A special "Leap Year" profile for today centers on Mr. Lieutellus Cunningham, a resident of Polk County, Missouri who was named as a delegate to the Missouri State Constitutional Convention of 1922-1923. In addition to this public service, Cunningham was also a prominent attorney in Polk County for many years. A fair amount of research was done to find pertinent facts on Cunningham's public stature, and one work, in particular, came to my rescue in this regard--the Official Manual of the State of Missouri, 1923-1924. This highly informative book provided the majority of the facts here and also furnished the portrait of Cunningham that begins this article.
Lieutellus Cunningham was born in Bolivar, Missouri on October 4, 1877, the son of James and Elizabeth Bickel Cunningham. Young Lieutellus attended the Ash Grove Academy and later graduated from the University of Missouri. He began the practice of law shortly after attaining his degree and in 1903 was elected as the prosecuting attorney of Polk County. Cunningham was subsequently reelected to this office in 1907, and in the latter year married Ms. Maud Metier. Two sons were born to the couple, Lieutellus Jr (born 1909) and William James (born 1913). Lieutellus Cunningham Jr grew to be a highly regarded attorney in his own right, serving as the prosecuting attorney for Camden County before his untimely death at age 40 in 1949.
In addition to his law practice, Lieutellus Sr. was quite active in civic affairs in his native county, serving as the chairman of the Polk County chapter of the American Red Cross. He was also a member of both the Missouri and American Bar Associations and in 1922 was elected as a delegate to the Missouri State Constitutional Convention being held that year. An electoral result from that contest is posted below.
In the years following his convention service, Cunningham continued with his earlier law practice and in 1927 was named as the Assistant Attorney General of Missouri, serving under Stratton Shartel. Cunningham held this post until September 1930, when he resigned to accept a position as a legal adviser in conjunction with the building of the massive Bagnell Dam on the Osage River. Lieutellus Cunningham died at age 72 on July 22, 1950, and was buried in the Greenwood Cemetery in Bolivar, Missouri.
From the West Virginia Blue Book, 1958.
Prominent in West Virginia political affairs for many years, Loutellus Meigs "Lou" Stout was also blessed with a truly intriguing name. Born in Clarksburg, West Virginia on January 28, 1924, Stout was the son of Loutellus Meigs Stout Sr. (1871-1953) and Anne Van Diver Stout (1888-1974). His early life was centered in the New Milton, Doddridge County area and he is remarked as being a sheep and cattle raiser both before and after his time in politics.
Stout was elected in November 1956 to represent Doddridge County in the West Virginia House of Delegates and was reelected to a second term in 1958. Following his time in the legislature, he served as Chairman of the Republican Executive Committee of Doddridge County from 1961-1963 and during the 1970s served as Executive Secretary of the West Virginia Farm Bureau. Stout also held the presidency of the West Virginia Wool Marketing Association and was secretary of the Independent Oil and Gas Association for a time.
Loutellus M. Stout continued to be an active public servant well into his eighth decade, serving in the clerk's office of the West Virginia Supreme Court of Appeals until his retirement in 2007 at age 83. After many years of service to his state, Stout died at age 88 on May 20, 2012, in Charleston, and was survived by his wife and two children. He was later laid to rest at the Cunningham Memorial Park in St. Albans, West Virginia.
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