Thomas Whitfield Davidson (September 23, 1876 – January 26, 1974) was a

United States district judge The United States district courts are the trial courts of the U.S. federal judiciary. There is one district court for each federal judicial district. Each district covers one U.S. state or a portion of a state. There is at least one feder ...

of the

United States District Court for the Northern District of Texas The United States District Court for the Northern District of Texas (in case citations, N.D. Tex.) is a United States district court. Its first judge, Andrew Phelps McCormick, was appointed to the court on April 10, 1879. The court convenes in ...

Education and career

Born in Harrison County,

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 ...

, Davidson

read law Reading law was the primary method used in common law countries, particularly the United States, for people to prepare for and enter the legal profession before the advent of law schools. It consisted of an extended internship or apprenticeship un ...

to enter the bar in 1903. He briefly attended East Texas State Normal College (now

Texas A&M University–Commerce East Texas A&M University (ETAMU; formerly Texas A&M University–Commerce) is a public university in Commerce, Texas, United States. With an enrollment of over 12,000 students as of fall 2017, the university is the third-largest institution in ...

) before studying at the

University of Chicago The University of Chicago (UChicago, Chicago, or UChi) is a Private university, private research university in Chicago, Illinois, United States. Its main campus is in the Hyde Park, Chicago, Hyde Park neighborhood on Chicago's South Side, Chic ...

and then

Columbia University Columbia University in the City of New York, commonly referred to as Columbia University, is a Private university, private Ivy League research university in New York City. Established in 1754 as King's College on the grounds of Trinity Churc ...

. He was in private practice in

Marshall Marshall may refer to: Places Australia *Marshall, Victoria, a suburb of Geelong, Victoria ** Marshall railway station Canada * Marshall, Saskatchewan * The Marshall, a mountain in British Columbia Liberia * Marshall, Liberia Marshall Is ...

, Texas from 1903 to 1907. He was the city attorney of Marshall 1907 to 1914, thereafter resuming his private practice in

Dallas Dallas () is a city in the U.S. state of Texas and the most populous city in the Dallas–Fort Worth metroplex, the List of Texas metropolitan areas, most populous metropolitan area in Texas and the Metropolitan statistical area, fourth-most ...

, Texas until 1920. Davidson was a member of the

Texas Senate The Texas Senate is the upper house of the Texas Legislature, with the Texas House of Representatives functioning as the lower house. Together, they form the State legislature (United States), state legislature of the state of Texas. The Senate ...

from 1920 to 1922, and was lieutenant governor of Texas from 1923 to 1925 serving under Governor

Pat Morris Neff Pat Morris Neff (November 26, 1871 – January 20, 1952) was an American politician and educator who served as the 28th governor of Texas from 1921 to 1925. A member of the Democratic Party, he served as the ninth president of Baylor Univer ...

. He then returned to private practice in Dallas until 1936.

Federal judicial service

On January 22, 1936, Davidson was nominated by President

Franklin D. Roosevelt Franklin Delano Roosevelt (January 30, 1882April 12, 1945), also known as FDR, was the 32nd president of the United States, serving from 1933 until his death in 1945. He is the longest-serving U.S. president, and the only one to have served ...

to a seat on the

vacated by Judge Edward Roscoe Meek. Davidson was confirmed by the

United States Senate The United States Senate is a chamber of the Bicameralism, bicameral United States Congress; it is the upper house, with the United States House of Representatives, U.S. House of Representatives being the lower house. Together, the Senate and ...

on January 30, 1936, and received his commission on February 5, 1936. He served as Chief Judge from 1954 to 1959, and assumed senior status on November 1, 1965, holding that position until his death on January 26, 1974.

References

Sources

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Davidson, Thomas Whitfield 1876 births 1974 deaths Judges of the United States District Court for the Northern District of Texas United States district court judges appointed by Franklin D. Roosevelt Democratic Party Texas state senators Lieutenant governors of Texas United States federal judges admitted to the practice of law by reading law 20th-century members of the Texas Legislature