John Charles Tarsney (November 7, 1845 – September 4, 1920) was an American politician from

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 ...

and an associate justice of the Oklahoma Territory Supreme Court (1896-1899). He then returned to Kansas City, Missouri, where he had a private law practice until he died in 1920.

Early life and service in the Union Army

Tarsney was born in Medina Township,

Lenawee County, Michigan Lenawee County ( ') is a County (United States), county located in the U.S. state of Michigan. As of the 2020 United States census, the population was 99,423. The county seat is Adrian, Michigan, Adrian. The county was created in 1822, from terr ...

, and attended a

University of Michigan, Ann Arbor The University of Michigan (U-M, U of M, or Michigan) is a public research university in Ann Arbor, Michigan, United States. Founded in 1817, it is the oldest institution of higher education in the state. The University of Michigan is one of th ...

. After graduation, he worked on a farm until the outbreak 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 ...

. He enlisted in the 4th Michigan Volunteer Infantry Regiment in August 1862. During the

Battle of Gettysburg The Battle of Gettysburg () was a three-day battle in the American Civil War, which was fought between the Union and Confederate armies between July 1 and July 3, 1863, in and around Gettysburg, Pennsylvania. The battle, won by the Union, ...

he was captured and imprisoned at Belle Isle (Richmond, Virginia), later being moved to

Andersonville Prison The Andersonville National Historic Site, located near Andersonville, Georgia, preserves the former Andersonville Prison (also known as Camp Sumter), a Confederate prisoner-of-war camp during the final fourteen months of the American Civil Wa ...

and Camp Lawton. He escaped from Camp Lawton by temporarily taking the identity of a recently deceased soldier. He returned to his regiment in January 1865 and took part in the battles at Hatcher's Run and Five Forks. He also participated in the surrender of Appomattox. Tarsney was discharged from the army in June 1865."Hon. John C. Tarsney." ''Medico-Legal Journal''.Vol. 27. June 1909.
p.79. Accessed March 28, 2020.

Education and career

After being discharged from military service, Tarsney attended high school in

Hudson Hudson may refer to: People * Hudson (given name) * Hudson (surname) * Hudson (footballer, born 1986), Hudson Fernando Tobias de Carvalho, Brazilian football right-back * Hudson (footballer, born 1988), Hudson Rodrigues dos Santos, Brazilian f ...

Michigan Michigan ( ) is a peninsular U.S. state, state in the Great Lakes region, Great Lakes region of the Upper Midwest, Upper Midwestern United States. It shares water and land boundaries with Minnesota to the northwest, Wisconsin to the west, ...

and graduated in 1867. Subsequently, he studied law at the

University of Michigan Law School The University of Michigan Law School (branded as Michigan Law) is the law school of the University of Michigan, a public research university in Ann Arbor, Michigan. Founded in 1859, the school offers Master of Laws (LLM), Master of Comparati ...

, from which he graduated in 1869. He was admitted to the bar in the same year and practiced in Hudson. In 1872, he moved to

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 ...

and served as city attorney of Kansas City in 1874 and 1875. In 1875, Tarsney became the attorney for Consolidated Street Railways of Kansas City, where he remained until 1888. His brother,

Timothy E. Tarsney Timothy Edward Tarsney (February 4, 1849 – June 8, 1909) was an American lawyer and politician from the U.S. state of Michigan. He served two terms in the United States House of Representatives from 1885 to 1889. Early life and education Tars ...

, 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

. In 1888, he was elected as a representative to the

U.S. Congress The United States Congress is the legislative branch of the federal government of the United States. It is a bicameral legislature, including a lower body, the U.S. House of Representatives, and an upper body, the U.S. Senate. They both ...

and re-elected three more times in 1890, 1892 and 1894. His sister Mary married Thomas A. E. Weadock, who later became a U.S. Representative from Michigan. Mrs John Charles Tarsney

Tarsney married Mary Behan, a native of Michigan. Although the couple had seven children, none lived to the age of adulthood. In 1888, Tarsney was elected as a Democrat from

Missouri's 5th congressional district Missouri's 5th congressional district has been represented in the United States House of Representatives by Democratic Party (United States), Democrat Emanuel Cleaver, the former Mayor of Kansas City, since 2005. The district primarily consist ...

to the

51st United States Congress The 51st United States Congress, referred to by some critics as the Billion Dollar Congress, was a meeting of the legislative branch of the United States federal government, consisting of the United States Senate and the United States House of Rep ...

. He was subsequently re-elected to the 52nd and

53rd 53 may refer to: * 53 (number) * one of the years 53 BC, AD 53, 1953, 2053 * FiftyThree, an American privately held technology company that specializes in tools for mobile creation and visual thinking * 53rd Regiment Alabama Cavalry * 53rd Regiment ...

Congresses, serving from March 4, 1889, to March 3, 1895. He was chairman of the Committee on Labor in the 52nd Congress. He presented credentials as a member-elect to the 54th Congress and served from March 4, 1895, to February 27, 1896, when he was succeeded by Robert T. Van Horn, who had contested his election. Tarsney was appointed by

U.S. President The president of the United States (POTUS) is the head of state and head of government of the United States. The president directs the Federal government of the United States#Executive branch, executive branch of the Federal government of t ...

Grover Cleveland Stephen Grover Cleveland (March 18, 1837June 24, 1908) was the 22nd and 24th president of the United States, serving from 1885 to 1889 and from 1893 to 1897. He was the first U.S. president to serve nonconsecutive terms and the first Hist ...

to serve as an associate justice of the

Supreme Court In most legal jurisdictions, a supreme court, also known as a court of last resort, apex court, high (or final) court of appeal, and court of final appeal, is the highest court within the hierarchy of courts. Broadly speaking, the decisions of ...

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 ...

in 1896 where he replaced Justice John H. Burford."Hon. John John C. Tarsney." ''Medico-legal Journal''. vol. 27, No. 1. June 1909. p. 1.
Accessed August 27, 2019. The position necessitated a move to

Guthrie, Oklahoma Guthrie is a city and county seat in Logan County, Oklahoma, United States, and a part of the Oklahoma City Metroplex. Its population was 10,191 at the 2010 census, a 2.7% increase from 9,925 in the 2000 census. First known as a railroad st ...

, the then capital of the Oklahoma Territory. He served as an Associate Justice until 1899 before returning to practice law in Kansas City.Campbell, William P. "Oklahoma Territorial Supreme Court." ''Historia''. Vol. 8, No. 5. pp. 1-2. April 1920. Accessed August 27, 2019. Tarsney died on September 4, 1920. Tarsney is the namesake of the community of Tarsney, Missouri.

Tarsney Act

One of Tarsney's most long-lasting contributions was the Tarsney Act, which permitted private architects to design federal buildings after being selected in a competition under the supervision of the Supervising Architect of the

United States Treasury The Department of the Treasury (USDT) is the national treasury and finance department of the federal government of the United States. It is one of 15 current U.S. government departments. The department oversees the Bureau of Engraving and ...

. Competitions were held for the Alexander Hamilton U.S. Custom House,

Ellis Island Ellis Island is an island in New York Harbor, within the U.S. states of New Jersey and New York (state), New York. Owned by the U.S. government, Ellis Island was once the busiest immigrant inspection and processing station in the United State ...

James Farley Post Office The James A. Farley Building (formerly Pennsylvania Terminal and the U.S. General Post Office) is a mixed-use structure in Midtown Manhattan, New York City, which formerly served as the city's main United States Postal Service (USPS) branch. Desi ...

, Cleveland Federal Building, U.S. Post Office and Courthouse in

Baltimore Baltimore is the most populous city in the U.S. state of Maryland. With a population of 585,708 at the 2020 census and estimated at 568,271 in 2024, it is the 30th-most populous U.S. city. The Baltimore metropolitan area is the 20th-large ...

, Maryland, and U.S. Customhouse in

San Francisco San Francisco, officially the City and County of San Francisco, is a commercial, Financial District, San Francisco, financial, and Culture of San Francisco, cultural center of Northern California. With a population of 827,526 residents as of ...

California California () is a U.S. state, state in the Western United States that lies on the West Coast of the United States, Pacific Coast. It borders Oregon to the north, Nevada and Arizona to the east, and shares Mexico–United States border, an ...

(which are all now on the

National Register of Historic Places The National Register of Historic Places (NRHP) is the Federal government of the United States, United States federal government's official United States National Register of Historic Places listings, list of sites, buildings, structures, Hist ...

) among others. The competitions were met with enthusiasm by the architect community but were also marred by scandal as when Supervisory Architect

James Knox Taylor James Knox Taylor (October 11, 1857 – August 27, 1929) was Supervising Architect of the United States Department of the Treasury from 1897 to 1912. His name is listed ''ex officio'' as supervising architect of hundreds of federal buildings b ...

picked

Cass Gilbert Cass Gilbert (November 24, 1859 – May 17, 1934) was an American architect. An early proponent of Early skyscrapers, skyscrapers, his works include the Woolworth Building, the United States Supreme Court building, the state capitols of Minneso ...

for the New York Customs job, as Taylor and Gilbert had both been members of the Gilbert & Taylor architecture firm in

Saint Paul, Minnesota Saint Paul (often abbreviated St. Paul) is the List of capitals in the United States, capital city of the U.S. state of Minnesota and the county seat of Ramsey County, Minnesota, Ramsey County. As of the 2020 United States census, 2020 census, ...

. In 1913, the act was repealed.Architects to the Nation: The Rise and Decline of the Supervising Architect's Office by Antoinette J. Lee - Oxford University Press, USA (April 20, 2000)

References

External links

* For an article on Camp Lawton mentioning Tarnsey, see: http://www.cnn.com/2014/05/04/us/civil-war-150th-anniversary-prisons/index.html?hpt=hp_c2 {{DEFAULTSORT:Tarsney, John Charles 1845 births 1920 deaths People from Lenawee County, Michigan Politicians from Kansas City, Missouri University of Michigan Law School alumni Democratic Party members of the United States House of Representatives from Missouri People from Guthrie, Oklahoma Oklahoma Democrats Oklahoma Territorial Supreme Court justices 19th-century members of the United States House of Representatives