James M. Tunnell - AbsoluteAstronomy.com

James Miller Tunnell was an American teacher, lawyer and politician from Georgetown, in Sussex County, Delaware

Sussex County, Delaware

Sussex County is a county located in the southern part of the U.S. state of Delaware. As of 2010 the population was 197,145, an increase of 25.9% over the previous decade. The county seat is Georgetown. The Seaford Micropolitan Statistical Area includes all of Sussex County.Sussex County is...

. He was a member of the Democratic Party, and served as U.S. Senator from Delaware.

Early life and family

Tunnell was born in Clarksville, near Millville, Delaware. He attended the public schools and graduated in 1900 from Franklin College, now combined with Muskingum College

Muskingum College

Muskingum University is a private four-year comprehensive college with a strong liberal arts tradition located in New Concord, Ohio, approximately sixty miles east of the state capital of Columbus. Founded in 1837, Muskingum University is affiliated with the Presbyterian Church , although since the...

at New Concord

New Concord, Ohio

New Concord is a village in Muskingum County, Ohio, United States. The population was 2,651 at the 2000 census. New Concord is the home of Muskingum University and is served by a branch of the Muskingum County Library System.-Geography:...

, Ohio.

Professional and political career

Tunnell taught in the public schools, eventually becoming principal of the schools at Frankford

Frankford, Delaware

As of the census of 2000, there were 714 people, 227 households, and 172 families residing in the town. The population density was 1,012.7 people per square mile . There were 258 housing units at an average density of 365.9 per square mile...

, Selbyville

Selbyville, Delaware

As of the census of 2000, there were 1,645 people, 615 households, and 439 families residing in the town. The population density was 1,176.9 people per square mile . There were 664 housing units at an average density of 475.1 per square mile...

and Ocean View

Ocean View, Delaware

As of the census of 2000, there were 1,006 people, 458 households, and 321 families residing in the town. The population density was 495.0 people per square mile . There were 751 housing units at an average density of 369.6 per square mile...

, Delaware. Meanwhile he studied the law, was admitted to the Bar in 1907 and began a practice in Georgetown, Delaware. He was president of the Georgetown Board of Education from 1919 until 1932. Tunnell was also a banker and owned and operated a number of farms in Sussex County

Sussex County, Delaware

, Delaware.

Tunnell first ran for a seat in the United States Senate in 1924, but was defeated by Republican T. Coleman du Pont, a former Senator. He was elected to the United States Senate in 1940, this time defeating the incumbent Republican Senator John G. Townsend, Jr. During this term, he served with the Democratic majority in the 77th, 78th, and 79th Congress. He was chairman of the Committee on Pensions in the 78th and 79th Congress. Tunnel lost his bid for a second term in 1946 to Republican John J. Williams from Millsboro, Delaware. He served from January 3, 1941, to January 3, 1947, during the administrations of U.S. Presidents Franklin D. Roosevelt and Harry S. Truman.

Death and legacy

Tunnell died in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania and is buried in the Blackwater Church Cemetery, near Clarksville, Sussex County, Delaware.

Almanac

Elections are held the first Tuesday after November 1. U.S. Senators are popularly elected and take office January 3 for a six year term.

{|class=wikitable style="width: 94%" style="text-align: center;" align="center"
|-bgcolor=#cccccc
!colspan=7 style="background: #ccccff;" |Public Offices
|-
! Office
! Type
! Location
! Began office
! Ended office
! notes
|-
|U.S. Senator

United States Senate

The United States Senate is the upper house of the bicameral legislature of the United States, and together with the United States House of Representatives comprises the United States Congress. The composition and powers of the Senate are established in Article One of the U.S. Constitution. Each...

|Legislature

Legislature

A legislature is a kind of deliberative assembly with the power to pass, amend, and repeal laws. The law created by a legislature is called legislation or statutory law. In addition to enacting laws, legislatures usually have exclusive authority to raise or lower taxes and adopt the budget and...

|Washington
|January 3, 1941
|January 3, 1947
|

{|class=wikitable style="width: 94%" style="text-align: center;" align="center"
|-bgcolor=#cccccc
!colspan=7 style="background: #ccccff;" |United States Congress service
|-
! Dates
! Congress
! Chamber
! Majority
! President
! Committees
! Class/District
|-
|1941–1943
|77th

77th United States Congress

-Major events:* December 7, 1941: Attack on Pearl Harbor* December 8, 1941: Joint Session of Congress met to hear President Roosevelt deliver his "Day of Infamy" speech...

|U.S. Senate

United States Senate

|Democratic

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...

|Franklin D. Roosevelt

Franklin D. Roosevelt

Franklin Delano Roosevelt , also known by his initials, FDR, was the 32nd President of the United States and a central figure in world events during the mid-20th century, leading the United States during a time of worldwide economic crisis and world war...

|
|class 1

Classes of United States Senators

The three classes of United States Senators are currently made up of 33 or 34 Senate seats. The purpose of the classes is to determine which Senate seats will be up for election in a given year. The three groups are staggered so that one of them is up for election every two years.A senator's...

|-
|1943–1945
|78th

78th United States Congress

The Seventy-eighth 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, 1943 to January 3, 1945, during the last two years...

|U.S. Senate

United States Senate

|Democratic

Democratic Party (United States)

|Franklin D. Roosevelt

Franklin D. Roosevelt

|
|class 1

Classes of United States Senators

|-
|1945–1947
|79th

79th United States Congress

The Seventy-ninth 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, 1945 to January 3, 1947, during the last months of...

|U.S. Senate

United States Senate

|Democratic

Democratic Party (United States)

|Franklin D. Roosevelt

Franklin D. Roosevelt

Harry S. Truman

Harry S. Truman was the 33rd President of the United States . As President Franklin D. Roosevelt's third vice president and the 34th Vice President of the United States , he succeeded to the presidency on April 12, 1945, when President Roosevelt died less than three months after beginning his...

|
|class 1

Classes of United States Senators

{|class=wikitable style="width: 94%" style="text-align: center;" align="center"
|-bgcolor=#cccccc
!colspan=12 style="background: #ccccff;" |Election results
|-
!Year
!Office
!
!Subject
!Party
!Votes
!%
!
!Opponent
!Party
!Votes
!%
|-
|1924
|U.S. Senator

United States Senate

T. Coleman du Pont

Thomas Coleman du Pont was an American engineer and politician, from Greenville, Delaware. He was President of the of E. I. du Pont de Nemours and Company, and a member of the Republican Party who served parts of two terms as United States Senator from Delaware...

| |Republican
| |52,731
| |59%
|-
|1940
|U.S. Senator

United States Senate

John G. Townsend, Jr.

John Gillis Townsend, Jr. was an American businessman and politician from Selbyville, in Sussex County, Delaware. He was a member of the Republican Party, who served as Governor and two terms as U. S. Senator from Delaware....

| |Republican
| |63,799
| |47%
|-
|1946
|U.S. Senator

United States Senate

Democratic Party (United States)

| |50,910
| |45%
|
| |John J. Williams

John J. Williams (senator)

John James "Whispering Willie" Williams was an American businessman and politician from Millsboro, in Sussex County, Delaware. He was a member of the Republican Party, who served four terms as U.S. Senator from Delaware....

| |Republican

Republican Party (United States)

The Republican Party is one of the two major contemporary political parties in the United States, along with the Democratic Party. Founded by anti-slavery expansion activists in 1854, it is often called the GOP . The party's platform generally reflects American conservatism in the U.S...

| |62,603
| |55%

External links

Places with more information

Delaware Historical Society
Delaware Historical Society
The Delaware Historical Society began in 1864 as an effort to preserve documents from the Civil War. Since then, it has expanded into a state-wide historical institution with several venues and a major museum in Wilmington and the historic Read House & Gardens in New Castle.The society...

; website; 505 North Market Street, Wilmington, Delaware 19801; (302) 655-7161
University of Delaware
University of Delaware
The university is organized into seven colleges:* College of Agriculture and Natural Resources* College of Arts and Sciences* Alfred Lerner College of Business and Economics* College of Earth, Ocean and Environment* College of Education and Human Development...

; Library website; 181 South College Avenue, Newark, Delaware 19717; (302) 831-2965

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