John C. Davies (lawyer)

For other people named John Davies, see John Davies (disambiguation).

John Clay Davies (b. ca. 1858 - January 11, 1925 Camden, Oneida County, New York) was an American lawyer and politician.

Life

He was Deputy Attorney General under Theodore E. Hancock from 1894 to 1898. He was a delegate to the New York State Constitutional Convention of 1894. He was New York State Attorney General from 1899 to 1902, elected in 1898 and 1900. He was a delegate to the 1900 Republican National Convention. In 1902, he was the Republican candidate for justice of the New York Supreme Court in the heavily Republican Fifth Judicial District, but was defeated in a landslide by Democrat Watson M. Rogers. Even his party fellows had accused him of incompetence, and had favored the nomination of an independent candidate. In 1905, he was appointed a Commissioner of the State Board on Gas and Electricity (State Lighting Commission) by Governor Frank W. Higgins.

His grandson John C. Davies II was a U.S. Representative from New York.

Sources

• [1] Political Graveyard
• [2] Appointments to state commissions, in NYT on June 6, 1905
• [3] Appointment as deputy AG, in NYT on December 30, 1893
• [4] The Republican nominees, in NYT on September 28, 1898
• [5] List of New York Attorneys General, at Office of the NYSAG

Legal offices
Preceded by Theodore E. Hancock	New York State Attorney General 1899–1902	Succeeded by John Cunneen