John Leonard Pilcher was a U.S. Representative

United States House of Representatives

The United States House of Representatives is one of the two Houses of the United States Congress, the bicameral legislature which also includes the Senate.The composition and powers of the House are established in Article One of the Constitution...

 from Georgia

Georgia (U.S. state)

Georgia is a state located in the southeastern United States. It was established in 1732, the last of the original Thirteen Colonies. The state is named after King George II of Great Britain. Georgia was the fourth state to ratify the United States Constitution, on January 2, 1788...

.

Born on a farm near Meigs, Georgia

Meigs, Georgia

Meigs is a city in Mitchell and Thomas counties in the U.S. state of Georgia. The population was 1,090 at the 2000 census.-Geography:Meigs is located at ....

, Pilcher attended public schools in the area.
He engaged in agricultural pursuits for thirty-five years and operated a general mercantile business, fertilizer manufacturing plant, syrup canning plant, several warehouses, and a cotton gin.
Pilcher served as mayor and councilman of Meigs, Georgia

Meigs, Georgia

Meigs is a city in Mitchell and Thomas counties in the U.S. state of Georgia. The population was 1,090 at the 2000 census.-Geography:Meigs is located at ....

 and member of the board of education as well as county commissioner.
He served as member of the State house of representatives.
Pilcher served as member of the State senate from 1940 to 1944 and was a State purchasing agent in 1948 and 1949.
He served as a delegate at each State and National Democratic Convention for thirty years.

Pilcher was elected as a Democrat

Democratic Party (United States)

The Democratic Party is one of two major contemporary political parties in the United States, along with the Republican Party. The party's socially liberal and progressive platform is largely considered center-left in the U.S. political spectrum. The party has the lengthiest record of continuous...

 to the Eighty-third

83rd United States Congress

The Eighty-third United States Congress was a meeting of the legislative branch of the United States federal government, composed of the United States Senate and the United States House of Representatives. It met in Washington, DC from January 3, 1953 to January 3, 1955, during the first two years...

 Congress to fill the vacancy caused by the death of E.E. Cox.
He was reelected to the Eighty-fourth

84th United States Congress

The Eighty-fourth United States Congress was a meeting of the legislative branch of the United States federal government, composed of the United States Senate and the United States House of Representatives. It met in Washington, DC from January 3, 1955 to January 3, 1957, during the third and...

 and the four succeeding Congresses and served from February 4, 1953, to January 3, 1965.

A staunch segregationist, in 1956, Pilcher signed "The Southern Manifesto."

Southern Manifesto

The Southern Manifesto was a document written February–March 1956 by Adisen and Charles in the United States Congress opposed to racial integration in public places. The manifesto was signed by 101 politicians from Alabama, Arkansas, Florida, Georgia, Louisiana, Mississippi, North Carolina, South...

He was not a candidate for renomination in 1964 to the Eighty-ninth

89th United States Congress

-House of Representatives:- Senate :* President of the Senate: Hubert Humphrey , starting January 20, 1965* President pro tempore: Carl Hayden - Majority leadership :* Majority Leader and Democratic Conference Chairman: Mike Mansfield...

 Congress.
Resided in Meigs, Georgia

Meigs, Georgia

Meigs is a city in Mitchell and Thomas counties in the U.S. state of Georgia. The population was 1,090 at the 2000 census.-Geography:Meigs is located at ....

, where he died August 20, 1981.
He was interred in Meigs Sunset Cemetery.