Walter P. Brownlow of Jonesborough, represented Tennessee’s First Congressional District from 1897 (first elected in 1896) until his death in 1910.  Prior to becoming a Congressman, Brownlow had served as Doorkeeper of the House of Representatives, a powerful post that controlled access to the House Floor and government printing. 

Campaign address from the 1908 election for the House of Representatives.

Brownlow’s introduction.  Click slide show bar to the right to see full screen view of text.

In Brownlow’s own words – the Bill to found the Mountain Branch of the Soldiers’ Home. 

Soldiers Home Continued in Brownlow’s address.

Newspaper article describes economic impact of Soldiers’ Home on Johnson City in 1903. 

View of Downtown Johnson City at the Turn of the 20th Century.  Courtesy of Skip Oldham. 

View of Downtown Johnson City at the Turn of the 20th Century.  Original Fountain Square in center of photo.  Courtesy of Skip Oldham. 

Johnson City Board of Trade (later Chamber of Commerce) publication from 1910 notes that Congressman Brownlow brought in more funding to his District than any other legislator in the U.S. from the 1900 – 1910 decade.

An Internet search on Walter Brownlow turns up some interesting things.  Brownlow introduced legislation for the first national system of public roads in 1902 at the dawn of the automotive age. 

Letter from Brownlow to James Ketron of Sullivan County.  Note the return address is the National Soldiers Home. Courtesy of Ketron Family Heirs. 

Letter from Brownlow regarding a post office in Sullivan County. Courtesy of Ketron Family Heirs.

With the advent of Rural Free Delivery (R.F.D.), Brownlow established the largest rural mail service in the nation in the First Congressional District. 

Envelope from Walter Brownlow to County Court Member A.B. Ketron of Sullivan County.  Courtesy of Ketron Family Heirs.

Letter from Brownlow to A.B. Ketron of Sullivan County in 1906.  Note that Brownlow remained the ranking member of the Appropriations Committee from the South.  Courtesy of Ketron Family Heirs.

One of Brownlow’s final speeches in Congress.  Walter Brownlow died on July 8, 1910 from Bright’s Disease, a kidney inflammation, at the National Soldiers Home.  Brownlow had been in progressively worsening health since 1908 and was also blind at the time of his death. 

View of the inauguration of William McKinley, at which the largest crowd in the history of presidential inaugurations up to that date turned out - over 50,000 people.  They were there to see William McKinley be inaugurated and were excited about the hopes for a new century as the nation was coming out of the “railroad depression”. 

Also that day another man – the new Congressman from Tennessee’s First District was set to be sworn in.  He was a newspaperman from Jonesborough by trade but he had some advantages over the other new Congressman and Senators coming to Washington.  He already knew former Congressman and Governor of Ohio William McKinley – he knew him well.  After all he was the former Doorkeeper of the House of Representatives….

And he couldn’t wait to start his new job!  Well done Walter.