Earle Cabell

Earle Cabell (October 27, 1906 – September 24, 1975) was a Texas politician who served as mayor of Dallas, Texas. Cabell was mayor at the time of the assassination of United States President John F. Kennedy and was later a member of the U.S. House of Representatives.

Earle Cabell
Member of the U.S. House of Representatives
from Texas's 5th district
In office
January 3, 1965 – January 3, 1973
Preceded byBruce Reynolds Alger
Succeeded byAlan Steelman
48th Mayor of Dallas
In office
1961 – February 3, 1964
Preceded byRobert L. Thornton
Succeeded byJ. Erik Jonsson
Personal details
Born(1906-10-27)October 27, 1906
Dallas County, Texas
DiedSeptember 24, 1975(1975-09-24) (aged 68)
Dallas, Texas, U.S.
NationalityAmerican
Political partyDemocratic
ParentsBen E. Cabell
Sadie E. Pearre
RelativesWilliam L. Cabell (grandfather)
Charles P. Cabell (brother)
Alma materTexas A&M University
Southern Methodist University
OccupationPolitician

Early life

Cabell was born in Dallas. He attended Texas A&M University, where he met Jack Crichton and H.R. "Bum" Bright, and thereafter Southern Methodist University. After returning from college, he founded, along with his brothers, Cabell's Inc., a chain of dairies and convenience stores. He later became involved with banking and other investments. In May 1961, he was elected mayor to succeed Robert L. Thornton.

Family

Cabell was the youngest of 4 sons of the then former Dallas Mayor Ben E. Cabell and also the grandson of the former Dallas Mayor William L. Cabell. He was the brother of Charles Cabell, who was deputy director of the Central Intelligence Agency until Charles was fired in the wake of the Bay of Pigs invasion.

Assassination of Kennedy

Cabell and his wife met United States President John F. Kennedy and Mrs. Kennedy at Love Field on the morning of November 22, 1963.[1] Cabell's wife reported that while riding in Kennedy's motorcade through Dealey Plaza, she observed "a rather long looking thing" sticking out of a window of the Texas School Book Depository immediately after the first shot.[2] After receiving word from the Federal Bureau of Investigation that he was the subject of a death threat, Cabell was guarded by police when he traveled to Washington, D.C. to attend Kennedy's funeral and also upon his return to Dallas.[3]

One version of John F. Kennedy assassination conspiracy theories, the "Renegade CIA Clique" theory, implicates Cabell and other alleged conspirators, including CIA officials James Jesus Angleton, William King Harvey, and Cabell's brother Charles Cabell.[4] This theory claims Earl Cabell re-routed Kennedy's motorcade as a favor to his brother.[4]

Congress

On February 3, 1964, Cabell resigned as mayor of Dallas in order to run for Congress. He unseated the ten-year Republican incumbent Bruce Alger. In that same election, Jack Crichton was defeated by a wide margin by the Democratic Texas Governor John B. Connally, Jr., and George Herbert Walker Bush fell to United States Senator Ralph W. Yarborough. Cabell served four terms in the House before he was defeated by the Republican Alan Steelman in the 1972 election. Cabell voted in favor of the Voting Rights Act of 1965 and the Civil Rights Act of 1968.[5][6]

Later life

Following his defeat, he retired in Dallas, where he lived until his death in 1975 from emphysema. He was buried at Restland Cemetery in Dallas.[7]

Legacy

The Earle Cabell Federal Building and Courthouse on Commerce Street in Dallas is named in his honor.[8]

References
  1. "JFK's Arrival in Dallas". University of Texas Arlington Libraries Special Collections. library.uta.edu/. "Howdy, Mr. President!"; A Fort Worth Perspective of JFK. Arlington, Texas: The University of Texas at Arlington. Retrieved September 21, 2017.
  2. "Eyewitness Stories of Kennedy Slaying Among Most Telling Evidence". Chicago Tribune. 118 (272). AP. September 28, 1964. Section 1, page 7. Retrieved September 21, 2017.
  3. "Probe Reports Dallas School Kids Cheered; Move Pastor to Place of Safety". Chicago Tribune. 116 (332). November 28, 1963. Section 1, page 14. Retrieved September 21, 2017.
  4. Catchpole, Terry (January 17, 1992). "Nine JFK assassination theories". Entertainment. Retrieved August 31, 2017.
  5. "TO PASS H.R. 6400, THE 1965 VOTING RIGHTS ACT".
  6. "TO PASS H.R. 2516, A BILL TO ESTABLISH PENALTIES FOR INTERFERENCE WITH CIVIL RIGHTS. INTERFERENCE WITH A PERSON ENGAGED IN ONE OF THE 8 ACTIVITIES PROTECTED UNDER THIS BILL MUST BE RACIALLY MOTIVATED TO INCUR THE BILL'S PENALTIES".
  7. "Political Graveyard, Dallas County, TX". Political Graveyard. 2008-06-16. Retrieved 2009-02-25.
  8. "Court Tours". United States District Court | Northern District of Texas. Archived from the original on 11 October 2018. Retrieved 18 June 2019.
Political offices
Preceded by
Robert L. Thornton		 Mayor of Dallas

Earle Cabell
1961–1964

Succeeded by
Erik Jonsson
U.S. House of Representatives
Preceded by
Bruce Reynolds Alger (R)		 United States Representative for the 5th Congressional District of Texas

Earle Cabell (D)
1965–1973

Succeeded by
Alan Watson Steelman (R)
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