Portrait courtesy of the Library of Congress.
The first political figure to be profiled in this new year is Thetus Willrette Sims, a twelve-term member of Congress from Tennessee. A prominent figure in late 19th and early 20th century Tennessee, Sims' time in Congress extended through the presidencies of McKinley, Roosevelt, Taft, and Woodrow Wilson. Thetus W. Sims's birth occurred in Waynesboro, Tennessee on April 25, 1852, being the son of George and Sarah Jane Whitson Sims. Sims's early life was spent on a farm and he received his education at a private school in the village of Martins Mills, Tennessee. Sims would continue his education at the Savannah College and later entered the Cumberland School of Law, graduating in the class of 1876.
Soon after his graduation Sims removed to Linden, Tennessee to begin his law practice. He would marry Maury County native Nancy "Nannie" Kittrell (1855-1946) on December 26, 1877. The couple were wed for over sixty years and had seven children born to their union: Edna Earl (1878-1960), Erskine Kent (1880-1964), Tom J. (1882-1969), Elizabeth (1884-1967), Paul O. (1894-1959), Elsie Marie (born 1896) and Enid Nancy (1899-1949).
After establishing a law practice in Linden (located in Perry County, Tennessee), Sims was named as the Superintendent of Public Instruction for that county in 1882, serving two years in office. In the 1892 election year, he served as a Democratic Presidential elector on the "Cleveland and Stevenson ticket." In 1896 he became the Democratic nominee for Congress from Tennessee's 8th district and in November of that year defeated Republican incumbent John E. McCall by a vote of 16, 568 to 13, 219. Sims officially took his seat on March 4, 1897, beginning a congressional stint that would see him represent the same district for nearly 24 years.
Portrait from the Washington Times, May 21, 1920.
During his two decade-plus tenure in Congress, Thetus W. Sims earned a reputation as a representative who was highly devoted to his district, as well as one who expressed "eternal hatred of the 'special interests.' He would chair the Committee on War Claims and later the Committee on Interstate and Foreign Commerce. His time on the War Claims committee saw Sims file "petitions for pension relief for Civil War veterans and their families." Further notice is given to Sims being:
"Largely responsible for the framing of the legislation for the Federal operation of railroads during the world war period."
In 1920 Sims was an unsuccessful candidate for renomination and later returned to Tennessee, where he returned to the practice of law. The 78-year-old Sims retired from "active business pursuits" in 1930 and moved back to Washington, D.C., with his wife Nannie. He died in Washington on December 17, 1939, at age 87. His wife Nannie survived him by several years and following her death in 1944 was interred alongside him at the Rock Creek Cemetery in Washington, D.C.
Portrait from "Traffic World", 1915.
On May 10, 2017, I was lucky enough to visit Rock Creek Cemetery in Washington, and while visiting sought out Sims' gravesite. After receiving a map from the friendly office staff I began my hunt and shortly thereafter found the Brownlow-Sims plot, close to the cemetery roadway. Here are some photo's from the trip, and curiously, no mention is given on Sims' headstone as to his long tenure in Congress!
Portrait from the Centennial Atlas of Athens County, Ohio, 1905.
Eight years following the publication of the above article on Thetus Willrette Sims another politician with this unusual first name has been discovered (September 26, 2020)--Theatus Erven Wells of Athens County, Ohio. Settling in that county in the early 1880s, Wells would become a leading newspaper publisher in his region, owning and editing the Nelsonville News/Buckeye News for over thirty years. On the political front, Wells aided his adopted hometown in another capacity, that of mayor, an office he would be elected to on three occasions.
A native of West Virginia, Theatus Erven Wells was born in Wood County on January 9, 1855, the son of William and Melinda (Worley) Wells. His education was obtained in schools local to Wood County and at age thirteen entered the workforce as a printer's devil. At an early age, he decided to follow a career in publishing, and after removing to Nelsonville, Ohio in 1882, purchased the Nelsonville News. Established in 1879, the Nelsonville News was the only newspaper published in that town at the time of Wells's arrival. At the time of its purchase by Wells, the plant "was in dilapidated condition and scantily supplied with material".
Through Wells's efforts, the Nelsonville News was revived, and by 1892 had been reborn into the Buckeye News, a Democratic-leaning newspaper. He would be connected with its publishing for nearly three decades afterward, with the paper being printed on the second floor of the Wells-built Buckeye Block, a two-story brick structure. T. Erven Wells married in Ohio in April 1883 to Dennie A. Poston (1861-1931), to who he was wed until his death. The couple had three children, Bruce, Leona May (1885-1960), and "Mrs. W.H. Grady."
The Buckeye Block, from the Centennial Atlas of Athens County, 1905.
In the years following his resettlement in Nelsonville Wells became active in Athens County Democratic circles, serving as a member of the County Democratic Central and Executive Committees. In 1899 he was the unsuccessful candidate for county treasurer, losing to Republican nominee Willis G. Hickman, 2,173 votes to 4,746. Wells was also elected as a delegate from Athens County to multiple state democratic conventions, and at the 1891 convention was a firm backer of the free silver resolution that was introduced during the convention proceedings.
In 1908 T. Erven Wells was elected as mayor of Nelsonville and in 1910 won a second term, "winning in a three-cornered fight". Wells subsequently won a third term as mayor in November 1917, and served until his death on June 16, 1919, "after a long illness." He was survived by his wife and children and was interred at the Greenlawn Cemetery in Nelsonville.
From the Morrow County Republican, June 20, 1919.
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