Thomas Chipman McRae (December 21, 1851June 2, 1929) was an American attorney and politician from Arkansas. Described as a “

Woodrow Wilson Thomas Woodrow Wilson (December 28, 1856February 3, 1924) was the 28th president of the United States, serving from 1913 to 1921. He was the only History of the Democratic Party (United States), Democrat to serve as president during the Prog ...

progressive," he served as a Democratic member of 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 ...

(1885 to 1903) and the 26th Governor of Arkansas, from 1921 to 1925.

Biography

Thomas Chipman McRae, the eldest of five siblings, was born to Duncan L. and Mary Ann (Chipman) McRae on December 21, 1851, at Mount Holly in Union County, Arkansas. He attended Soule Business College in

New Orleans, Louisiana New Orleans (commonly known as NOLA or The Big Easy among other nicknames) is a Consolidated city-county, consolidated city-parish located along the Mississippi River in the U.S. state of Louisiana. With a population of 383,997 at the 2020 ...

and graduated with a law degree from

Washington and Lee University Washington and Lee University (Washington and Lee or W&L) is a Private college, private Liberal arts colleges in the United States, liberal arts college in Lexington, Virginia, United States. Established in 1749 as Augusta Academy, it is among ...

Lexington, Virginia Lexington is an Independent city (United States)#Virginia, independent city in the Commonwealth of Virginia, United States. At the 2020 United States census, 2020 census, the population was 7,320. It is the county seat of Rockbridge County, Virg ...

. He passed the Arkansas bar in 1873, and began his practice at Rosston in

Nevada County, Arkansas Nevada County ( ) is a county located in the southwestern part of the U.S. state of Arkansas. As of the 2020 Census, the population was 8,310, less than half of its peak in 1920. The county seat is Prescott. Nevada County is Arkansas's 63rd ...

. He married Amelia Ann White in December 1874, with whom he would go on to have six daughters and three sons. On May 19, 1877, Nevada County voters elected to move the county seat from Rosston, and construct a new courthouse in the newly created railroad town of Prescott. McRae relocated his family there to be closer to his center of business. In 1874, McRae was appointed to the post of Election Commissioner in Arkansas. From 1877 to 1879, he served in the

Arkansas House of Representatives The Arkansas House of Representatives is the lower house of the Arkansas General Assembly, the state legislature of the US state of Arkansas. The House has 100 members elected from an equal number of constituencies across the state. Each distr ...

and was a

presidential elector In the United States, the Electoral College is the group of presidential electors that is formed every four years for the sole purpose of voting for the president and vice president in the presidential election. This process is described in ...

in 1880. In 1884, 1896, and 1900, he was a delegate to the

Democratic National Convention The Democratic National Convention (DNC) is a series of presidential nominating conventions held every four years since 1832 by the United States Democratic Party. They have been administered by the Democratic National Committee since the 18 ...

and served as president of the convention twice. From 1888 to 1902 he was a member of the

Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee The Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee (DCCC) is the Democratic Hill committee for the United States House of Representatives, working to elect Democrats to that body. The DCCC recruits candidates, raises funds and organizes races in ...

. From 1885 to 1903, McRae served in the

. In 1902, McRae donated land for an

African American African Americans, also known as Black Americans and formerly also called Afro-Americans, are an Race and ethnicity in the United States, American racial and ethnic group that consists of Americans who have total or partial ancestry from an ...

school in Prescott, Arkansas. McRae's Elementary, Middle, and High School were integrated with the Prescott School District in 1969. In 1917 and 1918, McRae was president of the Arkansas Bar Association; in the latter year he took part in the Arkansas Constitutional Convention. In 1920, McRae was elected to his first term as

Governor of Arkansas The governor of Arkansas is the head of government of the U.S. state of Arkansas. The Governor (United States), governor is the head of the Executive (government), executive branch of the Politics and government of Arkansas, Arkansas government a ...

. In the election, McRae represented the Democratic Party, receiving 123,637 votes (66.6 percent). Wallace Townsend represented the Republican Party, receiving 46,350 votes (25 percent), and Josiah H. Blount represented the Independent Party, receiving 15,627 votes (8.4 percent). Blount, an African American school superintendent from Forest City, was the leader of a splinter GOP faction called the "Black-and-Tan Republicans," who protested the "lily-white" stand of its new leaders that included gubernatorial nominee Townsend. Blount was the first of his race to seek election as Arkansas's chief executive. McRae was elected to his second term in 1922. In that election, McRae received 99,987 votes (78.1 percent), and Republican John W. Grabiel received 28,055 votes (21.9 percent). During his tenure, the Arkansas Railroad Commission was re-established, the Arkansas Corporation Commission was abolished, and the Arkansas Tuberculosis Sanitarium for Negroes was established. A severance tax was passed with its revenue funding public schools, the Arkansas Office of State Geologist was created, and a personal income tax law was enacted. Upon the end of his governorship, McRae was appointed special Chief Justice of the

Arkansas Supreme Court The Supreme Court of Arkansas is the highest court in the state judiciary of Arkansas. It has ultimate and largely discretionary appellate jurisdiction over all state court cases that involve a point of state law, and original jurisdiction ...

. He was elected a life member of the Arkansas Democratic State Convention in 1926. After serving four years as Governor of Arkansas, McRae returned to Prescott to be with his family. He resumed his law practice and he engaged in banking activities until his death on June 2, 1929. McRae is buried in the historic section of the De Ann Cemetery in Prescott. McRae was a cousin of Thomas Banks Cabaniss, a U.S. Representative from

Georgia Georgia most commonly refers to: * Georgia (country), a country in the South Caucasus * Georgia (U.S. state), a state in the southeastern United States Georgia may also refer to: People and fictional characters * Georgia (name), a list of pe ...

. He was also the grandfather of Thomas C. "Tom" McRae, III, longtime President of the Winthrop Rockefeller Foundation who challenged

Bill Clinton William Jefferson Clinton (né Blythe III; born August 19, 1946) is an American politician and lawyer who was the 42nd president of the United States from 1993 to 2001. A member of the Democratic Party (United States), Democratic Party, ...

for the Democratic Gubernatorial Nomination in 1990.

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:McRae, Thomas Chipman 1851 births 1929 deaths People from Union County, Arkansas People from Nevada County, Arkansas People from Prescott, Arkansas People from Lexington, Virginia Washington and Lee University School of Law alumni Democratic Party members of the Arkansas House of Representatives Democratic Party governors of Arkansas Special justices of the Arkansas Supreme Court Democratic Party members of the United States House of Representatives from Arkansas 1880 United States presidential electors 19th-century members of the United States House of Representatives 19th-century members of the Arkansas General Assembly