John Bell Keeble

John Bell Keeble (May 13, 1868 – October 10, 1929) was an American attorney and academic administrator. He represented the Louisville and Nashville Railroad for 28 years, and he served as the dean of the Vanderbilt University Law School from 1915 to 1929.

John Bell Keeble
1909
Born	May 13, 1868 Murfreesboro, Tennessee, U.S.
Died	October 10, 1929 Nashville, Tennessee, U.S.
Resting place	Mount Olivet Cemetery
Education	Montgomery Bell Academy
Alma mater	Vanderbilt University
Occupation	Attorney, academic administrator
Spouse(s)	Emmie Frazer
Children	4 sons (including Edwin A. Keeble), 2 daughters
Parent(s)	Edwin Augustus Keeble Sallie Dickson Bell
Relatives	John Bell (maternal grandfather) David W. Dickinson (maternal great-uncle)

Early life

John Bell Keeble was born on May 13, 1868 in Murfreesboro, Tennessee.[1][2] His father, Edwin Augustus Keeble, served in the Congress of the Confederate States during the Confederate States of America, and his maternal grandfather, John Bell, served as a United States congressman and senator.[2]

Keeble was educated at the Montgomery Bell Academy in Nashville, and he graduated from Vanderbilt University, where he earned a bachelor of laws in 1888.[1] When Chancellor Landon Garland invited John Sherman to speak on campus, Keeble led a pro-Confederate protest to the sound of Dixie.[3]

Career

Keeble began his career as an attorney in Nashville in 1889.[1] He first worked alongside attorney Edwin E. Barthwell.[2] He was also Nashville's city attorney from 1895 to 1897.[1][2] In 1907, he co-founded Keeble and Seay with Edward T. Seay.[2] It later became Keeble, Seay, Stockwell and Keeble.[2]

Keeble represented the Louisville and Nashville Railroad from 1901 to 1929.[1] He testified before the United States Supreme Court.[2]

Keeble was the dean of the Vanderbilt University Law School from 1915 to 1929.[4]

Personal life and death

Keeble was married to Emmie Frazer; they had four sons (including architect Edwin A. Keeble) and two daughters. They resided at 2114 West End Avenue in Nashville.[1] Keeble was active in the Immanuel Baptist Church and the Monteagle Sunday School Assembly.[1]

Keeble died of a heart attack on October 10, 1929 in Nashville, and he was buried in the Mount Olivet Cemetery.[1]

References

1. "John Bell Keeble Funeral Will Be At Two Today. Educator and Lawyer Died of Heart Attack". The Tennessean. October 12, 1929. pp. 1, 5. Retrieved February 19, 2018 – via Newspapers.com.
2. "John B. Keeble Dies At Nashville. Famous Attorney Was Widely-Known Here". The Leaf Chronicle. Clarksville, Tennessee. October 11, 1929. p. 2 – via Newspapers.com.
3. Heard, Alexander (1995). Speaking of the University: Two Decades at Vanderbilt. Nashville, Tennessee: Vanderbilt University Pres. p. 60. ISBN 9780826512642. OCLC 832668221.
4. "Vanderbilt Law School Deans". Vanderbilt University Law School. Retrieved February 19, 2018.

External links

• John Bell Keeble on Find a Grave