Fielding L. Wright
Encyclopedia
Fielding Lewis Wright was a Democratic
politician who served as Lieutenant Governor of Mississippi
from 1944 to 1946, then as Governor after the incumbent, Thomas L. Bailey
, died in office in 1946. Wright was elected Governor in his own right in 1947 and served a full four year term. In 1948 Wright was nominated as the vice-presidential candidate
of the States' Rights Democratic Party (Dixiecrats), running alongside South Carolina's
Governor Strom Thurmond
.
, in Sharkey County
, Mississippi, on May 16, 1895. Through his mother, Anne Foote Wright, he was a direct descendant of Fielding Lewis
and his wife, Betty Washington Lewis
, a sister of George Washington
. After serving in the U.S. Army
during World War I he returned home vowing that he would never become a "dang politician". Wright studied law at the University of Alabama
, then went on to open a law office in Rolling Fork in partnership with his uncle.
. In his second term as a representative
he was elected Speaker of the House, and used his position to promote and support industrialization, commercial development and highway construction, issues of great importance to a traditionally agricultural state struggling to modernize its economy.
In 1943 Wright was elected Lieutenant Governor of Mississippi. As Lieutenant Governor he was presiding officer of the Mississippi Senate, one of only two 20th century politicians to chair both houses of the legislature (Sam Lumpkin of Tupelo, Mississippi
being the other). Following the death in office of Governor Thomas Lowry Bailey
on November 2, 1946, Wright filled the remainder of Bailey's term as 49th Governor of Mississippi. Wright's strong stand on hotly debated issues such as racial segregation
, civil rights and states' rights
, combined with the advantages of incumbency, won his re-election as Governor of Mississippi in 1947. Wright won the governorship in the first primary
, defeating four opponents.
Governor Wright's 1946–1952 administration concentrated largely on urbanization and industrialization, issues of increasing importance to rural states struggling to modernize their economies at the end of World War II. Fielding L. Wright governed Mississippi at a time when the state's economy, social customs, and race relations were undergoing slow but significant changes.
Medical Center was established in Jackson
and the Mississippi Vocational College (now Mississippi Valley State University
) was founded in Itta Bena
. In 1969 Delta State University's
Roberts Library was renovated and became the Fielding L. Wright Art Center, with a spacious art gallery created in the old reading room. Mississippi Valley State University's
Department of Mathematics, Computer and Information Sciences is housed in the Fielding L. Wright Science Complex, and the Fielding L. Wright Memorial Health Fund was established in 1972.
nominated Harry S. Truman
in the 1948 presidential election
, whose platform was strongly in favor of civil rights. In opposition to this, Governor Strom Thurmond
of South Carolina
helped organize walkout delegates from the 1948 Democratic Convention into a separate party, the States' Rights Democratic Party (popularly known as the 'Dixiecrats'). The party held their own Convention in Birmingham, Alabama
, where they nominated Thurmond for president with Governor Wright as his running mate. Dixiecrat leaders worked to have Thurmond and Wright declared the official Democratic candidates. Their efforts succeeded in Alabama
, Louisiana
, Mississippi and South Carolina, but in all other states Thurmond and Wright were forced to run as third party candidates. On election day the States' Rights Democratic Party carried the four states, with 1,169,021 popular votes and 39 electoral votes.
, (December 21, 2001), which reported that:
Social attitudes were changing however, and the editor of the Arkansas Gazette
, in the aftermath of the 1948 election, noted that "Unpleasant as all this was, the Dixiecrats inadvertently performed a great service for the South by demonstrating that the race issue is no longer a certain ticket to public office for any demagogue who cares to use it."
. He made one last attempt at running for Governor in 1955 but was defeated by James P. Coleman
, and after that defeat returned to practicing law full time. Fielding L. Wright died on May 4, 1956 in Jackson and was buried in his home town of Rolling Fork, Mississippi
.
Democratic Party (United States)
The Democratic Party is one of two major contemporary political parties in the United States, along with the Republican Party. The party's socially liberal and progressive platform is largely considered center-left in the U.S. political spectrum. The party has the lengthiest record of continuous...
politician who served as Lieutenant Governor of Mississippi
Lieutenant Governor of Mississippi
The Lieutenant Governor of Mississippi is the second-highest ranking executive officer in Mississippi, right below the governor. The office of lieutenant governor was established when Mississippi became a state, abolished for a few decades in the first half of the 19th century, and restored later...
from 1944 to 1946, then as Governor after the incumbent, Thomas L. Bailey
Thomas L. Bailey
Thomas Lowry Bailey was a politician from the state of Mississippi.-Biography:Bailey was born in Webster County, Mississippi and graduated from Millsaps College. Bailey was elected to the Mississippi House of Representatives as a democratic candidate in 1915 and served from 1916 to 1940...
, died in office in 1946. Wright was elected Governor in his own right in 1947 and served a full four year term. In 1948 Wright was nominated as the vice-presidential candidate
Vice president
A vice president is an officer in government or business who is below a president in rank. The name comes from the Latin vice meaning 'in place of'. In some countries, the vice president is called the deputy president...
of the States' Rights Democratic Party (Dixiecrats), running alongside South Carolina's
South Carolina
South Carolina is a state in the Deep South of the United States that borders Georgia to the south, North Carolina to the north, and the Atlantic Ocean to the east. Originally part of the Province of Carolina, the Province of South Carolina was one of the 13 colonies that declared independence...
Governor Strom Thurmond
Strom Thurmond
James Strom Thurmond was an American politician who served as a United States Senator. He also ran for the Presidency of the United States in 1948 as the segregationist States Rights Democratic Party candidate, receiving 2.4% of the popular vote and 39 electoral votes...
.
Early life
Wright was born into a politically active family in the town of Rolling ForkRolling Fork, Mississippi
Rolling Fork is a city in Sharkey County, Mississippi, United States. The population was 2,486 at the 2000 census. It is the county seat of Sharkey County.-Geography:Rolling Fork is located at ....
, in Sharkey County
Sharkey County, Mississippi
-National protected area:*Delta National Forest*Theodore Roosevelt National Wildlife Refuge -Demographics:As of the census of 2000, there were 6,580 people, 2,163 households, and 1,589 families residing in the county. The population density was 15 people per square mile . There were 2,416 housing...
, Mississippi, on May 16, 1895. Through his mother, Anne Foote Wright, he was a direct descendant of Fielding Lewis
Fielding Lewis
Fielding Lewis was a Colonel during the American Revolutionary War and the brother-in-law of George Washington....
and his wife, Betty Washington Lewis
Betty Washington Lewis
Betty Washington Lewis was the younger sister of George Washington and the only sister to live to adulthood. She was the first daughter of Augustine Washington and Mary Ball Washington. She is considered a "founding mother" of America.She was born Elizabeth Washington in Westmoreland County,...
, a sister of George Washington
George Washington
George Washington was the dominant military and political leader of the new United States of America from 1775 to 1799. He led the American victory over Great Britain in the American Revolutionary War as commander-in-chief of the Continental Army from 1775 to 1783, and presided over the writing of...
. After serving in the U.S. Army
United States Army
The United States Army is the main branch of the United States Armed Forces responsible for land-based military operations. It is the largest and oldest established branch of the U.S. military, and is one of seven U.S. uniformed services...
during World War I he returned home vowing that he would never become a "dang politician". Wright studied law at the University of Alabama
University of Alabama
The University of Alabama is a public coeducational university located in Tuscaloosa, Alabama, United States....
, then went on to open a law office in Rolling Fork in partnership with his uncle.
Political career
Wright turned down several opportunities to run for public office before finally agreeing to run for the Mississippi Senate in 1928. He won that election and four years later was elected to the Mississippi House of RepresentativesMississippi House of Representatives
The Mississippi House of Representatives is the lower house of the Mississippi Legislature, the lawmaking body of the U.S. state of Mississippi....
. In his second term as a representative
Legislator
A legislator is a person who writes and passes laws, especially someone who is a member of a legislature. Legislators are usually politicians and are often elected by the people...
he was elected Speaker of the House, and used his position to promote and support industrialization, commercial development and highway construction, issues of great importance to a traditionally agricultural state struggling to modernize its economy.
In 1943 Wright was elected Lieutenant Governor of Mississippi. As Lieutenant Governor he was presiding officer of the Mississippi Senate, one of only two 20th century politicians to chair both houses of the legislature (Sam Lumpkin of Tupelo, Mississippi
Tupelo, Mississippi
Tupelo is the largest city in and the county seat of Lee County, Mississippi, United States. It is the seventh largest city in the state of Mississippi, smaller than Meridian, and larger than Greenville. As of the 2000 United States Census, the city's population was 34,211...
being the other). Following the death in office of Governor Thomas Lowry Bailey
Thomas L. Bailey
Thomas Lowry Bailey was a politician from the state of Mississippi.-Biography:Bailey was born in Webster County, Mississippi and graduated from Millsaps College. Bailey was elected to the Mississippi House of Representatives as a democratic candidate in 1915 and served from 1916 to 1940...
on November 2, 1946, Wright filled the remainder of Bailey's term as 49th Governor of Mississippi. Wright's strong stand on hotly debated issues such as racial segregation
Racial segregation in the United States
Racial segregation in the United States, as a general term, included the racial segregation or hypersegregation of facilities, services, and opportunities such as housing, medical care, education, employment, and transportation along racial lines...
, civil rights and states' rights
States' rights
States' rights in U.S. politics refers to political powers reserved for the U.S. state governments rather than the federal government. It is often considered a loaded term because of its use in opposition to federally mandated racial desegregation...
, combined with the advantages of incumbency, won his re-election as Governor of Mississippi in 1947. Wright won the governorship in the first primary
Primary election
A primary election is an election in which party members or voters select candidates for a subsequent election. Primary elections are one means by which a political party nominates candidates for the next general election....
, defeating four opponents.
Governor Wright's 1946–1952 administration concentrated largely on urbanization and industrialization, issues of increasing importance to rural states struggling to modernize their economies at the end of World War II. Fielding L. Wright governed Mississippi at a time when the state's economy, social customs, and race relations were undergoing slow but significant changes.
A 'friend of education'
During the 1940s Wright was widely known as a 'friend of education'. During his governorship the University of MississippiUniversity of Mississippi
The University of Mississippi, also known as Ole Miss, is a public, coeducational research university located in Oxford, Mississippi. Founded in 1844, the school is composed of the main campus in Oxford, four branch campuses located in Booneville, Grenada, Tupelo, and Southaven as well as the...
Medical Center was established in Jackson
Jackson, Mississippi
Jackson is the capital and the most populous city of the US state of Mississippi. It is one of two county seats of Hinds County ,. The population of the city declined from 184,256 at the 2000 census to 173,514 at the 2010 census...
and the Mississippi Vocational College (now Mississippi Valley State University
Mississippi Valley State University
Mississippi Valley State University is a historically black university located in Itta Bena, Mississippi, in the United States. MVSU is a member school of the Thurgood Marshall Scholarship Fund....
) was founded in Itta Bena
Itta Bena, Mississippi
Itta Bena is a city in Leflore County, Mississippi, United States. The population was 2,208 at the 2000 census. The town's name is derived from the Choctaw phrase iti bina, meaning "forest camp"...
. In 1969 Delta State University's
Delta State University
Delta State University, also known as DSU, is a regional public university located in Cleveland, Mississippi, United States, in the heart of the Mississippi Delta...
Roberts Library was renovated and became the Fielding L. Wright Art Center, with a spacious art gallery created in the old reading room. Mississippi Valley State University's
Mississippi Valley State University
Mississippi Valley State University is a historically black university located in Itta Bena, Mississippi, in the United States. MVSU is a member school of the Thurgood Marshall Scholarship Fund....
Department of Mathematics, Computer and Information Sciences is housed in the Fielding L. Wright Science Complex, and the Fielding L. Wright Memorial Health Fund was established in 1972.
Vice-Presidential candidate
The Democratic PartyDemocratic Party (United States)
The Democratic Party is one of two major contemporary political parties in the United States, along with the Republican Party. The party's socially liberal and progressive platform is largely considered center-left in the U.S. political spectrum. The party has the lengthiest record of continuous...
nominated Harry S. Truman
Harry S. Truman
Harry S. Truman was the 33rd President of the United States . As President Franklin D. Roosevelt's third vice president and the 34th Vice President of the United States , he succeeded to the presidency on April 12, 1945, when President Roosevelt died less than three months after beginning his...
in the 1948 presidential election
United States presidential election, 1948
The United States presidential election of 1948 is considered by most historians as the greatest election upset in American history. Virtually every prediction indicated that incumbent President Harry S. Truman would be defeated by Republican Thomas E. Dewey. Truman won, overcoming a three-way...
, whose platform was strongly in favor of civil rights. In opposition to this, Governor Strom Thurmond
Strom Thurmond
James Strom Thurmond was an American politician who served as a United States Senator. He also ran for the Presidency of the United States in 1948 as the segregationist States Rights Democratic Party candidate, receiving 2.4% of the popular vote and 39 electoral votes...
of South Carolina
South Carolina
South Carolina is a state in the Deep South of the United States that borders Georgia to the south, North Carolina to the north, and the Atlantic Ocean to the east. Originally part of the Province of Carolina, the Province of South Carolina was one of the 13 colonies that declared independence...
helped organize walkout delegates from the 1948 Democratic Convention into a separate party, the States' Rights Democratic Party (popularly known as the 'Dixiecrats'). The party held their own Convention in Birmingham, Alabama
Birmingham, Alabama
Birmingham is the largest city in Alabama. The city is the county seat of Jefferson County. According to the 2010 United States Census, Birmingham had a population of 212,237. The Birmingham-Hoover Metropolitan Area, in estimate by the U.S...
, where they nominated Thurmond for president with Governor Wright as his running mate. Dixiecrat leaders worked to have Thurmond and Wright declared the official Democratic candidates. Their efforts succeeded in Alabama
Alabama
Alabama is a state located in the southeastern region of the United States. It is bordered by Tennessee to the north, Georgia to the east, Florida and the Gulf of Mexico to the south, and Mississippi to the west. Alabama ranks 30th in total land area and ranks second in the size of its inland...
, Louisiana
Louisiana
Louisiana is a state located in the southern region of the United States of America. Its capital is Baton Rouge and largest city is New Orleans. Louisiana is the only state in the U.S. with political subdivisions termed parishes, which are local governments equivalent to counties...
, Mississippi and South Carolina, but in all other states Thurmond and Wright were forced to run as third party candidates. On election day the States' Rights Democratic Party carried the four states, with 1,169,021 popular votes and 39 electoral votes.
Civil rights issues
Fielding L. Wright's run as vice-presidential candidate was largely a protest against the nomination of President Truman and the inclusion of civil rights proposals in the Democratic Party platform. In his 1948 gubernatorial inaugural address, Wright described racial segregation as an "eternal truth" that "transcends party lines". Wright was a product of his era and the prevailing social attitudes of that time, which are well summed up in a paragraph from The Washington PostThe Washington Post
The Washington Post is Washington, D.C.'s largest newspaper and its oldest still-existing paper, founded in 1877. Located in the capital of the United States, The Post has a particular emphasis on national politics. D.C., Maryland, and Virginia editions are printed for daily circulation...
, (December 21, 2001), which reported that:
Negroes made up half the population. Their Governor, Fielding Wright, told them: "If any of you have become so deluded as to want to enter our white schools, patronize our hotels and cafes, enjoy social equality with the whites, then true kindness and sympathy requires me to advise you to make your homes in some other state."
Social attitudes were changing however, and the editor of the Arkansas Gazette
Arkansas Gazette
The Arkansas Gazette, known as the oldest newspaper west of the Mississippi River, and located from 1908 until its October 18, 1991 closing at the now historic Gazette Building, was for many years the newspaper of record for Little Rock and the State of Arkansas...
, in the aftermath of the 1948 election, noted that "Unpleasant as all this was, the Dixiecrats inadvertently performed a great service for the South by demonstrating that the race issue is no longer a certain ticket to public office for any demagogue who cares to use it."
After politics
Wright left office in 1952, after holding the title of Governor for six consecutive years, and opened a law office in Jackson, MississippiJackson, Mississippi
Jackson is the capital and the most populous city of the US state of Mississippi. It is one of two county seats of Hinds County ,. The population of the city declined from 184,256 at the 2000 census to 173,514 at the 2010 census...
. He made one last attempt at running for Governor in 1955 but was defeated by James P. Coleman
James P. Coleman
James Plemon "J.P." Coleman was a politician from the state of Mississippi.-Biography:Coleman was born in Ackerman, Mississippi. He obtained a law degree from The George Washington University Law School in 1939. As a young man, he served upon the staff of Mississippi Congressman A. L. Ford...
, and after that defeat returned to practicing law full time. Fielding L. Wright died on May 4, 1956 in Jackson and was buried in his home town of Rolling Fork, Mississippi
Rolling Fork, Mississippi
Rolling Fork is a city in Sharkey County, Mississippi, United States. The population was 2,486 at the 2000 census. It is the county seat of Sharkey County.-Geography:Rolling Fork is located at ....
.