Sam Riley SELLS, Congress, TN (1871-1935)

SELLS, Sam Riley, a Representative from Tennessee; born in Bristol, Sullivan County, Tenn., August 2, 1871; attended the rural schools and King College in Bristol, Tenn., 1885-1890; studied law; was admitted to the bar and commenced practice in Blountville, Tenn.; served as a private in Company F, Third Regiment, Tennessee Volunteer Infantry, during the Spanish-American War; moved to Johnson City, Tenn., and engaged in the lumber business; member of the State senate 1909-1911; elected as a Republican to the Sixty-second and to the four succeeding Congresses (March 4, 1911-March 3, 1921); chairman, Committee on Pensions (Sixty-sixth Congress); unsuccessful candidate for renomination in 1920; delegate to the Republican National Conventions in 1912 and 1916; resumed the lumber business in Johnson City, Tenn.; also engaged in the manufacture of shale brick and in numerous other business enterprises; died in Johnson City, Tenn., November 2, 1935; interment in Oak Hill Cemetery.

Source: Biographical Directory of the United States Congress, 1771-Present