James Shannon Buchanan was the fourth president of the University of Oklahoma

University of Oklahoma

The University of Oklahoma is a coeducational public research university located in Norman, Oklahoma. Founded in 1890, it existed in Oklahoma Territory near Indian Territory for 17 years before the two became the state of Oklahoma. the university had 29,931 students enrolled, most located at its...

.

Buchanan was born in 1864 to Thomas and Rebecca Jane in Franklin, Tennessee

Franklin, Tennessee

Franklin is a city within and the county seat of Williamson County, Tennessee, United States. The population was 62,487 as of the 2010 census Franklin is located approximately south of downtown Nashville.-History:...

. His grandfather, Major John Buchanan, was one of the founders of Nashville, Tennessee

Nashville, Tennessee

Nashville is the capital of the U.S. state of Tennessee and the county seat of Davidson County. It is located on the Cumberland River in Davidson County, in the north-central part of the state. The city is a center for the health care, publishing, banking and transportation industries, and is home...

. Also, his brother, John P. Buchanan

John P. Buchanan

John Price Buchanan was Governor of the U.S. State of Tennessee from 1891 to 1893. He was a native of Williamson County, Tennessee....

 was a governor

Governor

A governor is a governing official, usually the executive of a non-sovereign level of government, ranking under the head of state...

 of Tennessee

Tennessee

Tennessee is a U.S. state located in the Southeastern United States. It has a population of 6,346,105, making it the nation's 17th-largest state by population, and covers , making it the 36th-largest by total land area...

. He graduated from Cumberland University

Cumberland University

Cumberland University is a private university in Lebanon, Tennessee, United States. It was founded in 1842, though the current campus buildings were constructed between 1892 and 1896.-History:...

 in 1885 with a Bachelor of Science

Bachelor of Science

A Bachelor of Science is an undergraduate academic degree awarded for completed courses that generally last three to five years .-Australia:In Australia, the BSc is a 3 year degree, offered from 1st year on...

 degree and he did graduate work at both Vanderbilt University

Vanderbilt University

Vanderbilt University is a private research university located in Nashville, Tennessee, United States. Founded in 1873, the university is named for shipping and rail magnate "Commodore" Cornelius Vanderbilt, who provided Vanderbilt its initial $1 million endowment despite having never been to the...

 and the University of Chicago

University of Chicago

The University of Chicago is a private research university in Chicago, Illinois, USA. It was founded by the American Baptist Education Society with a donation from oil magnate and philanthropist John D. Rockefeller and incorporated in 1890...

. He received his LL.D. from Kingfisher College

Kingfisher College

-Bringing a College to Kingfisher:Founded by the Rev. Joseph Homer Parker, a Congregationalist Minister who had founded many Congregationalist churches in Canada and the Northeast U.S., and who had also founded the predecessor institution to Wichita State University...

 in 1917.

Buchanan was one of two southern Democrats

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...

 on the faculty prior to Oklahoma

Oklahoma

Oklahoma is a state located in the South Central region of the United States of America. With an estimated 3,751,351 residents as of the 2010 census and a land area of 68,667 square miles , Oklahoma is the 28th most populous and 20th-largest state...

 becoming a state. Because of this, he was one of the few who survived the cuts the newly elected Democratic governor of Oklahoma, Charles N. Haskell

Charles N. Haskell

Charles Nathaniel Haskell was an American lawyer, oilman, and statesman who served as the first Governor of Oklahoma. Haskell played a crucial role in drafting the Oklahoma Constitution as well as Oklahoma's statehood and admission into the United States as the 46th state in 1907...

, made to the University; cuts which included the first president of Oklahoma, David Ross Boyd

David Ross Boyd

David Ross Boyd was an American educator and the first president of the University of Oklahoma.He was born in Coshocton, Ohio, and after obtaining a doctorate degree from the small Wooster University, where he was a member of the Beta Theta Pi Fraternity. He began his career early as a...

. He came to the university in 1895 as a professor of history

History

History is the discovery, collection, organization, and presentation of information about past events. History can also mean the period of time after writing was invented. Scholars who write about history are called historians...

. Through the years, he progressed up the ranks. Soon, he was head of the department of history and shortly thereafter the dean of the college of arts and sciences. He also was a busy man outside of his university duties. He was an official in his church, the superintendent of his Sunday school, member of a civic club, member of the chamber of commerce, and of a prominent fraternal organization. He was dean of the college of arts and sciences for 14 years before he was named acting president of the university on July 1, 1923 and named president one year later. He was not in office very long but he still had several notable accomplishments. For one he was responsible for the reestablishment of the Oklahoma Geological Survey. Also, the concept and fundraising began for a combination football stadium/student union began during his year as president. After he was replaced as university president, he remained at OU serving as the Vice-President of the university.