Rudolph Kleberg (June 26, 1847 – December 28, 1924) 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

Texas Texas ( , ; or ) is the most populous U.S. state, state in the South Central United States, South Central region of the United States. It borders Louisiana to the east, Arkansas to the northeast, Oklahoma to the north, New Mexico to the we ...

, great uncle of

Robert C. Eckhardt Robert Christian Eckhardt (July 16, 1913 – November 13, 2001) was a Democratic Party (United States), Democratic United States Representative representing the Texas's 8th congressional district, 8th District of Texas from 1967 to 1981, and lawy ...

and uncle of Richard M. Kleberg, Sr.

Early life and education

Born in

Cat Spring, Texas Cat Spring is an unincorporated community in southern Austin County, Texas, United States. According to the Handbook of Texas, it had a population of 76 in 2000. Cat Spring was one of the first German/American settlements in Texas, and the loc ...

, Kleberg was instructed by private tutors and graduated from Concrete College, De Witt County, in 1868. He enlisted in Tom Green's brigade of Cavalry in the

Confederate States Army The Confederate States Army (CSA), also called the Confederate army or the Southern army, was the Military forces of the Confederate States, military land force of the Confederate States of America (commonly referred to as the Confederacy) duri ...

in the spring of 1864 and served until the close of the

Civil War A civil war is a war between organized groups within the same Sovereign state, state (or country). The aim of one side may be to take control of the country or a region, to achieve independence for a region, or to change government policies.J ...

. After the war, Kleberg studied law in

San Antonio San Antonio ( ; Spanish for " Saint Anthony") is a city in the U.S. state of Texas and the most populous city in Greater San Antonio. San Antonio is the third-largest metropolitan area in Texas and the 24th-largest metropolitan area in the ...

. 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 ...

in 1872.

Career

Kleberg commenced practice in

Cuero, Texas Cuero ( ) is a city in and the county seat of DeWitt County, Texas, DeWitt County, Texas, United States. Its population was 8,128 at the 2020 United States census, 2020 census. History The city of Cuero got its start in the mid-19th century as a ...

. The next year, he founded the ''Cuero Star'' in 1873. After a few years of practice, Kleberg was appointed as prosecuting attorney of De Witt County 1876-1890. Entering electoral politics, he served as a member of the State senate 1882-1886. In 1885, he was appointed as United States attorney for the western district of Texas. Kleberg was elected as a

Democrat Democrat, Democrats, or Democratic may refer to: Politics *A proponent of democracy, or democratic government; a form of government involving rule by the people. *A member of a Democratic Party: **Democratic Party (Cyprus) (DCY) **Democratic Part ...

to the Fifty-fourth Congress to fill the vacancy caused by the death of William H. Crain. He was reelected to the Fifty-fifth, Fifty-sixth, and Fifty-seventh Congresses and served from April 7, 1896, to March 3, 1903. He was not a candidate for renomination in 1902. Resuming the practice of law, he moved with his family to

Austin, Texas Austin ( ) is the List of capitals in the United States, capital city of the U.S. state of Texas. It is the county seat and most populous city of Travis County, Texas, Travis County, with portions extending into Hays County, Texas, Hays and W ...

, in 1905. There he was appointed as the official reporter for the court of criminal appeals February 24, 1905. He served until his death in Austin on December 28, 1924. He was interred in Oakwood Cemetery.

Sources

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Kleberg, Rudolph 1847 births 1924 deaths Kleberg family Confederate States Army personnel Democratic Party members of the United States House of Representatives from Texas United States attorneys for the Western District of Texas People from Austin County, Texas People from Cuero, Texas Politicians from Austin, Texas 19th-century members of the United States House of Representatives