Finis J. Garrett

Finis J. Garrett
Chief Judge of the United States Court of Customs and Patent Appeals
In office December 1, 1937 – September 15, 1955
Appointed by	Franklin Roosevelt
Preceded by	William Graham
Succeeded by	Noble Johnson
Associate Judge of the United States Court of Customs and Patent Appeals
In office February 18, 1929 – December 1, 1937
Appointed by	Calvin Coolidge
Preceded by	James Smith
Succeeded by	Joseph Jackson
House Minority Leader
In office March 4, 1923 – March 3, 1929
Deputy	William Oldfield
Preceded by	Claude Kitchin
Succeeded by	John Garner
Member of the U.S. House of Representatives from Tennessee's 9th district
In office March 4, 1905 – March 3, 1929
Preceded by	Rice Pierce
Succeeded by	Jere Cooper
Personal details
Born	(1875-08-26)August 26, 1875 Ore Springs, Tennessee, U.S.
Died	May 25, 1956(1956-05-25) (aged 80) Washington, D.C., U.S.
Political party	Democratic
Spouse	Elizabeth Harris Burns
Children	Virginia Burns
Alma mater	Bethel College, Tennessee

Finis James Garrett (August 26, 1875 – May 25, 1956) was an American politician and a member of the United States House of Representatives for the 9th congressional district of Tennessee.

Biography

Garrett was born near Ore Springs, in Weakley County, Tennessee on August 26, 1875, the son of Noah J. and Virginia Baughman Garrett. He attended Bethel College and graduated in 1897. During that period he worked as a teacher and an editor for local newspapers.

Career

After graduation, Garrett went on to study law and passed the Tennessee Bar Association in 1899. He was appointed master in chancery and served from September 14, 1900 to January 24, 1905. He married Elizabeth Harris Burns on November 27, 1901, and they had two children, Virginia Lee and Burns.

Elected to the Fifty-ninth US Congress and to the eleven succeeding Congresses, Garrett served from March 4, 1905 to March 3, 1929. He served as chairman of the Committee on Insular Affairs (Sixty-fifth Congress), and was minority leader for the Sixty-eighth through Seventieth Congresses. He was not a candidate for renomination to the Seventy-first Congress in 1928, but was an unsuccessful candidate for the Democratic nomination for United States Senator. He was a delegate to the Democratic National Convention in 1924.

Garrett also did some history writing producing How Andrew Jackson Applied Democratic Principles; An Address ... in 1927. He was appointed judge of the United States Court of Customs and Patent Appeals from 1929 to 1937. He was Presiding judge of the United States Court of Customs and Patent Appeals from 1937 to 1955.

Death

Garrett died on May 26, 1956 (age 80 years, 274 days). He is interred at the Sunset Cemetery in Dresden, Tennessee.

External links

• Bioguide
• List of majority and minority leaders
• Infoplease
• University site mention
• Federal Judicial Center entry on Finis J. Garrett
• Finis J. Garrett at Find a Grave