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Colonel Luke Lea at Lebanon, Tennessee, just out of prison, 1936 April 03

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Colonel Luke Lea at Lebanon, Tennessee, just out of prison, 1936 April 03

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Title	Colonel Luke Lea at Lebanon, Tennessee, just out of prison, 1936 April 03
Personal name	Lea, Luke, 1879-1945
Topical entry	Politics & government
Geographic entry	Wilson County (Tenn.)--History--Sources Nashville (Tenn.)--History--Sources Nashville (Tenn.)--Social life and customs Nashville and Davidson County (Tenn.)--History--Sources
Description	Colonel Luke Lea, surrounded by a crowd and a brass band at the town square in Lebanon, Tennessee upon his release from prison in 1936. Luke Lea (1879-1945) was born at Lealand, the family’s 1,000-acre farm on the outskirts of Nashville. He was a descendant of the pioneer Overton and Cocke families, Lea was the son of Ella Cocke and Overton Lea. He was a Democratic United States Senator from Tennessee from 1911 to 1917. During World War I, he raised and commanded a volunteer regiment, later the 114th Field Artillery that received distinction for battles in France. In the 1920s, Lea was a major investor of the banking firm of Caldwell & Company that closed in 1930 during the depression. Lea was often in alliance with financier Rogers Caldwell and established a publishing empire. With the failure of the banking firm, creditors foreclosed on many of his large real estate holdings. He was on trial in North Carolina where he was convicted of banking law violations. Lea was paroled in 1936, after 23 months in prison, and received a full pardon the following year. The original land grant establishing Percy Warner Park was donated by Lea and his family to Nashville circa 1927, and the park is named for Lea's father-in-law. Forms part of Record Group 412, Photographs Collection. 1 photograph negative : b & w ; 4 x 5 in
Publisher	Metropolitan Nashville/Davidson County Archives, Nashville Public Library
Date	1936-04-03
Type	Still Image; Negatives
Format	image/jpeg
Identifier	RG 412 460 Col Luke Lea at Lebanon Tenn just out of prison 001
Relation	Record Group 412
Coverage	1930-1939
Rights	U.S. and international copyright laws protect this digital content, which is provided for educational purposes only and may not be downloaded, reproduced, or distributed for any other purpose without written permission. Please contact the Metro Archives, Nashville Public Library, 615 Church Street, Nashville, Tennessee, 37219. Telephone (615) 862-5880.
Location	Closed Stacks, Metro Archives RG 412