Thomas A. Kercheval was a Republican

Republican Party (United States)

The Republican Party is one of the two major contemporary political parties in the United States, along with the Democratic Party. Founded by anti-slavery expansion activists in 1854, it is often called the GOP . The party's platform generally reflects American conservatism in the U.S...

 Tennessee Senator and the Mayor of Nashville for twelve years.

Biography

Kercheval was born in Maury County, Tennessee on January 16, 1837. He was educated at Jackson College in Maury County, and also attended Burritt College for two years. He studied law with his brother, William F. Kercheval, in Fayetteville, Tennessee

Fayetteville, Tennessee

Fayetteville is a city in Lincoln County, Tennessee, United States. The population was 6,994 at the 2000 census. It is the county seat of Lincoln County.-History:...

, and was admitted to the bar

Bar association

A bar association is a professional body of lawyers. Some bar associations are responsible for the regulation of the legal profession in their jurisdiction; others are professional organizations dedicated to serving their members; in many cases, they are both...

 in January, 1860. In December, 1862, he moved to Nashville

Nashville, Tennessee

Nashville is the capital of the U.S. state of Tennessee and the county seat of Davidson County. It is located on the Cumberland River in Davidson County, in the north-central part of the state. The city is a center for the health care, publishing, banking and transportation industries, and is home...

 and worked in the Provost Marshal

Provost Marshal

The Provost Marshal is the officer in the armed forces who is in charge of the military police .There may be a Provost Marshal serving at many levels of the hierarchy and he may also be the public safety officer of a military installation, responsible for the provision of fire, gate security, and...

's office from 1863 to 1864. Kercheval was first elected to the State Legislature

Tennessee General Assembly

The Tennessee General Assembly is the state legislature of the U.S. state of Tennessee.-Constitutional structure:According to the Tennessee State Constitution of 1870, the General Assembly is a bicameral legislature and consists of a Senate of thirty-three members and a House of Representatives of...

 in 1865, during the reorganization of the state government under William Brownlow

William Gannaway Brownlow

William Gannaway "Parson" Brownlow was an American newspaper editor, minister, and politician who served as Governor of the state of Tennessee from 1865 to 1869 and as a United States Senator from Tennessee from 1869 to 1875...

's administration. He served from 1865 to 1869. Afterward, he practiced law in Nashville until 1871, when he was elected Alderman of the Fourth Ward, and to the City Council of Nashville. He was elected Mayor of Nashville in 1872, and reelected in 1873. He ran for a third term, but was defeated by Morton B. Howell. On October 11 1874, Kercheval married Alice Gardner Brien of Nashville. After Howell's first term as mayor expired, Kercheval was reelected in 1875. He continued to serve successive terms up until his defeat by Claiborne Hooper Phillips in 1883. Kercheval was again reelected in 1886, but resigned as mayor in 1888 to join the Board of Public Works. The remainder of his term was filled by Charles P. McCarver.

Kercheval died in Nashville on March 22, 1915. He is interred at Mt. Olivet Cemetery.