Thomas Beall Davis (April 25, 1828 – November 26, 1911), of

Keyser, West Virginia Keyser () is a city in and the county seat of Mineral County, West Virginia, Mineral County, West Virginia. It is part of the Cumberland, MD-WV Metropolitan Statistical Area. The population was 4,853 at the 2020 United States census, 2020 census. ...

, was an American Democratic politician.

Biography

Davis was born 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 was the brother of

Henry Gassaway Davis Henry Gassaway Davis (November 16, 1823 – March 11, 1916) was an American politician and businessman who served as a United States Senator from West Virginia from 1871 to 1883. He was the Democratic Party's nominee for Vice President of the Uni ...

. He relocated to

Howard County, Maryland Howard County is a County (United States), county located in the U.S. state of Maryland. As of the 2020 United States census, 2020 census, the population is 334,529. Since there are no incorporated municipalities, there is no incorporated coun ...

, where he attended public schools. Davis moved to

Piedmont Piedmont ( ; ; ) is one of the 20 regions of Italy, located in the northwest Italy, Northwest of the country. It borders the Liguria region to the south, the Lombardy and Emilia-Romagna regions to the east, and the Aosta Valley region to the ...

in present-day West Virginia in 1854 and began working for the

Baltimore and Ohio Railroad The Baltimore and Ohio Railroad was the oldest railroads in North America, oldest railroad in the United States and the first steam engine, steam-operated common carrier. Construction of the line began in 1828, and it operated as B&O from 1830 ...

. He then relocated to

, several years later, and he engaged in the mercantile, lumbering, banking, mining, and railroad building businesses. In 1876 Davis became a Member of West Virginia Democratic State Executive Committee, serving until 1907. He entered the

West Virginia House of Delegates The West Virginia House of Delegates is the lower house of the West Virginia Legislature in West Virginia. Only three states—Maryland, Virginia, and West Virginia—refer to their lower house as the House of Delegates. Organization Regular se ...

in 1899, representing Mineral County until 1900. Davis became a U.S. Representative from West Virginia's 2nd District in the 59th Congress, serving from 1905 to 1907 after the resignation of Republican Alston Dayton. He died in Keyser and was buried at Maplewood Cemetery in Elkins. The town of

Thomas, West Virginia Thomas is a city and former coal town in Tucker County, West Virginia, United States. The population was 623 at the 2020 census. History Thomas was platted in 1884. Thomas was named for Thomas Beall Davis (1828-1911), brother of Senator Hen ...

is named for him.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Davis, Thomas Beall 1828 births 1911 deaths 19th-century American businesspeople 20th-century American businesspeople 20th-century West Virginia politicians Baltimore and Ohio Railroad people Businesspeople from Baltimore Businesspeople from West Virginia Davis and Elkins family Democratic Party members of the United States House of Representatives from West Virginia Democratic Party members of the West Virginia House of Delegates People from Howard County, Maryland People from Keyser, West Virginia People from Piedmont, West Virginia Politicians from Baltimore Thomas, West Virginia 19th-century members of the West Virginia Legislature 20th-century members of the United States House of Representatives Burials at Maplewood Cemetery (Elkins, West Virginia)