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J. S. Sherrill (1853-1931), as speaker during the 26th Legislature, closed the 1800s with his gavel at the end of the regular session and then ushered in the 1900s with it when the legislature reconvened for a special session the following year. Like L. Travis Dashiell who preceded him, Sherrill was a native Texan; Sherrill's roots were in the North Texas area above Dallas. Significantly, while Sherrill presided as speaker, the legislature added to its system of state colleges an institution of higher education in Denton that eventually became the University of North Texas. Sherrill was born in Fannin County on September 15,1853. His mother had come there from Alabama as a child in the 1830s; his father arrived from Tennessee in 1847 and built the first business establishment in the town of Honey Grove. The family settled on a farm in the county, and in this rural setting Sherrill was reared. Although he did not attend formal classes, Sherrill nevertheless obtained an education by means of private studies. While still young, he even taught school, attending college intermittently on the side. Eventually he graduated from Carlton College in Bonham. Sherrill read law under a local judge, and in 1878 he was admitted to the bar. He practiced in Fannin County for two years, and then, at age 27, he moved to Greenville in adjacent Hunt County. In 1882, he was elected county judge, an office that he held for six years before returning to private practice. In 1892, Sherrill was elected to the 23rd Legislature as a member of the House of Representatives. When the local state senator advanced to a seat in the United States Congress, however, Sherrill ran to fill the vacancy, and thus in the 24th Legislature found himself on the opposite side of the Capitol. After a subsequent two-year period out of office, he switched chambers once again and in 1899 returned to the house for a second time. It was during this term, his last in the legislature, that Sherrill served as speaker. After leaving legislative office, Sherrill resumed his practice as an attorney. Creation of the federal land bank system in 1916, which established a cooperative association for provision of low-interest credit to farmers, led Sherrill in later life to move from Greenville to Houston. In that city, Sherrill worked for several years in the legal division of the Houston Land Bank. He died in Houston on February 16, 1931. BIBLIOGRAPHY: Presiding Officers of the Texas Legislature, 1846-2002. [Austin, Tex.]: Texas Legislative Council, 2002. link: J.S. Sherrill.
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