User:Jwilsonjwilson/sandbox/Powless W. Lanier

Powless William Lanier
Born	(1885-03-07)March 7, 1885
Died	October 12, 1958(1958-10-12) (aged 73) Fargo, ND
Cause of death	Cancer
Resting place	Riverside Cemetery, Fargo, ND.
Other names	P. W. Lanier Sr., Powless Lanier
Education	Cumberland University, Cumberland University Law School
Occupation(s)	Attorney, Tennessee House of Representatives - 1911-13; Municipal Court Judge in Tennessee 1915-18; U.S. District Attorney for North Dakota - 1933-54; Special Assistant to U. S. Attorney General - 1954
Years active	1908-1958
Employer(s)	Senior partner in Lanier, Lanier and Knox of Fargo, ND
Known for	Special Prosecutor in Memphis, TN who brought down administration of Mayor Crump in 1915; U.S. District Attorney for North Dakota who brought down (temporarily) Governor Langer in 1933-35; candidate for US Senate and House of Representatives
Political party	Democrat
Spouse	Mary Louise Roberts Lanier
Children	Powless William (Bill) Lanier, Jr., Dorothy Lanier Philbrook

Powless William Lanier (March 7, 1885 – October 12, 1958)

Powless William Lanier (also called P. W. Lanier) was a well known attorney and politician in Tennessee and North Dakota in the early to mid twentieth century who made his home in Covington and Memphis, TN and then in Carrington, Jamestown and Fargo, ND after 1923. From 1933 to 1954 he was U.S. District Attorney for the North Dakota District.

Early Life in Tennessee

Lanier began practicing law after finishing law school in 1907, with W.A. Owen in Covington, TN. He successfully ran for the Tennessee legislature in 1910 and shortly after removed to Memphis, TN with his bride, Mary Roberts Lanier. In 1915, the Attorney General of Tennessee appointed Lanier as Special Prosecutor to investigate the administration of Memphis Mayor Edward Crump.

Sources

• Miller, William D. (1964). Mr. Crump of Memphis. Louisiana State University Press. ISBN 0-313-22781-0.
• Eriksmoen, Curt (August 4, 2007). "Lanier was a dangerous force in politics". No. Bismarck (ND) Tribune.

External Links

Category:Politics of North Dakota Category:Politics of Tennessee Category:North Dakota Democratic Party Category:Tennessee Democratic Party Category:1885 births Category:1958 deaths Category:People from Memphis, Tennessee Category:Democratic Party Category:People from Fargo, North Dakota