Joseph L. Bristow
Joseph Little Bristow | |
|---|---|
| United States Senator from Kansas | |
| In office March 4, 1909 – March 3, 1915 | |
| Preceded by | Chester I. Long |
| Succeeded by | Charles Curtis |
| Fourth Assistant United States Postmaster General | |
| In office March 22, 1897 – March 20, 1905 | |
| President | William McKinley Theodore Roosevelt |
| Preceded by | Robert A. Maxwell |
| Succeeded by | Peter Voorhees De Graw |
| Chairman of the Kansas Public Utilities Commission | |
| In office April 1, 1915 – March 31, 1918 | |
| Preceded by | Charles F. Foley |
| Succeeded by | Charles H. Sessions |
| Member of the Kansas Public Utilities Commission | |
| In office March 5, 1915 – March 31, 1918 | |
| Preceded by | James Cable |
| Succeeded by | Charles H. Sessions |
| Personal details | |
| Born | July 22, 1861 Hazel Green, Kentucky, U.S. |
| Died | July 14, 1944 (aged 82) Annandale, Virginia, U.S. |
| Resting place | Gypsum Hill Cemetery, Salina, Kansas, U.S. |
| Political party | Republican |
| Spouse | Margaret Hendrix (m. 1879) |
| Children | 5 |
| Education | Baker University |
| Occupation | Newspaper editor |
| Signature | |
Joseph Little Bristow (July 22, 1861 – July 14, 1944) was a Republican politician from the American state of Kansas. Elected in 1908, Bristow served a single term in the United States Senate where he gained recognition for his support of several political causes of the Progressive Era. In retirement, Bristow was a farmer in Annandale, Virginia.
Bristow was a bit player in a legendary episode in American political folklore when his Senate speech on "what the country needs" moved a bored Vice President Thomas R. Marshall, the presiding officer, to stage whisper "What this country really needs is a good five-cent cigar."