John Watkinson Douglass

John Watkinson Douglass (1827–1909), was an American politician who served as the 6th president of the Board of Commissioners of the District of Columbia from 1889 to 1893 and as the 7th Commissioner of Internal Revenue from 1871 to 1875. Prior to that, he was the acting Commissioner of Internal Revenue from 1870 to 1871.

John Watkinson Douglass
6th President of the Board of Commissioners of Washington, D.C.
In office
May 21, 1889  March 1, 1893
PresidentBenjamin Harrison
Grover Cleveland
Preceded byWilliam Benning Webb
Succeeded byJohn Wesley Ross
7th Commissioner of Internal Revenue
In office
August 9, 1871  May 14, 1875[1]
PresidentUlysses S. Grant
Preceded byAlfred Pleasonton
Succeeded byDaniel D. Pratt
Acting Commissioner of Internal Revenue
In office
November 1, 1870  January 2, 1871[1]
PresidentUlysses S. Grant
Preceded byColumbus Delano
Succeeded byAlfred Pleasonton
Personal details
BornJohn Wesley Ross
Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, U.S.
DiedAugust 21, 1909
Kent, Connecticut, U.S.
Resting placeOak Hill Cemetery
Georgetown, Washington, D.C., U.S.
Political partyRepublican
SpouseMargaret Lyon
ChildrenGeorge Lyon Douglass, Helen Douglass McMurtrie, Mary Douglass MacFarland, Josephine Martha Douglass Strong, Katharine R. Douglass
ProfessionAttorney, Politician

Early life

Born on October 25, 1827, in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, J. W. Douglass was the son of Joseph M. Douglass (1834–1905) and Martha A. Watkinson Douglass. He was from a distinguished Pennsylvania family, descended from Paul Lily White, who had helped explore the state with William Penn and Col. John Douglass who fought with George Washington in the American Revolution. Douglass moved to Erie, Pennsylvania when he was 10 and graduated from the Erie Academy. He was apprenticed to the Hon. James Thompson and admitted to the bar of Erie in 1851.

Public Life

He became involved in Republican politics and campaigned hard for Abraham Lincoln, with whom he would later become friends, in 1860. He was awarded with an appointment as Collector of Internal Revenue for the 19th Pennsylvania district in Erie in 1861 when the internal revenue service was started. In 1869 he was promoted to 1st Deputy Commissioner of Internal Revenue, bringing him to Washington, DC. From October 1869 to January 1871 he was Acting Commissioner of Internal Revenue; from August 9, 1871, to May 14, 1875, he was the Commissioner.[2] His portrait was on an issue of tobacco revenue stamps in 1875.[3] He then retired to private practice in Washington, D.C., where he practiced law before the different courts of the District, the executive departments, the Court of Claims and the Supreme Court.[4] He led the reorganization, streamlining and standardization of the Revenue Service, allowing them to cut the number of employees by more than 60%. He became friends with President Grant, who had wanted to place him on the Court of Claims, but no vacancy occurred.[5]

In 1889, he was appointed to the three-person Board of Commissioners by President Benjamin Harrison and was elected President of the Board. During his time he drafted a liquor license law that was passed by Congress.[5]

Later life

He married Margaret Lyon (1830–1910). He died August 21, 1909, in Kent, Connecticut, where he was visiting his daughters, and was buried at Oak Hill Cemetery in Washington.[6]

His son, George Lyon Douglass, was Speaker of Kansas House of Representatives in 1893.

References

  1. "Internal Revenue Service Data Book 2003" (PDF). irs.gov. Retrieved September 13, 2007.
  2. "Previous IRS Commissioners (1862-1955)". Internal Revenue Service. Retrieved May 4, 2020.
  3. http://www.stampnewsonline.net/StampNewsOnline-PW/YesterdayinUSSN/YIU%202012/YIU_0812_Wagg_WhosHe_2.pdf "Who's He? (Part 2), William H. Waggoner, U. S. Stamp News, September 1998-October 1999
  4. "Two New Commissioners". The Evening Star. 16 May 1889.
  5. "Buried in Oak Hill". The Evening Star. 24 August 1909.
  6. "Oak Hill Cemetery, Georgetown, D.C. (Stewart) - Lot 523 East" (PDF). oakhillcemeterydc.org. Archived (PDF) from the original on 2022-03-02. Retrieved 2022-08-14.
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