John Fletcher LACEY, Congress, IA (1841-1913)
LACEY, John Fletcher, a Representative from Iowa; born in New Martinsville, Va. (now West Virginia), May 30, 1841; moved to Iowa in 1855 with his parents, who settled in Oskaloosa; attended the common schools and pursued classical studies; engaged in agricultural pursuits; learned the trades of bricklaying and plastering; enlisted in Company H, Third Regiment, Iowa Volunteer Infantry, in May 1861 and afterward served in Company D, Thirty-third Regiment, Iowa Volunteer Infantry, as sergeant major, and as lieutenant in Company C of that regiment; promoted to assistant adjutant general; studied law; was admitted to the bar in 1865 and commenced practice in Oskaloosa, Iowa; member of the Iowa house of representatives in 1870; elected city councilman in 1880; served one term as city solicitor; temporary chairman of the Republican State convention in 1898; served on the city council 1880-1883; elected as a Republican to the Fifty-first Congress (March 4, 1889-March 3, 1891); unsuccessful candidate for reelection; elected to the Fifty-third and to the six succeeding Congresses (March 4, 1893-March 3, 1907); chairman, Committee on Public Lands (Fifty-fourth through Fifty-ninth Congresses); was an unsuccessful candidate for reelection; resumed the practice of law; died in Oskaloosa, Iowa, September 29, 1913; interment in Forest Cemetery.
Bibliography
Gallagher, Mary Annette. âJohn F. Lacey: A Study in Organizational Politics.â Ph.D. diss., University of Arizona, 1970.Source: Biographical Directory of the United States Congress, 1771-Present
