Victor Alfred Knox (January 13, 1899 – December 13, 1976) was a politician from the

U.S. state In the United States, a state is a constituent political entity, of which there are 50. Bound together in a political union, each state holds governmental jurisdiction over a separate and defined geographic territory where it shares its so ...

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, ...

. He served six terms in 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 ...

from 1953 to 1965.

Early life and education

Knox was born on a farm in

Chippewa County, Michigan Chippewa County ( ) is a County (United States), county in the eastern Upper Peninsula of the U.S. state of Michigan. As of the 2020 United States census, 2020 census, the population was 36,785. The county seat is Sault Ste. Marie, Michigan, S ...

, near

Sault Ste. Marie Sault Ste. Marie may refer to: People * Sault Ste. Marie Tribe of Chippewa Indians, a Native American tribe in Michigan Places * Sault Ste. Marie, Ontario, Canada ** Sault Ste. Marie (federal electoral district), a Canadian federal electora ...

; his father was from

Canada Canada is a country in North America. Its Provinces and territories of Canada, ten provinces and three territories extend from the Atlantic Ocean to the Pacific Ocean and northward into the Arctic Ocean, making it the world's List of coun ...

. He attended the public schools and engaged in farming until 1943. He was the treasurer of

Soo Township Soo Township is a civil township of Chippewa County, Michigan, Chippewa County in the U.S. state of Michigan. The population was 2,966 at the 2020 United States census, 2020 census. Geography Soo Township consists of two sections in northeastern ...

in 1923 and 1924, and Chippewa County supervisor, 1925-1931. Knox was member of the

Michigan House of Representatives The Michigan House of Representatives is the lower house of the Michigan Legislature. There are 110 members, each of whom is elected from constituencies having approximately 77,000 to 91,000 residents, based on population figures from the 2020 ...

, 1937–1952, serving as the speaker pro tempore and Republican floor leader, 1943–1946, and as speaker, 1947-1952. He was also the manager of the Chippewa County Farm Bureau, 1943–1946 and engaged in the retail plumbing and heating business in Sault Ste. Marie in 1946. He served on the Council of State Government, the State Planning Commission, the State Crime Commission, and the

Soo Locks The Soo Locks (sometimes spelled Sault Locks but pronounced "soo") are a set of parallel Lock (water navigation), locks, operated and maintained by the United States Army Corps of Engineers, Detroit District, that enable ships to travel between ...

Centennial Commission.

Congress

Knox was elected as a Republican from

Michigan's 11th congressional district Michigan's 11th congressional district is a United States congressional district north of Detroit, comprising most of urbanized central Oakland County, Michigan, Oakland County. Until 1993, the district covered the state's Upper Peninsula of Mi ...

to the

83rd United States Congress The 83rd United States Congress was a meeting of the legislative branch of the federal government of the United States in Washington, D.C. from January 3, 1953, until January 3, 1955, during the last two weeks of the Truman administration, with ...

and to the five succeeding Congresses, serving from January 3, 1953 to January 3, 1965. Knox voted in favor of the Civil Rights Acts of 1957 and

1960 It is also known as the "Year of Africa" because of major events—particularly the independence of seventeen African nations—that focused global attention on the continent and intensified feelings of Pan-Africanism. Events January * Janu ...

, but voted against the

Civil Rights Act of 1964 The Civil Rights Act of 1964 () is a landmark civil rights and United States labor law, labor law in the United States that outlaws discrimination based on Race (human categorization), race, Person of color, color, religion, sex, and nationa ...

, as well as the 24th Amendment to the U.S. Constitution. He was an unsuccessful candidate for reelection in 1964, losing in the general election to

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 ...

Raymond F. Clevenger.

Death

Knox died in

Petoskey, Michigan Petoskey ( ) is the largest city in and the county seat of Emmet County, Michigan, and is the largest settlement within the county. Petoskey has a population of 5,877 at the 2020 census, up from 5,670 at the 2010 census. Petoskey is part of N ...

and is interred at Oaklawn Chapel Gardens, fifteen miles south of Sault Ste. Marie.

References

The Political Graveyard
{{DEFAULTSORT:Knox, Victor Alfred 1899 births 1976 deaths 20th-century members of the Michigan Legislature American people of Canadian descent Republican Party members of the United States House of Representatives from Michigan County commissioners in Michigan Speakers of the Michigan House of Representatives People from Sault Ste. Marie, Michigan 20th-century members of the United States House of Representatives