Charles K. Bell

Charles K. Bell
Portrait of Bell by Charles Milton Bell, taken between February 1894 and February 1901
Member of the U.S. House of Representatives
from Texas's 8th district
In office
March 4, 1893 – March 3, 1897
Preceded byLittleton W. Moore
Succeeded byS. W. T. Lanham
Texas Attorney General
In office
May 1901 – 1904
GovernorJoseph D. Sayers
Preceded byThomas Slater Smith
Succeeded byRobert V. Davidson
Member of the Texas Senate
from the 23rd district
In office
1884–1888
Personal details
BornCharles Keith Bell
(1853-04-18)April 18, 1853
Chattanooga, Tennessee, US
DiedApril 22, 1913(1913-04-22) (aged 60)
Fort Worth, Texas, US
Resting placeOakwood Cemetery
RelationsReese Bowen Brabson (uncle)

Charles Keith Bell (April 18, 1853 – April 22, 1913) was an American politician and lawyer. A Democrat, he was a member of the United States House of Representatives from Texas, later being Attorney General of Texas.

Biography

Bell was born on April 18, 1853, in Chattanooga, Tennessee,[1] the son of William S. Bell and Elizabeth Douglas (née Keith) Bell.[2] His uncle was Reese Bowen Brabson. Educated at public schools, he studied at Sewanee: The University of the South[1] and at the University of Tennessee, the latter from 1867 to 1869, studying philosophy.[3]

In 1871, Bell moved to Texas, returning to Tennessee in 1873, reading law in the latter. He was admitted to the bar in 1874,[4] after which he began practicing in Hamilton. In 1876, he was prosecutor of Hamilton County, and from 1880 to 1882, was its district attorney.[1] From 1888 to 1890, he was judge of the 29th Texas District Court.[1]

Bell was a Democrat,[1] though The Political Graveyard erroneously identifies him as a Republican.[5] He was a delegate to the 1884 Democratic National Convention. He was a member of the Texas Senate from 1884 to 1888,[1] representing the 23rd district.[6]

Ideologically, he was liberal[7] and supported Prohibition.[4] He supported antitrust policy, helping to recover over $100 million in loans to the federal government while in Congress.[8]

Bell was a member of the United States House of Representatives, from March 4, 1893, to March 3, 1897. representing Texas's 8th district;[1] The Political Graveyard erroneously states he represented the 27th district, which did not exist at the time.[5] He was not nominated for the following election.[1] From May 1901 to 1904, he was Texas Attorney General, having been appointed by Governor Joseph D. Sayers.[6] He was an unsuccessful candidate in the 1906 Texas gubernatorial election.[4]

In 1893, Bell moved to Fort Worth,[8] where he returned to practicing law.[1] For a time, he was chairman of the city's YMCA. In 1906, he married Florence Smith, with whom he had a son.[4] He was Anglician and a Freemason.[8] He died on April 22, 1913, aged 60, in Fort Worth,[9] and was buried at Oakwood Cemetery.[1]

References

  1. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 "Bell, Charles Keith". bioguide.congress.gov. Retrieved July 3, 2026.
  2. ↑ Revolution, Sons of the American (1905). National Year Book. National Society of the Sons of the American Revolution. p. 331.
  3. ↑ Tennessee, University of (1898). The University of Tennessee Record. University of Tennessee.
  4. 1 2 3 4 Hooker, Anne W. "Charles Keith Bell: Life and Legacy of a Texas Attorney General". Texas State Historical Association. Retrieved July 4, 2026.
  5. 1 2 "The Political Graveyard: Index to Politicians: Bell". politicalgraveyard.com. Retrieved July 4, 2026.
  6. 1 2 Guttery, Ben R. (2008). Representing Texas. Ben Guttery. pp. 22, 23. ISBN 978-1-4196-7884-4.
  7. ↑ "BELL, Charles Keith (1853-1913)". www.voteview.com. Retrieved July 4, 2026.
  8. 1 2 3 Spaw, Patsy McDonald (1990). The Texas Senate: Civil War to the Eve of Reform, 1861-1889. Texas A&M University Press. pp. 337, 338. ISBN 978-0-89096-857-4.
  9. ↑ "Charles K. Bell Dies in Fort Worth". El Paso Times. Fort Worth, Texas. Associated Press. April 23, 1913. p. 1. Retrieved May 22, 2020 – via Newspapers.com.
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