Years of service 1963–1970 Allegiance United States | Profession lawyer Role U.S. representative Name Webb Franklin | |
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Full Name William Webster Franklin Service/branch | ||
William Webster Franklin, known as Webb Franklin (born December 13, 1941), is a Republican former U.S. Representative for Mississippi's 2nd congressional district, a position that he filled for two terms from 1983 to 1987.
Biography
Born in Greenwood in Leflore County on the eastern edge of the Mississippi Delta, Franklin graduated from Greenwood High School. In 1963, he received a Bachelor of Arts degree from Mississippi State University at Starkville. In 1966, he received his LL.B. and Juris Doctorate from the University of Mississippi School of Law at Oxford and was admitted to the bar. From 1963 to 1970, he was a major in the United States Army. In 1966, he was a member of the Army's Judge Advocate General's Corps.
Franklin practiced law in Greenwood from 1970 to 1972, when he became as assistant district attorney for the state Fourth Circuit District Court. In 1978, he was elected circuit judge for the Fourth District and remained in that office until 1982, when he was elected to Congress. He was defeated in 1986 in his bid for a third term by the African-American Democrat Mike Espy. Upon leaving the U.S. House, Franklin returned to Greenwood to practice law.