James Wickersham

James Wickersham (middle row, third from right) meeting with Native Alaska people

James Wickersham (born August 24, 1857 in Patoka , Illinois , † October 24, 1939 in Juneau , Alaska Territory ) was an American politician . Between 1909 and 1933 he represented the Alaska Territory on several occasions as a delegate in the US House of Representatives .

Early years and political advancement

James Wickersham attended public schools in his home country. After completing a law degree, he was admitted to the bar in 1880. He then began to work in this profession in Springfield . He was also a member of the Illinois Militia. In 1883, Wickersham moved to the Washington Territory . In Pierce County there , he was a probate judge from 1884 to 1888. In 1894 he was a trial attorney for the city of Tacoma .

Wickersham became a member of the Republican Party . In 1898 he was a member of the Washington House of Representatives . In 1900 he was named a federal judge in the Alaska Judicial District by President William McKinley . Wickersham held this office until January 1908. This task in the wild, uninhabited country with no infrastructure was very arduous.

Congress delegate

In the congressional elections of 1908, James Wickersham was elected to succeed Thomas Cale in the US House of Representatives. There he completed four consecutive legislative periods as a delegate between March 4, 1909 and March 3, 1917. Then he was beaten by Charles August Sulzer , the Democratic Party candidate . Wickersham successfully sued the election result. In January 1919, two months before the end of the legislative period, Sulzer had to hand over his mandate back to Wickersham, who then resumed his seat in the House of Representatives until March 3, 1919. Paradoxically, Sulzer was also elected to Congress in 1918 . This election result was also contested by Wickersham. While the trial was still ongoing, Charles Sulzer died on April 28, 1919, and George Barnes Grigsby , another Democrat, was elected to replace him in the House of Representatives. After Wickersham's vote was upheld, he became a congressional delegate for three days between March 1 and 3, 1921. He then went to Juneau, Alaska, where he worked as a lawyer.

In the 1930 elections, Wickersham was re-elected as a delegate to Congress in Washington, DC . There he remained for another full legislative period between March 4, 1931 and March 3, 1933. In the 1932 elections, he was defeated by Anthony Dimond . It should be noted that none of the Alaska delegates represented in the US House of Representatives had the right to vote until 1959, because the area was not an official state of the US until then.

Another résumé

After retiring from federal politics, he returned to Juneau as a lawyer. He also published some books with a historical or ethnological background. James Wickersham died in October 1939.

Web links

• James Wickersham in the Biographical Directory of the United States Congress (English)

• James Wickersham in the database of Find a Grave (English)