George Edwin Bailey Peddy was born on a farm near Tenaha, Texas, on August 22, 1892, the youngest of seven sons born to William Henry Peddy and Laura Gertrude (Chambers) Peddy.[1][2] His father died two months before Peddy's birth, and from a young age he helped support the family by working on the farm, which grew cotton, corn, sugarcane, and peanuts.[2] After attending the district schools near his home, Peddy performed labor for a resident of Tenaha in exchange for room and board, which enabled him to attend Tenaha Academy.[2] He subsequently attended Garrison High School in Garrison, Texas.[3]
Start of career
After graduating from high school and teaching school in Timpson to earn tuition, in 1913 Peddy began attendance at the University of Texas at Austin.[2][4] He remained for a year and afterwards resumed working on the family farm.[2] In 1916, Peddy was elected to the Texas House of Representatives, and he served from January to September 1917.[5]
In 1922, Earle Bradford Mayfield, a member of the Texas Railroad Commission defeated James E. Ferguson, a former governor of Texas for the Democratic U.S. Senate nomination, then tantamount to election in Texas as a legacy of the American Civil War.[1] Mayfield had the support of the resurgent Ku Klux Klan, and anti-Klan activists in the Democratic Party including Peddy were unable to have him stripped of the nomination.[1] Peddy agreed to run against him as the candidate of the "Independent Democrats", members of the party who opposed the Klan.[1] The Texas Republican Party also backed Peddy, but was unable to have him included on the general election ballot as their official nominee.[1] He then ran a write-in campaign as the candidate of the Independent Democrats and Republicans.[1] In the general election, Peddy ran a surprisingly strong race and held Mayfield to a smaller margin than was usual for Texas Democrats, but Mayfield defeated him 264,260 votes (66.9%) to 130,744 (33.1%).[1] Peddy challenged Mayfield's election, and the subsequent Senate investigation prevented Mayfield from taking his seat as scheduled on March 4, 1923.[1] Peddy's challenge was denied later that year, and Mayfield assumed his seat on December 3, 1923.[10][11]
Later career
In 1925, Peddy joined the Houston law firm of Vinson, Elkins, Weems, and Francis (now Vinson & Elkins).[1] He became a partner in 1929, and specialized in corporate law.[1] Peddy remained with the firm until leaving to join the military for World War II in 1942.[1] Commissioned as a major, he served in Dallas as a member of the Eighth Service Command, where he recruited individuals to join the Army so they could become qualified in the Civil Affairs field and take part in rebuilding activities in Europe after their training.[12]
After returning to the United States, Peddy was not invited to rejoin Vinson & Elkins as a partner.[14] He declined the firm's offer of a salaried position and established a solo practice in Houston.[14]
In 1948, Peddy entered the Democratic primary for U.S. Senator.[1] Running as an anti-Communist, pro-states' rights conservative, he drew nearly 20 percent of the vote and finished third.[1] Because neither of the top two candidates, Lyndon B. Johnson and Coke Stevenson, obtained a majority, they competed in a runoff.[1][15] Peddy endorsed Stevenson, who was also a conservative, and most observers assumed that adding Peddy's supporters to Stevenson's would enable Stevenson to defeat the more liberal Johnson.[16] In a runoff that was rife with allegations of fraud, Johnson obtained endorsements from two of Peddy's brothers and made enough gains among former Peddy voters to make the runoff closer than expected.[17] In a controversial result, Johnson was declared the winner by 87 votes.[18] He went on to win the general election, defeating Republican Homa J. Porter.[19]
Later life
After his second Senate campaign, Peddy resumed practicing law in Houston.[1] He died in Houston on June 13, 1951.[1] Peddy was buried at Ramah Cemetery in Tenaha.[1]
Family
In 1921, Peddy married Gertrude Irwin, who served as the private secretary for Vinson & Elkins partner James A. Elkins.[1][14] They remained married until Peddy's death, and had no children.[1] The Peddys raised two of Mrs. Peddy's nephews as their foster children.[1]
Texas Archival Resources Online (April 30, 1976). "A Guide to the George E. B. Peddy Papers, 1909-1972". Briscoe Center for American History. Austin, TX: The University of Texas at Austin. Retrieved January 10, 2021.
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