Bolivar Edwards Kemp Sr. | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Member of theU.S. House of Representatives fromLouisiana's6th district | |
| In office March 4, 1925 – June 19, 1933 | |
| Preceded by | George K. Favrot |
| Succeeded by | Jared Y. Sanders Jr. |
| Personal details | |
| Born | (1871-12-28)December 28, 1871 |
| Died | June 19, 1933(1933-06-19) (aged 61) |
| Cause of death | Heart attack |
| Resting place | Amite Cemetery |
| Political party | Democratic |
| Spouse(s) | Esther Edwards Connor Kemp, known as Lallie Kemp |
| Children | Bolivar Edwards Kemp Jr., Eleanor Ogden Kemp Ellis |
| Residence(s) | Amite, Louisiana |
| Alma mater | Louisiana State University Law Center |
| Occupation | Attorney |
Bolivar Edwards Kemp Sr. (December 28, 1871,St. Helena Parish,Louisiana – June 19, 1933,Amite, Louisiana), was anattorney and a member of theUnited States House of Representatives fromLouisiana's 6th congressional district.
In 1897, Kemp earned his legal degree from theLouisiana State University Law Center inBaton Rouge and began his law practice in Amite, theparish seat ofTangipahoa Parish, one of theFlorida Parishes. In 1910, he was appointed a member of the influentialLouisiana State University Board of Supervisors.
ADemocrat, Kemp won the 1924 primary election for the 6th district seat and was unopposed in thegeneral election. He ran unopposed in 1926, 1928, and 1930, and he defeated two primary opponents to win a fifth term in 1932. Kemp worked for passage ofMississippi River flood-control legislation, theGreat Mississippi Flood having occurred in 1927.
On June 19, 1933, Bolivar Kemp died unexpectedly of aheart attack at his home in Amite three weeks after the similar death of his brother and law partner, William Breed Kemp Jr. His seat ordinarily would have been filled through a special primary and general election. In early December 1933,GovernorOscar K. Allen declared that aspecial election would be held eight days from the date of his announcement, and he named Kemp's widow, the former Esther Edwards Conner, known as "Lallie" Kemp, as the "unopposed" Democratic nominee. Many protested the announcement, and ballots were destroyed or burned in several locations within the district. After state election officials nevertheless declared Lallie Kemp the winner of the special election, a committee of citizens staged a "revolt election", won byJared Y. Sanders Jr., supported by districtconservatives and anti-Huey Long elements. In January 1934, Mrs. Kemp and Sanders presented their competing claims to the House. TheUnited States House Committee on Elections refused to seat either candidate, and the full House approved the committee report by voice vote. Lallie Kemp declined to run in the subsequentMay 1 special election in which Sanders defeatedHarry D. Wilson, theLouisiana Commissioner of Agriculture and Forestry.
The Kemps' son,Bolivar Edwards Kemp Jr., a son-in-law of Harry Wilson, served as theAttorney General of Louisiana from 1948 to 1952, between the two terms ofFred S. LeBlanc of Baton Rouge.
Lallie Kemp, who died in 1943, was appointed in 1937 by GovernorRichard Leche to the Louisiana Hospital Board. She is honored by the naming of the medical center, a critical access hospital, in Independence.[1][2]
Bolivar E. Kemp wasEpiscopalian. He is interred beside his wife and son at Amite Cemetery.
| U.S. House of Representatives | ||
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| Preceded by | Member of the U.S. House of Representatives fromLouisiana's 6th congressional district 1925 – 1933 | Succeeded by |
