Jonas, Charles Andrew, 1876-1955

Charles Andrew Jonas of Lincoln County, N.C., attorney, state senator and representative, U.S. congressman, and Republican Party official.

From the description of Charles Andrew Jonas papers, 1900-1945. WorldCat record id: 31069797

Charles Andrew Jonas (1876-1955) was born in Lincoln County, N.C. He was graduated from the University of North Carolina in 1902, received a law degree from UNC in 1906, and returned to Lincolnton to practice law.

Jonas first won office in 1914 when he ran as Republican candidate for state senator from Lincoln and Catawba counties. In 1918, 1926, and 1934, he won terms in the North Carolina House of Representatives. From 1921 to 1925, he served as assistant district attorney in the Western District of North Carolina. From 1927 until 1947, he served as a Republican national committeeman, and was delegate to four Republican national conventions, 1916 and 1928-1936. In 1928, Jonas won a single term to Congress, but he lost congressional campaigns in 1930, 1932, and 1942. In 1930, he was named U.S. district attorney for Western North Carolina and held that position for one year under recess appointment. The Senate failed to confirm his nomination to the post.

After suffering with cerebral arteriosclerosis for several years, Jonas died in Charlotte in 1955. A son, Charles Raper Jonas, served in the U.S. House of Representatives from 1953 until 1973.

(For more information, see Mary A. Baker, Dictionary of North Carolina Biography, Volume 3, 1988, pp. 311-312.)

From the guide to the Charles Andrew Jonas Papers, 1900-1945, (University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill. Library. Southern Historical Collection.)