton County, Kansas Stanton County is a county located in the U.S. state of Kansas. Its county seat is Johnson City. As of the 2020 census, the county population was 2,084. It was named for Edwin Stanton, the U.S. Secretary of War during most of the Civil Wa ...

, where he lived until 1892. In 1886, a year after he moved to Kansas, he was elected register of deeds for Stanton County. He was reelected in 1888 and served until December 1889, when he resigned and returned to Dent County, Missouri. In 1892 he moved to

Kingfisher County, Oklahoma Kingfisher County is a County (United States), county located in the U.S. state of Oklahoma. As of the 2020 United States census, 2020 census, the population was 15,184. Its county seat is Kingfisher, Oklahoma, Kingfisher. The county was forme ...

, settling near the town of

Kingfisher Kingfishers are a family, the Alcedinidae, of small to medium-sized, brightly coloured birds in the order Coraciiformes. They have a cosmopolitan distribution, with most species living in the tropical regions of Africa, Asia, and Oceania, ...

. He engaged in agricultural pursuits. In 1896, Callahan was nominated for Congressional delegate from

, and was elected by a plurality of less than fifteen hundred, running on the Free Silver ticket to the

55th United States Congress The 55th United States Congress was a meeting of the legislative branch of the United States federal government, composed of the United States Senate and the United States House of Representatives. It met in Washington, D.C., from March 4, 1897, ...

. He served from March 4, 1897 to March 3, 1899, but was not a candidate for re-nomination in

1898 Events January * January 1 – New York City annexes land from surrounding counties, creating the City of Greater New York as the world's second largest. The city is geographically divided into five boroughs: Manhattan, Brooklyn, Queen ...

. After leaving politics, Callahan relocated to Enid,

Garfield County Garfield County is the name of several counties in the United States: * Garfield County, Colorado *Garfield County, Montana *Garfield County, Nebraska *Garfield County, Oklahoma * Garfield County, Utah *Garfield County, Washington Garfie ...

, where he published the ''Jacksonian'' until January 1, 1913. He retired from active business pursuits in 1913. He claimed to be healed of a chronic ulcer in 1923 after receiving prayer from Rev. P. C. Nelson, an Assemblies of God educator.

Death

Callahan resided in

Enid, Oklahoma Enid ( ) is the ninth-largest city in the U.S. state of Oklahoma. It is the county seat of Garfield County, Oklahoma, Garfield County. As of the 2020 United States census, 2020 census, the population was 51,308. Enid was founded during the openin ...

until his death there on May 3, 1935 (age 82 years, 135 days). He is

interred Burial, also known as interment or inhumation, is a method of final disposition whereby a dead body is placed into the ground, sometimes with objects. This is usually accomplished by excavating a pit or trench, placing the deceased and object ...

at Enid Cemetery.

References

External links

* A History of Oklahoma, by Joseph B. Throburn and Isaac M. Holcomb, Doub and Company San Francisco 1908 * Ex-Congressman Healed and Filled with Spirit, by P. C. Nelson. Enid, OK: Southwestern Press, 1932. *
Encyclopedia of Oklahoma History and Culture - Callahan, James
* {{DEFAULTSORT:Callahan, James Yancy 1852 births 1935 deaths People from Dent County, Missouri People from Stanton County, Kansas People from Kingfisher County, Oklahoma Delegates to the United States House of Representatives from Oklahoma Territory Politicians from Enid, Oklahoma Silver Party politicians Oklahoma Silverites 19th-century members of the United States House of Representatives