Details: Lester Durant Puckett
***Lester Durant Puckett***
(b. August 27, 1855, d. October 12, 1908)
South Carolina. White.
Occupation: lawyer, teacher.
Lester D. Puckett was born in Walhalla, South Carolina to Mary Francis Crawford Puckett and an unknown father.
Puckett spent most of his life living with his mother. During Reconstruction, they lived in Upstate South Carolina. In 1860, they were living in Spartanburg, but by 1870 they had moved to Centerville (in Anderson County). They had returned to Walhalla by 1874.
Puckett registered at the University of South Carolina on April 1, 1874, entering as a college student following the modern studies track. This was an unusual decision. Puckett was one of the first white students to enroll after African American students were admitted. The admission of the first African American student in October, 1873 led to a massive exodus of students, with only the children of faculty remaining. (Those children were Edward and CharlesBabbitt and Charles W., Francis A., and Olin F. Cummings.)
Puckett did not complete a degree and left the university around 1875. After leaving the university, Puckett moved to Gainesville, Georgia with his mother. He lived in the city for the rest of his life.
In Gainesville, Puckett worked as a teacher for some years, but most of his working life was spent as a lawyer. Perhaps the most high profile case legal that he was involved with was a 1898 case involving the murder of a woman. The accused, a young white man, was unable to employ legal counsel, so Puckett, and others, were appointed to represent him. The accused was ultimately convicted and sentenced to life in prison.
Puckett was active in politics. He was a member of the Democratic Party and often held an executive position in the county party. One of his more noteworthy acts as party member was introducing a resolution in 1902 expressing appreciation for former South Carolina Governor Wade Hampton. Hampton had recently died, and Pickett introduced the resolution as a way to acknowledge Hampton's civic, political, and military accomplishments and express sympathy for the people of South Carolina. The resolution states, for example, that
Resolved further, That the people of South Carolina, and throughout the Sunny South, owe him [Hampton] a debt of gratitude for the redemption of that State from radical rule in the dark days of 1876, when surrounded by glittering bayonets and shining swords of the United States soldiers he stood in the center of the raging storm like a stone wall and defied the enemies of civil and political freedom, and by his wise counsel and patriotic words saved his State to democracy and his people and restores her to peace, order and prosperity.
The resolution was adopted by a rising vote.
Pickett both received political appointments and was elected to office. The district court appointed him Referee in Bankruptcy in November, 1898. This position was a newly created quasi-judicial position that was responsible for assisting with matters related to bankruptcy. For example, the Referee could adjudicate bankruptcy petitions and depose witnesses in bankruptcy proceedings. Puckett was reappointed in 1900, but he resigned before completing his second term, in April, 1901.
In November, 1899, Puckett was elected alderman (for the 3rd Ward) to fill the unexpired term of an alderman who had just resigned. After the election, he was made mayor pro tem. He was again elected as alderman in December 1900 and served from 1901-02.
The year after his term as alderman ended (in 1903), Puckett ran for city mayor. In a newspaper article he wrote about his candidacy, he said that he was, "in favor of a 'business administration' and a wise and judicious expenditure of people's money, which is wrung from them by the exacting hands of taxation." At the time, the election was effectively determined by the White Primary, and Puckett lost the primary by a significant margin (168 votes to 446). This loss marked the end to his political career.
Puckett started having health problems in 1901, and these problems became especially severe on January 3, 1903. An illness reported as "locomotor ataxia" left him bed-ridden for almost five year, until his death on October 14, 1908. He is buried in the Alta Vista Cemetery in Gainesville.
Sources
1). 1860; Census Place: Spartanburg, Spartanburg, South Carolina; Page: 306
2). 1880; Census Place: Gainesville, Hall, Georgia; Roll: 150; Page: 3B
3). 1900; Census Place: Gainesville Ward 3, Hall, Georgia; Page: 10
4). "Col. L. D. Pudkett dies [sic]," October 14, 1908. Gainesville News. Page 2.
5). "Mr. Webb is Chairman." September 17, 1898. The Georgia Cracker. p. 1.
6). "Mr. Puckett Appointed." November 19, 1898. The Georgia Cracker. p. 4.
7). "From the Third Ward." November 11, 1899. The Georgia Cracker. p. 4.
8). "To the Voters of Gainesville." December 9, 1899. The Georgia Cracker. p. 8.
9). "Mitchell Elected." December 16, 1899. The Georgia Cracker. p. 1.
10). "Mayor Mitchell takes Oath of Office." January 6, 1900. The Georgia Cracker. p. 1.
11). "Referees Re-Appointed." November 22, 1900. The Jackson Economist. p. 2.
12). March 16, 1901. The Georgia Cracker. p. 7.
13). "Referee Puckett has Resigned." April 20, 1901. The Georgia Cracker. p. 3.
14). "Col. Puckett Announces." October 28, 1903. The Georgia Cracker. p. 2.
15). "For Mayor." November 4, 1903. The Georgia Cracker. p. 2.
16). 1870; Census Place: Centerville, Anderson, South Carolina; Roll: M593_1482; Page: 469B
17). "Shoemake Bound Over." November 26, 1898. The Georgia Cracker. p. 1.
18). "Dave Shoemake Escaped." June 3, 1899. The Georgia Cracker. p. 9.
19). "Thompson Nominated." December 9, 1903. The Georgia Cracker. p. 1.
20). "Primary August 7th." April 19, 1902. The Georgia Cracker. p. 1.
Posted 7/8/20