Page Belcher
| Page Belcher | |
|---|---|
| File:Page Belcher (Oklahoma).jpg | |
| Member of the U.S. House of Representatives from Oklahoma's 1st district |
|
| In office January 3, 1953 – January 3, 1973 |
|
| Preceded by | George B. Schwabe |
| Succeeded by | James Robert Jones |
| Member of the U.S. House of Representatives from Oklahoma's 8th district |
|
| In office January 3, 1951 – January 3, 1953 |
|
| Preceded by | George H. Wilson |
| Succeeded by | District eliminated |
| Personal details | |
| Born | April 21, 1899 Jefferson, Oklahoma |
| Died | Script error: The function "death_date_and_age" does not exist. Midwest City, Oklahoma |
| Political party | Republican |
| Spouse(s) | Gladys Collins |
| Profession | Lawyer |
| Religion | Methodist |
Page Henry Belcher (April 21, 1899 – August 2, 1980) was a Republican politician and a U.S. Representative from Oklahoma.
Biography
Belcher was born in Jefferson in northern Oklahoma to George Harvey Belcher and Jessie Ray.[1] He was educated at public schools in Jefferson, and Medford, Oklahoma. Belcher attended Friends University, a private non-denominational Christian university in Wichita, Kansas. He served in World War I, then returned to Oklahoma and enrolled at the University of Oklahoma in Norman where he studied law[2] and played for the 1918 Oklahoma Sooners football team.[3]
Career
Following his graduation from OU, he was admitted to the bar in 1936 and began his legal practice in Enid.[2] In 1934, he was elected county clerk of Garfield County, served on the Enid Board of Education,[4] and as secretary to U.S. Rep. Ross Rizley in 1941. From 1951 to 1953, Belcher was the last representative of Oklahoma's now-defunct 8th congressional district, then represented the 1st district until 1973.[5] After his home in Enid was drawn out of the district during a mid-decade redistricting in 1967, Belcher moved to Tulsa, the heart of the 1st. Belcher was a member of the Agriculture Committee and its wheat subcommittee for his entire congressional tenure, eventually rising to ranking Republican on that committee, and worked on the Arkansas River Navigation System.[6]
Belcher usually skated to reelection, as the Tulsa area was (and still is) very friendly to Republicans. However, in 1958, he was nearly defeated due to discontent over the Eisenhower administration's farm policy. He didn't face a credible challenge again until 1970, when former Johnson administration official Jim Jones held him to only 55 percent of the vote. With Jones priming for a rematch in 1972, Belcher announced that June that he was retiring due to age and health.
Personal life
Page Belcher was married on June 16, 1922 to Gladys Collins. The two had a son, Page, Jr., and a daughter named Carol. Belcher was a Methodist, a Member of the Kiwanis, American Legion, and Odd Fellows.[7] He was inducted into the Oklahoma Hall of Fame. Following his retirement, he moved to Midwest City where he died on August 2, 1980 at the age of eighty-one.[2] He is buried at Memorial Park Cemetery, Enid, Oklahoma. After his retirement from Congress, the federal courthouse in Tulsa was named in his honor.[2] In addition, Tulsa is home to the Page Belcher golf course.[8]
References
This article incorporates public domain material from websites or documents of the Biographical Directory of the United States Congress.
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- ↑ http://www.ou.edu/special/albertctr/archives/belcher.htm
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- ↑ http://digital.library.okstate.edu/encyclopedia/entries/B/BE011.html
- ↑ politicalgraveyard.com/geo/OK/GA.html
- ↑ http://www.tulsagolf.org/courses/page-belcher/
External links
- Encyclopedia of Oklahoma History and Culture - Belcher, Page
- Page Belcher at Find a Grave
- Page H. Belcher Collection and Photograph Collection at the Carl Albert Center
| United States House of Representatives | ||
|---|---|---|
| Preceded by | Member of the U.S. House of Representatives from Oklahoma's 8th congressional district January 3, 1951 – January 3, 1953 |
Succeeded by none |
| Preceded by | Member of the U.S. House of Representatives from Oklahoma's 1st congressional district January 3, 1953 – January 3, 1973 |
Succeeded by James Robert Jones |
- Pages with broken file links
- Wikipedia articles incorporating text from the Biographical Directory of the United States Congress
- 1899 births
- 1980 deaths
- American military personnel of World War I
- Friends University alumni
- Members of the United States House of Representatives from Oklahoma
- People from Enid, Oklahoma
- People from Grant County, Oklahoma
- People from Oklahoma City, Oklahoma
- Oklahoma lawyers
- Oklahoma Republicans
- Oklahoma Sooners football players
- University of Oklahoma alumni
- People from Midwest City, Oklahoma
- Republican Party members of the United States House of Representatives
- People from Medford, Oklahoma
- 20th-century American politicians
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