Frank Park

In 1913, Park won a special election to fill Georgia's vacant 2nd district seat in the United States House of Representatives during the 63rd United States Congress. Judge Park prevailed over fellow Democratic opponent Roscoe Luke by 5.1 points.[8] The vacancy was the result of incumbent Seaborn Roddenbery's death earlier in the year. Like all members of the Georgia Congressional delegation at that time, Park was a Democrat. After finishing the partial term of his predecessor, he was reelected to four additional full terms in that seat. During his tenure in office, Park resided in Sylvester, Georgia, the county seat of Worth County.[9]

In December 1913, shortly after taking office, Park introduced legislation to make changes to the Second Amendment of the Constitution of the United States to allow state and federal authorities to regulate the practice of "pistol toting". Park stated that his experience as a judge had taught him that the "evil practice of pistol toting" was responsible for a large percentage of homicides in the United States. The freshman congressman wrongly predicted that his measure would receive the "overwhelming support of congress and the states."[10]

In 1914, Park introduced a bill that would ban all African-Americans from being commissioned as military or naval officers.[11]

In 1914, Park introduced a resolution of impeachment against Daniel Thew Wright, Associate Justice of the Supreme Court of the District of Columbia for corruption.[12][13] Wright resigned from the Court ahead of the threatened impeachment proceedings.[12]

In 1915, Park made charges against corrupt District of Columbia police chief Richard H. Sylvester, who was already under fire for the way his police force failed to protect participants in a Women's Suffrage march. Like Judge Wright before him, Sylvester chose to resign ahead of an investigation.[14]

In 1916 Park was challenged in the Democratic primary by Edward E. Cox, who had succeeded Park as judge of the Albany judicial circuit when Park stepped down. Cox did what he could to stir up public interest in his campaign, even sending Congressman Park a telegram challenging him to a debate at the July 4 festivities in Thomasville, Georgia.[15] Cox continued pressing. On August 10. 1916 he held a large barbecue rally in Lucile, Georgia which attracted voters from Early County and surround areas.[16] It was reported that "several hundred" voters attended. Park was able to best Cox in the 1916 congressional race, and would not see another challenge to his seat until 1924.[16]

In the aftermath of the sinking of the ocean liner Lusitania, which cost the lives of numerous Americans, President Wilson issued a warning to the German government about attacking ships carrying American citizens. But many southerners took a different view. The Gore-McLemore resolution, introduced by two southern members of Congress directed the President to warn Americans against traveling aboard foreign ships of belligerent nations, and even proposed confiscating passports of citizens who failed to comply. In keeping with that sentiment, and supporting the isolationist views of his constituents, Park affirmed that he opposed any policy that would "hurl the sons of the South to death and destruction because some fool, or idiot, or nonpatriotic rascal" chose to sail on a "belligerent armed vessel".[17]

Park was also mindful of representing the farmers of his district in Georgia who counted agriculture, particularly the harvesting of pecans and peanuts, as a primary concern.[18] His congressional district produced a large percentage of the pecans grown in Georgia. Park pushed through a more than 50% increase in funding for pecan growers, in the annual Agriculture Appropriations Act of 1917.[19] In addition to nuts and legumes, farmers in Park's 2nd Congressional District harvested a large quantity of "yellow yams" (actually sweet potatoes). With the help of President Woodrow Wilson (who had strong ties to Georgia) Park persuaded the Army's Quartermaster General to add "yellow yams" to the army's menu, increasing both sales and consumer awareness of the vegetable.[20]

In a consumer protection measure Park introduced legislation requiring that manufacturers of clothing and shoes disclose the nature of "the material entering the composition of the article manufactured".[21]

Park faced another contested election in 1924. On July 19, 1923 a front-page article in the Early County News reported that a mass meeting of Tift County voters had taken place, with the express purpose of placing the name of Judge Raleigh Eve in nomination for the Second Congressional District, to replace Frank Park.[22] Eve was the presiding judge of the Tift Judicial Circuit, and a former judicial colleague of Park. The paper reported that "The auditorium was packed and enthusiasm marked the reception of five or six speeches preceding the formal nomination. The nomination was unanimous."[22] Nonetheless, it was Park's previous challenger, Edward E. Cox who proved Park's undoing, defeating him in the Democratic primary of September 10, 1924.[23][24] Out of roughly 13,000 votes cast, Park lost decisively by a margin of nearly 3,000 vote.[24] Once in office, Cox was re-elected thirteen times. In all, Cox served from March 4, 1925, until his death in 1952.[25]