Thomas J. Steele
Encyclopedia
Thomas Jefferson Steele (March 19, 1853 - March 20, 1920) was a one-term Democratic U.S. Representative
from Iowa's 11th congressional district
in northwestern Iowa. Steele was the first, and only, Democrat elected to represent the 11th district in its fifty-year history (from 1883 to 1933).
Born near Rushville, Indiana
, Steele attended the public schools and Axline Seminary in Fairfax, Iowa
.
He taught school in central and western Iowa, and studied law in Sheldon, Iowa
. He engaged in the hardware business and in banking at Wayne, Nebraska
, and served as county clerk of Wayne County, Nebraska
from 1884 to 1886.
In 1897, Steele moved to Sioux City, Iowa
, where he became a livestock commission merchant. His livestock brokerage firm became very profitable, and he gained a good reputation in town. He may have influenced the decision of his architect nephew, William L. Steele
(1875-1949), to relocate from Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania
, to Sioux City in 1904. The elder Steele certainly was influential in assisting his nephew in securing some of his early commissions. This included the Sioux City Livestock Exchange Building (1914), which was among the first of the architect's designs in the Prairie School
style of architecture for which he would become famous.
In 1914, Steele upset incumbent Republican Congressman George Cromwell Scott
in the race to represent Iowa's 11th congressional district in the Sixty-fourth
Congress. Explained one rural newspaper, "the central feature of the Steele campaign was personal solicitation of votes and personal publicity concerning the candidate." By contrast, "Mr. Scott remained in Washington until ten days before the election and put in only one week of campaigning." Steele's win was particularly surprising because it occurred in a year in which Iowa Republicans swept all statewide offices and recaptured all seats in Congress held by Democrats.
Steele ran for re-election in 1916, and Scott again ran against him. This time, Scott campaigned more vigorously, and recaptured the seat from Steele in a very close race. Steele unsuccessfully contested the election. In all, Steele served in Congress from March 4, 1915 to March 3, 1917.
Scott resumed business as commission merchant.
Steele ran again for his former seat in the next election in 1918. Steele won the Democratic nomination, but lost in the general election to William D. Boies.
Steele died in Sioux City on March 20, 1920. He was interred in Graceland Park Cemetery in Sioux City.
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 Iowa's 11th congressional district
Iowa's 11th congressional district
Iowa's 11th congressional district existed from 1883 to 1933, when Iowa sent eleven congressmen to the United States House of Representatives. The district covered northwestern Iowa.-Makeup:...
in northwestern Iowa. Steele was the first, and only, Democrat elected to represent the 11th district in its fifty-year history (from 1883 to 1933).
Born near Rushville, Indiana
Rushville, Indiana
Rushville is a city in Rushville Township, Rush County, Indiana, United States. The population was 6,341 at the 2010 census. The city is the county seat of Rush County. It was the campaign headquarters for Wendell Willkie's 1940 presidential campaign against Franklin D. Roosevelt. Willkie is buried...
, Steele attended the public schools and Axline Seminary in Fairfax, Iowa
Fairfax, Iowa
Fairfax is a city in Linn County, Iowa, United States. The population was 2123 at the 2010 census. It is part of the Cedar Rapids Metropolitan Statistical Area.-Geography:Fairfax is located at . It is located along U.S...
.
He taught school in central and western Iowa, and studied law in Sheldon, Iowa
Sheldon, Iowa
Sheldon is a city in O'Brien and Sioux Counties in the U.S. state of Iowa, along the Floyd River. The population was 4,914 at the 2000 census; it is the largest city in O'Brien County.- History and culture :...
. He engaged in the hardware business and in banking at Wayne, Nebraska
Wayne, Nebraska
Wayne is a city in Wayne County, Nebraska, United States. The population was 5,660 at the 2010 census. It is the county seat of Wayne County and the home of Wayne State College.-Geography:Wayne is located at ....
, and served as county clerk of Wayne County, Nebraska
Wayne County, Nebraska
-Demographics:As of the census of 2000, there were 9,851 people, 3,437 households, and 2,206 families residing in the county. The population density was 22 people per square mile . There were 3,662 housing units at an average density of 8 per square mile...
from 1884 to 1886.
In 1897, Steele moved to Sioux City, Iowa
Sioux City, Iowa
Sioux City is a city in Plymouth and Woodbury counties in the western part of the U.S. state of Iowa. The population was 82,684 in the 2010 census, a decline from 85,013 in the 2000 census, which makes it currently the fourth largest city in the state....
, where he became a livestock commission merchant. His livestock brokerage firm became very profitable, and he gained a good reputation in town. He may have influenced the decision of his architect nephew, William L. Steele
William L. Steele
William LaBarthe Steele was an important architect of the Prairie School during the early twentieth century. A graduate of the University of Illinois, Steele worked in the office of renowned architect Louis Sullivan in Chicago, Illinois 1897–1900...
(1875-1949), to relocate from Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania
Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania
Pittsburgh is the second-largest city in the US Commonwealth of Pennsylvania and the county seat of Allegheny County. Regionally, it anchors the largest urban area of Appalachia and the Ohio River Valley, and nationally, it is the 22nd-largest urban area in the United States...
, to Sioux City in 1904. The elder Steele certainly was influential in assisting his nephew in securing some of his early commissions. This included the Sioux City Livestock Exchange Building (1914), which was among the first of the architect's designs in the Prairie School
Prairie School
Prairie School was a late 19th and early 20th century architectural style, most common to the Midwestern United States.The works of the Prairie School architects are usually marked by horizontal lines, flat or hipped roofs with broad overhanging eaves, windows grouped in horizontal bands,...
style of architecture for which he would become famous.
In 1914, Steele upset incumbent Republican Congressman George Cromwell Scott
George Cromwell Scott
George Cromwell Scott was a Republican U.S. Representative from Iowa's 11th congressional district for just over four years, and was a federal district court judge for over twenty-one years....
in the race to represent Iowa's 11th congressional district in the Sixty-fourth
64th United States Congress
The Sixty-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 March 4, 1915 to March 4, 1917, during the third and fourth...
Congress. Explained one rural newspaper, "the central feature of the Steele campaign was personal solicitation of votes and personal publicity concerning the candidate." By contrast, "Mr. Scott remained in Washington until ten days before the election and put in only one week of campaigning." Steele's win was particularly surprising because it occurred in a year in which Iowa Republicans swept all statewide offices and recaptured all seats in Congress held by Democrats.
Steele ran for re-election in 1916, and Scott again ran against him. This time, Scott campaigned more vigorously, and recaptured the seat from Steele in a very close race. Steele unsuccessfully contested the election. In all, Steele served in Congress from March 4, 1915 to March 3, 1917.
Scott resumed business as commission merchant.
Steele ran again for his former seat in the next election in 1918. Steele won the Democratic nomination, but lost in the general election to William D. Boies.
Steele died in Sioux City on March 20, 1920. He was interred in Graceland Park Cemetery in Sioux City.