Collins Denny, Jr.
| Collins Denny Jr. | |
|---|---|
| Born | June 10, 1899 Nashville, Tennessee, U.S. |
| Died | January 14, 1964 Powhatan County, Virginia, U.S. |
| Residence | Powhatan County, Virginia, U.S. |
| Alma mater |
Princeton University University of Virginia School of Law |
| Occupation | Lawyer |
| Spouse(s) | Rebecca Smith Miller |
| Children | 2 sons |
| Parent(s) |
Collins Denny Lucy Chase Chapman |
Collins Denny Jr. (1899–1964) was a Virginia lawyer who became known for his opposition to racial integration. He was a legal counsel to public school boards, arguing against the integration of black students in Virginia.
Collins Denny was born on June 10, 1899 in Nashville, Tennessee. His father, Collins Denny, was a Bishop of the Methodist Episcopal Church, South. His mother was Lucy Chase Chapman. He had four sisters. Denny and his family moved to Richmond, Virginia in 1910, when he was eleven years old.
Denny was educated in private schools in Richmond. He began attending Princeton University, joined the Reserve Officers' Training Corps and received a commission as a second lieutenant in the United States Army in July 1918. Although he was sent to Europe, Denny never saw combat in World War I before the war ended. Upon discharge, Denny returned to Princeton, graduated in 1921, and then traveled to Charlottesville, Virginia to attend the University of Virginia School of Law. He received a LLB degree in 1924.
Upon admission to the Virginia bar, Denny begun his legal career at the Richmond law firm of Wellford and Taylor. In 1926, he and Charles S. Valentine established a law firm that later became known as Denny, Valentine and Davenport. John R. Saunders appointed Denny Assistant Attorney General in 1930, and he served until 1934.
Denny and his father opposed the unification of the Methodist Episcopal Church, South and the Methodist Episcopal Church, foreseeing that such would endanger racial segregation. Despite Denny's evidence in the 1930 church trial of re-unification proponent Rev. James Cannon (actually for misusing church money to support Al Smith for President, for which Cannon was acquitted), and their 1937 pamphlet entitled An Appeal to Men of Reason and Religion Concerning Methodist Unification, unification occurred in 1939, forming the Methodist Church (USA). Denny personally refused to join the new entity, and unsuccessfully argued for the right of a breakaway South Carolina congregation to continue to use the Methodist Episcopal Church, South appellation.
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