Thomas F. West

Thomas Franklin West (November 23, 1874 - February 23, 1931) was an American attorney and politician from the state of Florida. West served as a justice on the Florida Supreme Court.[1]

Thomas F. West
Judge of the First Judicial Circuit Court of Florida
In office December 3, 1925 – February 23, 1931
Appointed by	John W. Martin
Chief Justice of the Supreme Court of Florida
In office February 28, 1923 – December 3, 1925
Preceded by	R. Fenwick Taylor
Succeeded by	Armstead Brown
Justice of the Supreme Court of Florida
In office September 1, 1917 – December 3, 1925
Appointed by	Sidney Johnston Catts
Preceded by	Thomas M. Shackleford
Succeeded by	Rivers H. Buford
President of the Florida Bar
In office 1915–1916
Preceded by	W. H. Price
Succeeded by	Nathan Philemon Bryan
20th Florida Attorney General
In office January 7, 1913 – September 1, 1917
Governor	Park Trammell Sidney Johnston Catts
Preceded by	Park Trammell
Succeeded by	Van C. Swearingen
Member of the Florida Senate from the Santa Rosa district
In office 1904–1912
Member of the Florida House of Representatives from the Santa Rosa district
In office 1902–1904
Personal details
Born	November 23, 1874 Milton, Florida
Died	February 23, 1931 (aged 56) Pensacola, Florida
Political party	Democratic
Spouse(s)	Alma Chaffin
Children	2
Education	Washington and Lee College
Occupation	Attorney

Early life and education

West was born on November 23, 1874 in Milton, Florida. He attended Washington and Lee College in Virginia, graduating with a law degree in 1899. The following year, West was admitted into the Florida Bar, and began a private practice in Milton.[1]

Political career

Florida Legislature

West, a Democrat, was elected to the Florida House of Representatives in 1902, representing Santa Rosa County. In 1903, Governor William Sherman Jennings appointed him to the commission tasked with revising the state's statutes.[2]

He served until 1904, when he was elected to the Florida Senate for the same county. In 1905, he introduced the original plans for the drainage of the Everglades, aided by Governor Napoleon B. Broward.[2]

While in the state senate, West also worked with the Governor Albert W. Gilchrist, a progressive Democrat, to propose an amendment to the Florida Constitution which called for the adoption of two popular Progressive Era reforms, the initiative and referendum. The proposition, designated as House Joint Resolution 222, easily passed both chambers of the Florida Legislature, despite the protest of the conservative minority. In 1912, however, anti-progressives were able to legally prevent the amendment from appearing on the ballot that year.[3]

Florida Attorney General

West served in the Florida Senate for two terms until he was elected Florida Attorney General in 1912.[4][5] During his tenure, West most notably oversaw two tax-related cases: one brought by the Pullman Company arguing against the taxation of sleeping car companies, and the other, Rast v. Van Demis and Lewis Company (1916), arguing against licensing taxes. Both cases were ruled in favor of the taxes.[2] In 1915, West did not accept an appointment to Florida's First Circuit Court opting to run for reelection in 1916 instead.[6]

West additionally served as the President of the Florida Bar from 1915 until 1916.[7]

In the 1916 Florida gubernatorial election, West refused to endorse the Democratic candidate, former Florida Treasurer William V. Knott, claiming he was dishonest and had no regard for the law. West instead endorsed the Prohibition candidate, pastor Sidney Johnson Catts, who had initially run for the Democratic nomination, losing to Knott in the primary.[8] Catts defeated Knott by over 9,000 votes, becoming one of two elected Prohibition candidates, alongside Charles Hiram Randall, a U.S. Representative from California.[9][10] West was reelected in the same election cycle.

Later career

As thanks for his endorsement, Catts appointed West to the Florida Supreme Court on September 1, 1917, after the resignation of Justice Thomas M. Shackleford.[11] West was selected as Chief Justice by the court on February 28, 1923, and served in that position until December 3, 1925, when he was appointed by Governor John W. Martin to Florida's First Judicial Circuit Court, the same position he refused a decade prior.[1][12]

Personal life and death

West married fellow Floridian Alma Chaffin. They had two daughters, Josephine and Alma.[13]

West worked as a judge until the day of his death, dying from influenza in Pensacola, Florida on February 23, 1931. He is buried in the cemetery of the Coldwater Church, a Mormon church in Milton.[13]

References

1. "Justice Thomas Franklin West". Supreme Court. Retrieved 2019-04-10.
2. George, Charles Ellewyn (1916). The Lawyer and Banker and Central Law Journal. Lawyers and Bankers' Corporation.
3. Kerber, Stephen (1994). "The Initiative and Referendum in Florida, 1911-1912". The Florida Historical Quarterly. 72 (3): 302–315. ISSN 0015-4113. JSTOR 30084857.
4. "Florida Attorney General - Florida Attorneys General (1845 - )". myfloridalegal.com. Retrieved 2019-04-10.
5. Florida, State Library and Archives of. "Florida Governors". Florida Memory. Retrieved 2019-04-10.
6. "Atty. Gen. West to Retain Office". The Tallahassee Daily Democrat. Retrieved April 10, 2019.
7. Association, Florida State Bar (1922). Proceedings of the ... Annual Session of the Florida State Bar Association ... The Association.
8. "Baker Block Museum History". bakerblockmuseum.org. Retrieved 2019-04-10.
9. "Our Campaigns - FL Governor Race - Nov 07, 1916". www.ourcampaigns.com. Retrieved 2019-04-10.
10. "RANDALL, Charles Hiram - Biographical Information". bioguide.congress.gov. Retrieved 2019-04-10.
11. Law Notes. E. Thompson Company. 1918. p. 134. thomas west.
12. "Chief Justices List". Supreme Court. Retrieved 2019-04-10.
13. "Thomas Franklin West, Sr". Find a Grave. Retrieved April 10, 2019.