Public Office in Texas
A progressive Democrat, Neff was a strong supporter of Prohibition and was instrumental in the development of the Texas State Parks Board. Pat Neff and his mother, Isabella Neff, donated the land which would become the first state park in Texas, Mother Neff State Park. During the resurgence of the Ku Klux Klan during his administration, Neff was criticized for not taking a stronger stance. Neff is notable for his pardon of folk singer Lead Belly in his last days as Governor. Neff was succeeded as governor by Miriam Wallace "Ma" Ferguson, who defeated a stronger-than-usual Republican nominee, George C. Butte, an American jurist who had opposed James E. Ferguson's line item veto of the 1917 University of Texas appropriations bill. After leaving the governorship, Neff served on the Texas Railroad Commission. Governor Ross Sterling then appointed Ernest O. Thompson of Amarillo to succeed Neff when he left the position to become President of Baylor University. Thompson served on the panel for thirty-two years and developed a reputation as an expert on petroleum issues.
Read more about this topic: Pat Morris Neff
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