# David G. Colson

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{{Short description|American politician (1861–1904)}}
{{Infobox officeholder
| honorific_prefix          =
| name                      = David Grant Colson
| honorific_suffix          = 
| image                     = David-G.-Colson.jpg
| alt                       = A man with black hair wearing a black jacket and vest, patterned bowtie and white shirt and pocket square
| state1                    = [Kentucky](/source/Kentucky)
| district1                 = [11th](/source/Kentucky's_11th_congressional_district)
| term_start1               = March 4, 1895
| term_end1                 = March 3, 1899
| predecessor1              = [Silas Adams](/source/Silas_Adams)
| successor1                = [Vincent Boreing](/source/Vincent_Boreing)
| office2                   = Member of the<br />[Kentucky House of Representatives](/source/Kentucky_House_of_Representatives)
| constituency2             = [Bell](/source/Bell_County%2C_Kentucky), [Harlan](/source/Harlan_County%2C_Kentucky), [Leslie](/source/Leslie_County%2C_Kentucky) and [Perry](/source/Perry_County%2C_Kentucky) Counties
| term_start2               = August 1, 1887
| term_end2                 = August 5, 1889
| predecessor2              = Wright Kelly
| successor2                = W. P. Bentley
| birth_date                = {{birth date|1861|04|01}}
| birth_place               = [Middlesboro, Kentucky](/source/Middlesboro%2C_Kentucky)
| death_date                = {{death date and age|1904|09|27|1861|04|01}}
| death_place               = [Middlesboro, Kentucky](/source/Middlesboro%2C_Kentucky)
| resting_place             = Colson Cemetery
| resting_place_coordinates = 
| birth_name                = 
| party                     = [Republican](/source/Republican_Party_(United_States))
| other_party               = <!--For additional political affiliations-->
| spouse                    = 
| relations                 = 
| children                  = 
| alma_mater                = [University of Kentucky](/source/University_of_Kentucky)
| profession                = [Lawyer](/source/Lawyer)
| signature                 = 
| signature_alt             = 
| footnotes                 = 
| nickname                  = 
| allegiance                = [United States of America](/source/United_States_of_America)
| branch                    = Kentucky volunteers
| service_years             = 
| rank                      = [Colonel](/source/Colonel_(United_States))
| unit                      = 
| commands                  = 
| battles                   = [Spanish–American War](/source/Spanish%E2%80%93American_War)
| awards                    =  
}}
{{commons category|David Colson}}
'''David Grant Colson''' (April 1, 1861 – September 27, 1904) was an American politician from the State of [Kentucky](/source/Kentucky) who served as a [U.S. Representative](/source/United_States_House_of_Representatives) from [Kentucky's 11th congressional district](/source/Kentucky's_11th_congressional_district).<ref name="Kentucky">{{cite news|title=Congressman David Grant Colson and the Tragedy of the Fourth Kentucky Volunteer Infantry|url=https://kynghistory.ky.gov/Our-History/History-of-the-Guard/Documents/Col_Colson_4th_KY_s.pdf|last=Stephens|first=Thomas E.|date=2000}}</ref> He previously served in the [Kentucky House of Representatives](/source/Kentucky_House_of_Representatives) and as the mayor of [Middlesboro](/source/Middlesboro%2C_Kentucky).<ref name="bioguide">{{cite web|title=COLSON, David Grant, (1861-1904)|url=http://bioguide.congress.gov/scripts/biodisplay.pl?index=c000649}}</ref>

==Biography==
Colson was born in Yellow Creek (now [Middlesboro, Kentucky](/source/Middlesboro%2C_Kentucky)), [Knox](/source/Knox_County%2C_Kentucky) (now [Bell](/source/Bell_County%2C_Kentucky)) County, Kentucky.<ref name="bioguide" /> He was the seventh of eleven children.<ref name="Kentucky" /> Colson attended the common schools and the academies at [Tazewell](/source/Tazewell%2C_Tennessee) and [Mossy Creek, Tennessee](/source/Jefferson_City%2C_Tennessee).

He studied law at the [University of Kentucky](/source/University_of_Kentucky) at [Lexington](/source/Lexington%2C_Kentucky) in 1879 and 1880. He was [admitted to the bar](/source/Admission_to_the_bar_in_the_United_States) and commenced practice in [Pineville](/source/Pineville%2C_Kentucky).<ref name="bioguide" />

==Political career==
Colson, a [Republican](/source/Republican_Party_(United_States)), served as a [state representative](/source/Kentucky_House_of_Representatives) in 1887 and 1888, representing Bell, Harlan, Perry, and Leslie Counties, and again in 1902. He was the Republican nominee for State Treasurer in 1889.<ref name="Kentucky" /> He served as mayor of Middlesboro in 1893–1895.<ref name="bioguide" />

Colson was elected a [US Representative](/source/United_States_House_of_Representatives) in 1894 and re-elected in 1896, serving in the [Fifty-fourth](/source/54th_United_States_Congress) and [Fifty-fifth](/source/55th_United_States_Congress) Congresses (March 4, 1895 – March 3, 1899). He served as chairman of the Committee on Expenditures on Public Buildings in the Fifty-fifth Congress.<ref name="bioguide" /> During his second term in Congress, Colson was known as a supporter of [President McKinley's administration](/source/William_McKinley), but often voted with Democrats on regional issues.<ref name="Kentucky" />

While a Representative, Colson was a member of the "Free [Cuba](/source/Cuba)" group. In 1898, during the [Spanish–American War](/source/Spanish%E2%80%93American_War), Colson left his position in Congress to become [colonel](/source/Colonel_(United_States)) of the Fourth Kentucky Volunteer Infantry. After his military service, he did not run for re-election.<ref name="Kentucky" />

In 1899, Colson was shot in the arm by a fellow officer, Lieutenant Ethelbert Dudley Scott. Colson had previously brought court-martial charges against Scott.<ref name="Kentucky" />  On January 16, 1900, Colson got in a pistol fight with Scott in a hotel lobby in [Frankfort, Kentucky](/source/Frankfort%2C_Kentucky). Three men were killed: Scott and two bystanders, Charles Julian and Luther Demaree. Colson was acquitted of the charges that April.<ref name="Kentucky" />

Colson died at his farm outside of [Middlesboro, Kentucky](/source/Middlesboro%2C_Kentucky) on September 27, 1904.<ref name="Kentucky" />
He was interred in Colson Cemetery.{{Portal|United States}}

==References==
{{reflist}}
{{CongBio|C000649}}

{{Bioguide}}

{{S-start}}
{{s-par|us-hs}}
{{US House succession box
| state = Kentucky| district = 11| before= [Silas Adams](/source/Silas_Adams)| after = [Vincent Boreing](/source/Vincent_Boreing)
| years= 1895{{spaced ndash}}1899 (obsolete district)
}}
{{s-end}}
{{USCongRep-start|congresses= 54th–55th [United States Congress](/source/United_States_Congress)es |state=[Kentucky](/source/Kentucky)}}
{{USCongRep/KY/54}}
{{USCongRep/KY/55}}
{{USCongRep-end}}

{{authority control}}

{{DEFAULTSORT:Colson, David Grant}}
Category:1861 births
Category:1904 deaths
Category:American military personnel of the Spanish–American War
Category:Kentucky lawyers
Category:Mayors of places in Kentucky
Category:Republican Party members of the Kentucky House of Representatives
Category:People from Bell County, Kentucky
Category:United States Department of the Interior officials
Category:University of Kentucky alumni
Category:Republican Party United States representatives from Kentucky
Category:19th-century members of the Kentucky General Assembly
Category:19th-century United States representatives

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Adapted from the Wikipedia article [David G. Colson](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/David_G._Colson) by Wikipedia contributors ([contributor history](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/David_G._Colson?action=history)). Available under [Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 International](https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0/). Changes may have been made.
