Otha Wearin | |
|---|---|
 Wearinc. 1929 | |
| Member of theU.S. House of Representatives fromIowa's7th district | |
| In office March 4, 1933 – January 3, 1939 | |
| Preceded by | Cassius C. Dowell |
| Succeeded by | Ben F. Jensen |
| Member of theIowa House of Representatives from theMills County district | |
| In office January 14, 1929 – January 8, 1933 | |
| Preceded by | Roy Haney |
| Succeeded by | Rudolph Carl Nicholas Hopp |
| Personal details | |
| Born | (1903-01-10)January 10, 1903 Hastings, Iowa, U.S. |
| Died | April 3, 1990(1990-04-03) (aged 87) Glenwood, Iowa, U.S. |
| Resting place | Malvern, Iowa, U.S. |
| Political party | Democratic |
| Relatives | Albert Benjamin Washburn (uncle) Henry W. Washburn (cousin) Edward Anderson Wearin (cousin) |
| Alma mater | Grinnell College |
| Occupation | Writer, cattleman |
Otha Donner Wearin (January 10, 1903 – April 3, 1990) was an American writer and politician. Elected as the youngest member of PresidentFranklin D. Roosevelt's first "New Deal" Congress, his political career stalled in 1938 when he gave up his seat in theUnited States House of Representatives at Roosevelt's urging[citation needed] to run for aU.S. Senate seat held by another Democrat,Guy Gillette, but primary voters rallied behind Gillette.[1] He became a prolific writer, which led to his election to theCowboy Hall of Fame.[2]
Wearin was born on a farm nearHastings, Iowa, inMills County, and graduated fromGrinnell College inGrinnell, Iowa. While returning to Mills County to farm, the reputation he developed as a writer helped to jump-start his political career. He travelled to Europe to inspect their farming methods, which he described in articles printed in rural Iowa newspapers[3] and published in his first book, "An Iowa Farmer Abroad." By age 25, a newspaper reported that he had already "gained prominence as a farm bureau speaker and writer in the past few years."[4] Later that year he was elected to theIowa House of Representatives as a Democrat,[2] even though his home county was a traditional Republican stronghold and the influence of native-son presidential candidateHerbert Hoover at the top of the Republican ticket led to Republican gains throughout Iowa. He served two terms in the Iowa House, winning re-election in 1930.[5]
In1932, he became thefirst Democrat ever to win election to the U.S. House of Representatives fromIowa's 7th congressional district. At twenty-nine years old, he was the youngest member of Congress.[5] During his tenure, Wearin was known for hisprogressive ideals.
He was re-elected in1934 and in1936, but by increasingly narrow margins in the general elections. In1938, he sought the Democratic nomination for U.S. Senate, having the support of President Franklin D. Roosevelt, who was trying to purge SenatorGuy M. Gillette, but he lost in the primary.[2]
In 1950, he made a second unsuccessful attempt to win the Democratic nomination for U.S. Senate. He finished a distant third in the primary, behind Al Loveland andNelson Kraschel.[6] In 1952 he sought unsuccessfully the Democratic nomination for Governor of Iowa, losing in the primary toHerschel C. Loveless.
In 1969, afterCharles Vernon Lisle resigned one year before hisIowa Senate term ended, Wearin was nominated by his party as the Democratic candidate in thespecial election to succeed Lisle. However, Wearin's Republican opponent,Earl Bass, won the election.[7]
After the end of his active political career, Wearin raised purebredAngus cattle on the 1,000-acre (4.0 km2) family estate, "Nishna Vale," near Hastings. Despite deterioration of his eyesight, he wrote books and articles, studied Iowa history, and worked in conservation.[8]
As a writer of westerns, his books includeBefore the Colors Fade, (1971),Along Our Country Road, (1985),I Remember Yesteryear (1974),Heinhold's First and Last Chance Saloon: Jack London's Rendezvous (1974) andGrass Grown Trails (1981).[2] His writings were cited in his 1985 induction into the Cowboy Hall of Fame.[2] Outside of that genre, he wrote many other books, includingCentury on an Iowa Farm (1959),I Remember Hastings (1965),Political Americana (1967),Clarence Arthur Ellsworth,: Artist of the Old West, 1885-1964, (1967)Country Roads to Washington (1976), andRhymes of a Plain Countryman (1980).
He died atGlenwood, Iowa, and is buried atMalvern, Iowa.
| U.S. House of Representatives | ||
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| Preceded by | Member of the U.S. House of Representatives fromIowa's 7th congressional district March 4, 1933 – January 3, 1939 (obsolete district) | Succeeded by |
| International | |
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| National | |
| People | |
| Other | |
