Page:Men of Mark in America vol 2.djvu/424

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HENRY ST. GEORGE TUCKER

TUCKER, HENRY ST. GEORGE. Dean Tucker, of George Washington university, is a native of Winchester, Virginia, and a descendant of an old Virginia family, his immediate ancestors, back to his great grandfather, having been lawyers, judges and authors in the Old Dominion. His earliest ancestor in America, St. George Tucker, came to Virginia from Bermuda. His father, John Randolph Tucker, was especially distinguished, holding the positions of attorney-general of Virginia, member of congress and university professor of law. He was a man of logical acuteness, religious earnestness, and a strong sense of humor, and he exerted a most beneficial influence upon the character of his son. Born on April 5, 1853, Henry St. George Tucker lived in the village or the country and during youth indulged in the outdoor sports of a healthy lad, while he did a wholesome share of useful labor, such as wood cutting, work in the harvest field, "going to mill," and similar pieces of work for boys in a rural home. His early education was obtained in the Loudoun school, and was followed by a term in Washington and Lee university, at Lexington, Virginia, where he was graduated in 1875. The next year he studied law in the same institution, graduating B.L. in 1876. In recent years he has been honored with the degree of LL.D. from the University of Mississippi, and from the Columbian (now George Washington) university at Washington.

Mr. Tucker was admitted to the bar in 1876, and at once opened an office at Staunton, Virginia, where he continued the practice of law until 1889, with an ability that brought him success and marked eminence in his profession. Shortly after beginning his legal work (October 25, 1877) he married Henrietta P. Johnston, who died in May, 1900, leaving six surviving children. He married again (January 13, 1903) Martha Sharpe, of Wilkesbarre, Pennsylvania. Mr. Tucker's legal career was followed by an eight years' period of service in the national legislature, where he was a member of the house of representatives from 1889 to 1897. As a congressman, a