During the First World War, he served as an ensign in the aviation service of the United States Navy.
Returning to Norfolk, Lankford attempted to revitalize the Republican party in Tidewater Virginia.
However, the 1930 elections only gave the Republicans a slim majority in the House, so Lankford's vote became crucial.
[3] However, as the Great Depression deepened, Virginia (following the lead of the Byrd Organization) in 1932 held an at-large election for all Congressional districts, leading to a Democratic sweep, despite Lankford's having secured almost $2 million in construction contracts for federal buildings in Norfolk.
Following a very-well-attended funeral in his Baptist church,[2] he was interred in Norfolk's historic Forest Lawn Cemetery.