James William Good was an American politician from the state of Iowa

Iowa

Iowa is a state located in the Midwestern United States, an area often referred to as the "American Heartland". It derives its name from the Ioway people, one of the many American Indian tribes that occupied the state at the time of European exploration. Iowa was a part of the French colony of New...

, serving in the U.S. House of Representatives and the Cabinet. He was a member of the United States Republican Party.

Background

Good was born near Cedar Rapids, Iowa

Cedar Rapids, Iowa

Cedar Rapids is the second largest city in Iowa and is the county seat of Linn County. The city lies on both banks of the Cedar River, north of Iowa City and east of Des Moines, the state's capital and largest city...

 and studied at Coe College

Coe College

Coe College is a private, four-year, liberal arts college in Cedar Rapids, Iowa. Founded in 1851, the institution is historically affiliated with the Presbyterian Church . Its current president is James R. Phifer. It is one of the smaller universities to have a chapter of Phi Beta Kappa...

, graduating in 1892. He later studied at the University of Michigan Law School

University of Michigan Law School

The University of Michigan Law School is the law school of the University of Michigan, in Ann Arbor. Founded in 1859, the school has an enrollment of about 1,200 students, most of whom are seeking Juris Doctor or Master of Laws degrees, although the school also offers a Doctor of Juridical...

, graduating in 1893. He was admitted to the bar

Admission to the bar in the United States

In the United States, admission to the bar is the granting of permission by a particular court system to a lawyer to practice law in that system. Each U.S. state and similar jurisdiction has its own court system and sets its own rules for bar admission , which can lead to different admission...

 in 1893 and commenced practice in Indianapolis, Indiana

Indianapolis, Indiana

Indianapolis is the capital of the U.S. state of Indiana, and the county seat of Marion County, Indiana. As of the 2010 United States Census, the city's population is 839,489. It is by far Indiana's largest city and, as of the 2010 U.S...

, the same year. In 1896 he returned to Cedar Rapids, where he continued to practice law. Good served as Cedar Rapids City Attorney from 1906 to 1908.

Congressional service

Good was a member of the United States House of Representatives

United States House of Representatives

The United States House of Representatives is one of the two Houses of the United States Congress, the bicameral legislature which also includes the Senate.The composition and powers of the House are established in Article One of the Constitution...

 from 1909 to 1921, where he represented Iowa's 5th congressional district

Iowa's 5th congressional district

Iowa's 5th congressional district is a congressional district in the U.S. state of Iowa that covers most of Western Iowa and includes the cities of Council Bluffs and Sioux City...

 (then made up of Linn, Grundy, Benton, Marshall, Tama, Jones, and Cedar counties). He became chairman of the House Appropriations Committee in 1917, and continued to serve in that position until the end of his service. He was re-elected seven times, and never defeated. But soon after his fellow Republican, Warren G. Harding

Warren G. Harding

Warren Gamaliel Harding was the 29th President of the United States . A Republican from Ohio, Harding was an influential self-made newspaper publisher. He served in the Ohio Senate , as the 28th Lieutenant Governor of Ohio and as a U.S. Senator...

, was elected president in November 1920, Good disclosed that he would likely resign his seat in Congress and join a Chicago, Illinois law firm, once Good's plan to reorganize the budgetary process was adopted. Good resigned on June 10, 1921. Republican Cyrenus Cole

Cyrenus Cole

Cyrenus Cole was a newspaper editor, columnist and historian, then a Republican U.S. Representative from Iowa's 5th congressional district for over eleven years....

 of Cedar Rapids won a special election to fill his vacancy, and was sworn in August 1, 1921.

Cabinet service

In 1928 Good worked to elect Herbert Hoover

Herbert Hoover

Herbert Clark Hoover was the 31st President of the United States . Hoover was originally a professional mining engineer and author. As the United States Secretary of Commerce in the 1920s under Presidents Warren Harding and Calvin Coolidge, he promoted partnerships between government and business...

, a fellow Iowa Republican, as President of the United States. When Hoover took office in March 1929, he appointed Good to be the United States Secretary of War

United States Secretary of War

The Secretary of War was a member of the United States President's Cabinet, beginning with George Washington's administration. A similar position, called either "Secretary at War" or "Secretary of War," was appointed to serve the Congress of the Confederation under the Articles of Confederation...

 and Good was soon confirmed by the United States Senate

United States Senate

The United States Senate is the upper house of the bicameral legislature of the United States, and together with the United States House of Representatives comprises the United States Congress. The composition and powers of the Senate are established in Article One of the U.S. Constitution. Each...

. He served in that position for eight months, until his sudden death from peritonitis

Peritonitis

Peritonitis is an inflammation of the peritoneum, the serous membrane that lines part of the abdominal cavity and viscera. Peritonitis may be localised or generalised, and may result from infection or from a non-infectious process.-Abdominal pain and tenderness:The main manifestations of...

 caused by a ruptured appendix

Vermiform appendix

The appendix is a blind-ended tube connected to the cecum , from which it develops embryologically. The cecum is a pouchlike structure of the colon...

. He died in Washington, D.C.

Washington, D.C.

Washington, D.C., formally the District of Columbia and commonly referred to as Washington, "the District", or simply D.C., is the capital of the United States. On July 16, 1790, the United States Congress approved the creation of a permanent national capital as permitted by the U.S. Constitution....

, shortly after the Wall Street Crash of 1929

Wall Street Crash of 1929

The Wall Street Crash of 1929 , also known as the Great Crash, and the Stock Market Crash of 1929, was the most devastating stock market crash in the history of the United States, taking into consideration the full extent and duration of its fallout...

 (October 24 - October 29, 1929) at the beginning of the Great Depression

Great Depression

The Great Depression was a severe worldwide economic depression in the decade preceding World War II. The timing of the Great Depression varied across nations, but in most countries it started in about 1929 and lasted until the late 1930s or early 1940s...

. He was succeeded by Undersecretary of War Patrick J. Hurley

Patrick J. Hurley

Patrick Jay Hurley was an American soldier, statesman, and diplomat....

.