Thomas Clarke Rye
An ardent supporter of prohibition of alcoholic beverages, he helped reunify the state's Democratic Party, which had been divided over the issue for nearly a decade.He was educated at local schools, and read law under his uncle, Colonel Tom Morris, in nearby Charlotte, Tennessee.During the 1890s, he served as circuit master of Camden's chancery court, and worked for several years as a pension agent in Washington, D. C.[1] In 1902, Rye moved to Paris, Tennessee, where he established a law partnership with W.W.[2] He quickly gained a reputation as the state's most "stringent" law enforcement agent, and was described as a "terror to the bootleggers and dispensers of whisky.[3] Rye, well known among supporters of prohibition, received the endorsements of Senator Luke Lea and former Governor Malcolm R. Patterson, and was nominated as the party's candidate.[2] Hooper accused Memphis political boss E.H. Crump of fixing the vote in Shelby County, but no investigation was launched.He signed legislation requiring automobile registration, and implemented a state highway tax to match federal funding.
Governor of TennesseeBen W. HooperAlbert H. RobertsBenton County, TennesseeParis, TennesseeDemocraticprohibitionDemocratic PartyE. H. CrumpCharlotte, TennesseeCamden, TennesseeWashington, D. C.bootleggersLuke LeaMalcolm R. PattersonShelby CountyTennessee Supreme CourtNashvilleKnoxvilleTennessee Department of TransportationDixie HighwayMidwestern statesFloridaTennessee Technological UniversityCookevilleU.S. marshalLiberty, TennesseeWorld War IConfederateCivil WarprimaryJohn K. Shields17th AmendmentWoodrow WilsonLeague of NationsKenneth McKellarJohn I. CoxWinfield DunnList of governors of TennesseeBenton McMillinSevierBlountMcMinnCarrollHoustonCannonA. BrownN. BrownTrousdaleCampbellJohnsonHarrisBrownlowSenterJ. BrownPorterHawkinsR. TaylorBuchananTurneyMcMillinFrazierPattersonHooperRobertsA. TaylorHortonMcAlisterBrowningCooperMcCordClementEllingtonBlantonAlexanderMcWherterSundquistBredesenHaslam