Jesse Monroe Knowles

Jesse Monroe Knowles
Louisiana State Senator for Calcasieu and surrounding parishes)
In office 1964–1980
Preceded by	Guy Sockrider
Succeeded by	Clifford L. Newman
Louisiana State Representative for Calcasieu Parish
Preceded by	Horace Lynn Jones Lon Tyndall
Succeeded by	Mike L. Hogan Harry Hollins A. J. "Tubby" Lyons
Personal details
Born	(1919-07-23)July 23, 1919 Merryville, Louisiana, United States
Died	April 23, 2006(2006-04-23) (aged 86)
Political party	Democrat-turned-Republican (1980)
Spouse	Helen Noel Knowles
Occupation	Business, supervisor for Amoco

Jesse Monroe Knowles (July 23, 1919 – April 23, 2006) was a

. He served a total of twenty years in both chambers.

From the late 1960s, the

and was appointed to state posts.

From Lake Charles, Knowles was a United States Army Air Forces veteran and a survivor of the Bataan Death March in World War II. He was active in veterans' affairs and groups following his service during the war and served as national president of the 27th Bombardment Group Association.

Early life and education

Knowles was born in

, but his family moved to Lake Charles in 1935. Knowles graduated from Lake Charles High School (renamed Lake Charles Boston High School after consolidation).

Military service

In 1939, Knowles enlisted in the Army Air Corps and served in the

in 1982 entitled The Forgotten Hell.

After Knowles was discharged from the military, he went to work as a draftsman for

Amoco Oil Company

. He became a fee land supervisor. Retiring in 1984 after thirty-eight years of service with Amoco, he later worked for the Lake Charles River Pilots.

Entering Louisiana politics

Knowles had joined the Democratic Party when it held nearly every public office in Louisiana. At the turn of the 20th century, Louisiana and other former Confederate states

disenfranchised most blacks

by raising barriers to voter registration. This move dramatically weakened the Republican Party in the South.

In 1969, Knowles emerged as a leading critic of

Early in 1980, Knowles, with just a few weeks remaining in his state senate term, Knowles switched his party affiliation to Republican, and Governor Treen appointed Knowles as the secretary of the Department of Wildlife and Fisheries. Knowles, however, had to retire from office after suffering a heart attack twelve days into his appointment. After he recovered, Governor Treen appointed him to the Louisiana Rice Promotion Board. Knowles was also elected to the board of directors of the Louisiana Rice Council, of which he was later the president.

See also

References

• https://archive.today/20071007190716/http://www.americanpress.com/index.php?option=com_content&task=view&id=1321&Itemid=53
• http://www.shreveporttimes.com/apps/pbcs.dll/dclassifieds?Dato=20060426&Kategori=OBITUARIES&Class=1&Type=CAT2000&Lopenr=604260407&Selected=4
• http://www.acadiananow.com/apps/pbcs.dll/dclassifieds?Dato=20060426&Kategori=OBITUARY&Class=30&Type=CAT30200&Lopenr=604000248&Selected=4^{[permanent dead link]}
• http://www.legacy.com/theadvocate/DeathNotices.asp?Page=Lifestory-
• http://ssdi.rootsweb.com/cgi-bin/ssdi.cgi

External links

• Proclamation of Senator Jesse Knowles Day by Calcasieu Parish
• Poem about the Bataan Death March (1/3 of the way down the page)

Political offices
Preceded by Two-member district: A. C. Clemons Guy Sockrider	Louisiana State Senator for Calcasieu and surrounding parishes Jesse Monroe Knowles (alongside A. C. Clemons in first two terms) 1964–1980	Succeeded by Clifford L. Newman
Preceded by Two-member district: Horace Lynn Jones Lon Tyndall	Louisiana State Representative for Calcasieu Parish Jesse Monroe Knowles 1960–1964	Succeeded by Mike L. Hogan Harry Hollins A. J. "Tubby" Lyons