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James Percy Priest (April 1, 1900 – October 12, 1956) was an American
teacher A teacher, also called a schoolteacher or formally an educator, is a person who helps students to acquire knowledge, competence, or virtue, via the practice of teaching. ''Informally'' the role of teacher may be taken on by anyone (e.g. w ...
,
journalist A journalist is a person who gathers information in the form of text, audio or pictures, processes it into a newsworthy form and disseminates it to the public. This is called journalism. Roles Journalists can work in broadcast, print, advertis ...
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 ...
who represented
Tennessee Tennessee (, ), officially the State of Tennessee, is a landlocked U.S. state, state in the Southeastern United States, Southeastern region of the United States. It borders Kentucky to the north, Virginia to the northeast, North Carolina t ...
in 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 1941 until his death.


Background

Priest was born in Carters Creek,
Maury County, Tennessee Maury County ( ) is a county located in the U.S. state of Tennessee, in the Middle Tennessee region. As of the 2020 census, the population was 100,974. Its county seat is Columbia. Maury County is part of the Nashville-Davidson– Murfreesb ...
, the son of George and Harriet (née Hastings) Priest. He attended Central High School in Columbia, and afterward continued his education at State Teachers' College in Murfreesboro (now
Middle Tennessee State University Middle Tennessee State University (MTSU or MT) is a Public university, public research university in Murfreesboro, Tennessee. Founded in 1911 as a normal school, the university consists of eight Undergraduate education, undergraduate colleges as ...
),
Peabody College Vanderbilt Peabody College of Education and Human Development (also known as Vanderbilt Peabody College, Peabody College, or simply Peabody) is the education school of Vanderbilt University, a private research university in Nashville, Tennessee ...
in
Nashville Nashville, often known as Music City, is the capital and List of municipalities in Tennessee, most populous city in the U.S. state of Tennessee. It is the county seat, seat of Davidson County, Tennessee, Davidson County in Middle Tennessee, locat ...
, and the
University of Tennessee The University of Tennessee, Knoxville (or The University of Tennessee; UT; UT Knoxville; or colloquially UTK or Tennessee) is a Public university, public Land-grant university, land-grant research university in Knoxville, Tennessee, United St ...
. He taught school in Culleoka, in his native Maury County, from 1920 until 1926, when he joined the editorial staff of the '' Nashville Tennessean''. In 1937, he began courting Mildred Webster Noland, whom he would marry in 1947. They had one daughter, Harriet.


Congress

In 1940, Priest was encouraged to run for the United States House of Representatives as an
independent Independent or Independents may refer to: Arts, entertainment, and media Artist groups * Independents (artist group), a group of modernist painters based in Pennsylvania, United States * Independentes (English: Independents), a Portuguese artist ...
in
Tennessee's 5th congressional district The 5th congressional district of Tennessee is a congressional district in Middle Tennessee. It has been represented by Republican Andy Ogles since January 2023. In the past, the fifth district has been nearly synonymous with Tennessee's capi ...
, which is based in Nashville. He won in an upset, running as an
Independent Independent or Independents may refer to: Arts, entertainment, and media Artist groups * Independents (artist group), a group of modernist painters based in Pennsylvania, United States * Independentes (English: Independents), a Portuguese artist ...
, defeating the incumbent, one-term Democratic Congressman Jo Byrns Jr. Upon swearing-in, he immediately joined the Democratic
caucus A caucus is a group or meeting of supporters or members of a specific political party or movement. The exact definition varies between different countries and political cultures. The term originated in the United States, where it can refer to ...
, and was reelected seven times. The district was renumbered the 6th District in 1943 and became the 5th once again in 1953. He served as the
House majority whip Party leaders of the United States House of Representatives, also known as floor leaders, are congresspeople who coordinate legislative initiatives and serve as the chief spokespersons for their parties on the House floor. These leaders are el ...
between 1949 and 1953. Priest was one of three Democrats in the Tennessee House delegation who did not sign 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 ...
, the others being Joe Evins and Ross Bass. At the time of his death, Priest was serving as the chairman of the House Commerce Committee and had already secured the Democratic nomination for a ninth term, which had essentially assured him of reelection since no Republican has been elected to the U.S. House of Representatives from Nashville since
Reconstruction Reconstruction may refer to: Politics, history, and sociology *Reconstruction (law), the transfer of a company's (or several companies') business to a new company *''Perestroika'' (Russian for "reconstruction"), a late 20th century Soviet Union ...
.


Death and legacy

In early October 1956, Priest entered a Nashville hospital for an operation on an
ulcer An ulcer is a discontinuity or break in a bodily membrane that impedes normal function of the affected organ. According to Robbins's pathology, "ulcer is the breach of the continuity of skin, epithelium or mucous membrane caused by sloughin ...
and was reported in satisfactory condition. However, complications developed and he died in the early morning hours of October 12. Priest was interred at Woodlawn Cemetery in Nashville. J. Percy Priest Dam, a
United States Army Corps of Engineers The United States Army Corps of Engineers (USACE) is the military engineering branch of the United States Army. A direct reporting unit (DRU), it has three primary mission areas: Engineer Regiment, military construction, and civil wo ...
hydroelectric and
flood A flood is an overflow of water (list of non-water floods, or rarely other fluids) that submerges land that is usually dry. In the sense of "flowing water", the word may also be applied to the inflow of the tide. Floods are of significant con ...
control structure just east of Nashville on the Stones River (and easily visible from
Interstate 40 Interstate 40 (I-40) is a major east–west transcontinental Interstate Highway System, Interstate Highway in the Southeastern United States, southeastern and Southwestern United States, southwestern portions of the United States. At a leng ...
) is named in his honor, as is
Percy Priest Lake J. Percy Priest Lake is a reservoir in north central part of Tennessee. It is formed by J. Percy Priest Dam, located between miles six and seven of the Stones River. The dam (easily visible from Interstate 40) is located about east of do ...
(created by the dam) and an elementary school in Forest Hills, a suburb of Nashville. In August 2010, it was announced that Priest's papers, along with the research files of Rebecca Stubbs, author of the biography ''J. Percy Priest and His Amazing Race'', had been donated to the
Tennessee State Library and Archives The Tennessee State Library and Archives (TSLA), established in 1854, currently operates as a unit of the Tennessee Department of State. According to the Tennessee Blue Book, the Library and Archives "collects and preserves books and records of h ...
."State Library & Archives Receives Donation of Papers of J. Percy Priest, Prominent Former Tennessee Congressman and Journalist" Tennessee Department of State press release
/ref>


See also

*
List of United States Congress members who died in office (1950–1999) The following is a list of United States senators and representatives who died of natural or accidental causes, or who killed themselves, while serving their terms between 1950 and 1999. For a list of members of Congress who were killed while i ...


References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Priest, Percy 1900 births 1956 deaths American newspaper reporters and correspondents Schoolteachers from Tennessee Middle Tennessee State University alumni Journalists from Nashville, Tennessee Tennessee independents Independent Democrat members of the United States House of Representatives Democratic Party members of the United States House of Representatives from Tennessee 20th-century American non-fiction writers Deaths from ulcers 20th-century American educators 20th-century American journalists American male journalists 20th-century American male writers 20th-century members of the United States House of Representatives