John Travers Wood

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This article is about the congressman from Idaho. For other people with similar names, see John Wood (disambiguation).
John Travers Wood
Member of the U.S. House of Representatives
from Idaho's 1st district
In office
January 3, 1951 – January 3, 1953
Preceded byCompton White, Sr.
Succeeded byGracie Pfost
Personal details
Born(1878-11-25)November 25, 1878
Wakefield, United Kingdom
DiedNovember 2, 1954(1954-11-02) (aged 75)
Coeur d'Alene, Idaho, U.S.
Resting placeForest Cemetery
Coeur d'Alene, Idaho, U.S.
NationalityAmerican
Political partyRepublican
Spouse(s)Margaret O. Thomson
(1889–1978)
(m. 1907–1954, his death)[1]
Children5[2]
ResidenceCoeur d'Alene
Alma materDetroit College of Medicine, 1904
ProfessionPhysician
Military service
Allegiance United States
Branch/serviceSeal of the United States Department of War.png United States Army
RankUS Army O2 shoulderboard rotated.svg  First Lieutenant
UnitUS Army Medical Corps Branch Plaque.gif Medical Corps
Battles/warsWorld War I

John Travers Wood (November 25, 1878 – November 2, 1954) was an American physician and one-term congressman from northern Idaho.[3]

Early life and education[]

Born in the UK at Wakefield, West Yorkshire, Wood immigrated with his parents to the United States in 1889. They settled in Woodridge, North Dakota, and he was naturalized a citizen in 1901. After graduating public schools there, he taught school for six years; he then graduated from Detroit College of Medicine. He moved to Hannah, North Dakota, and set up a practice there for one year, before moving west to Coeur d'Alene, Idaho.[3]

Career[]

From 1910 to 1950, he worked as a surgeon for the Chicago, Milwaukee & St. Paul Railroad. In addition, he served as the mayor of Coeur d'Alene during 1911 and 1912, and founded the town's hospital. During World War I, he served as a first lieutenant in the medical corps of the U.S. Army.

In the 1950 election, Wood ran as a Republican for the open seat in Congress from Idaho's first district. He took office at age 72 and served a single term, narrowly losing his re-election bid in 1952 to Gracie Pfost. During his term, he also mentioned his distrust of the United Nations, citing its charter's similarities to the Soviet Union's constitution, and mentioned as much to the U.S. Flag Committee.[4]

Later life and death[]

Wood left the House on January 1953 and returned to Coeur d'Alene, where he died less than two years later.[2]

Election results[]

U.S. House elections (Idaho's 1st district): Results 1950–1952
Year Democrat Votes Pct Republican Votes Pct
1950 Gracie Pfost 41,040 49.5% John T. Wood 41,823 50.5%
1952 Gracie Pfost 54,725 50.3% John T. Wood (inc.) 54,134 49.7%

Source:[5]

References[]

Public Domain This article incorporates public domain material from the Biographical Directory of the United States Congress website http://bioguide.congress.gov.

  1. ^ "Margaret O. Wood". Spokane Daily Chronicle. Washington. September 5, 1978. p. 10.
  2. ^ Jump up to: a b "Dr. John Wood, ex-Idaho solon, taken by death". Spokane Daily Chronicle. Washington. Associated Press. November 2, 1954. p. 1.
  3. ^ Jump up to: a b "Dr. J.T. Wood's rites Thursday". Spokesman-Review. Spokane, Washington. November 3, 1954. p. 2.
  4. ^ "Who Commands United Nations Military?".
  5. ^ "Office of the Clerk: Election statistics". U.S. House of Representatives. Retrieved March 9, 2013.

External links[]

U.S. House of Representatives
Preceded by
Compton I. White, Sr. 		United States House of Representatives, Idaho First Congressional District
January 3, 1951–January 5, 1953 		Succeeded by
Gracie Pfost
Retrieved from ""