He served as the Speaker of the Oklahoma House of Representatives for six hours on January 8, 1929.
He attended Vanderbilt University for two years before returning to Oklahoma and opening a funeral home business.
In 1910, he donated a building to the Boy Scouts of America and helped organize Oklahoma City's first troop.
During his tenure the city developed a new fairground, funded construction of Lake Atoka Reservoir, and was selected for the National Cowboy Hall of Fame.
He was the first mayor of Oklahoma City to served three consecutive terms and left office on April 7, 1959.