Biography: William Brockman Bankhead born April 12, 1874 – greeted the King & Queen on 1st visit of monarch to United States

Happy Birthday!

WILLIAM BROCKMAN BANKHEAD

BIOGRAPHY and GENEALOGY

(1874 – 1940)

Lamar, Madison County, Walker County, Alabama

William Brockman Bankhead was born on his family’s plantation in Moscow, Lamar County, Alabama, on April 12, 1874. He was the second son of Senator John Hollis Bankhead and Tallulah Brockman Bankhead. His brother was Senator John Hollis Bankhead II.

He was a member of the university’s first football team in 1892 and graduated, A. B., June, 1893; captain, Co. C, Cadet corps, and winner of the trustees’ oratorical prize. He at once entered the law department of Georgetown university, at Washington, D. C, from which he graduated in 1895. being president of the class, an honor borne likewise by his brother, John H. Bankhead, Jr.

1892 University of Alabama football team. William was number nine in the photograph below

He graduated in 1892 and then, at his father’s request, attended Georgetown University’s law school and graduated in 1895. Bankhead briefly pursued an acting career in Boston, but a forbidding letter from his mother on the eve of his first rehearsal aborted his aspiration. Bankhead traveled to New York to practice law but quickly returned to Alabama, where he joined his brother’s firm.

Served as Huntsville’s city attorney

He served as Huntsville, Alabama’s city attorney and as solicitor (prosecutor) of the 14th judicial circuit of Alabama.

Bankhead married Adelaide Eugene Sledge January 31, 1900 in Memphis, Tennessee and they had two daughters, Eugenia and Tallulah, the noted actress. Adelaide died just weeks after Tallulah’s birth in 1902, and Bankhead married Florence McGuire. on January 16, 1916.

William Brockman Bankhead served as U. S. Representative from Alabama and Speaker of the House. He was a prominent supporter of President Franklin Roosevelt’s New Deal of pro-labor union legislation. Besides his father and brother serving in government, William’s nephew Walter Will Bankhead was a U. S. Representative.

Speaker Bankhead had a special privilege in June 1939 when King George VI and Queen Elizabeth visited the United States. This was the first time a British monarch had set foot in the United States. In the vintage film of the event below, Speaker Bankhead and his wife can be seen 2nd in line to greet the King and Queen.

He died on September 15, 1940 in Washington, D. C. He is buried in Oak Hill Cemetery, Jasper, Alabama.

The William B. Bankhead National Forest is named in his honor. His home in Jasper has been renovated to house the Walker Area Community Foundation’s “Bankhead House and Heritage Center”, a history museum and arts venue.

SOURCES

1. Wikipidea
2. Biographical Directory of the United States Congress
3. Findagrave.com #11739

Start researching your family genealogy research in minutes. This inexpensive Ebook has simple instructions on how to get started with FREE sources. Download WHERE DO I START? Hints and Tips for Beginning Genealogists with On-line resources to your computer immediately with the FREE APP below and begin your research today!

Reviews

“This book was very informative and at a very modest price. Thank you for your great newsletter and this book.”

“The book was clear & concise, with excellent information for beginners. As an experienced genealogist, I enjoyed the chapter with lists of interview questions. I’d recommend this book to those who are just beginning to work on their genealogies. For more experienced genealogists, it provides a nice refresher.”

 Download unlimited Ebooks for FREE to your computer or other electronic devices! Click below to see how.

About Donna R Causey

Donna R. Causey, resident of Alabama, was a teacher in the public school system for twenty years. When she retired, Donna found time to focus on her lifetime passion for historical writing. She developed the websites www.alabamapioneers and www.daysgoneby.me All her books can be purchased at Amazon.com and Barnes & Noble. She has authored numerous genealogy books. RIBBON OF LOVE: A Novel Of Colonial America (TAPESTRY OF LOVE) is her first novel in the Tapestry of Love about her family where she uses actual characters, facts, dates and places to create a story about life as it might have happened in colonial Virginia. Faith and Courage: Tapestry of Love (Volume 2) is the second book and the third FreeHearts: A Novel of Colonial America (Book 3 in the Tapestry of Love Series) Discordance: The Cottinghams (Volume 1) is the continuation of the story. . For a complete list of books, visit Donna R Causey

• More Posts (3241)

Liked it? Take a second to support Alabama Pioneers on Patreon!