John Barton Payne | |
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Judge John B. Payne
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27th United States Secretary of the Interior | |
In office March 15, 1920 – March 4, 1921 |
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President | Woodrow Wilson |
Preceded by | Franklin K. Lane |
Succeeded by | Albert B. Fall |
Personal details | |
Born |
Pruntytown, West Virginia, United States |
January 26, 1855
Died | January 24, 1935 Washington, D.C., United States |
(aged 79)
Resting place | Oak Hill Cemetery in Washington, D.C., United States |
Political party | Democratic |
Spouse(s) | Kate Bunker Payne Jennie Byrd Bryan Payne |
Profession | Politician, Lawyer, Judge |
Religion | Methodist |
John Barton Payne (January 26, 1855 – January 24, 1935) was an American politician, lawyer and judge. He served as the United States Secretary of the Interior from 1920 until 1921 under Woodrow Wilson's administration.
Payne was born on January 26, 1855 in Pruntytown, West Virginia, the son of Amos Payne, who was a doctor and farmer, and the former Elizabeth Barton.
Admitted to the bar in 1876 in West Virginia, Payne entered politics five years later as the chairman of the Preston County Democratic Party. He moved to Chicago, Illinois, in 1883, and was elected local judge in 1893. After resigning from that post in 1898, Payne was the senior partner in Winston, Payne, Strawn and Shaw. A successor firm still exists. He was the president of the Chicago's South Park Board from 1911 to 1924.
After the outbreak of World War I, Payne went to Washington, D.C., to act as the counsel for the Emergency Fleet Corporation and was the national railroad administration. From 1919 through his appointment to Wilson's cabinet in February 1920, Payne served as the Chairman of the U.S. Shipping Board.
From October 1921 until his death, Payne served as the Chairman of the American Red Cross. In May 1921, Payne pledged funds for the permanent structure for the [Warrenton Library][1] Fauquier County, Virginia.
Payne was a founder of the Virginia Museum of Fine Arts in Richmond in 1911, and he donated 50 paintings to the museum in 1919. Some of his personal papers were given to the Special Collections Research Center at the College of William & Mary.