The Tennessee Historical Society is pleased to announce the publication of Volume VII of the Biographical Directory of the Tennessee General Assembly, 1991-2016.
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Volume VII of the Biographical Directory of the Tennessee General Assembly begins with the ending year of Volume VI, which covered 1971-1991. The Biographical Directory series is based on the two-year legislative session; this volume covers the 97th General Assembly through the 109th General Assembly, covering 1991-2016.
Past volumes defined the terms of the General Assembly from January to January, the month for swearing-in ceremonies, thus using odd numbered years. However, amendments to the Tennessee Constitution’s Article II, Section 3 in 1966 clarified the legislative term of office, stating, “Representatives shall hold office for two years and senators for four years from the day of general election.” Therefore, Volume VII transitions to a use of even-numbered years correlated to the years of state elections.
The volumes of the Biographical Directory provide basic information on those who have served in the General Assembly, including birth and death dates (if deceased), education, marital status, place of residence at time of legislative office, occupation/profession, civil offices, political party affiliation, faith community, military records, and awards and honors. An estimated 6,000 representatives have appeared in the first six volumes of the series, from 1796 to 1971. Since the first volume appeared in 1975, the volumes have been used by many scholars and family historians as reference for their research.
The Biographical Directory of the Tennessee General Assembly is a series in progress, with more volumes likely to come – after all, the 111th General Assembly convened on January 8, 2019, with more to follow. Anyone with corrections or additions to this volume should contact the Tennessee Historical Society, so that they may be noted in a future Volume VIII.
