Joseph G. Cannon, Speaker of the House
Greensboro, Guilford County, North Carolina
Marker Inscription
Joseph G. Cannon. Member of Congress for 46 years from Illinois, Speaker of the House, 1903-11. His birthplace stood 1 1/2 miles southwest.
Erected by North Carolina Department of Cultural Resources
The Story
Born in Guilford County in 1836, Joseph Gurney Cannon moved west and built a political career in Illinois that spanned nearly half a century in Congress. As Speaker of the House from 1903 to 1911, 'Uncle Joe' ruled with such an iron grip that a bipartisan revolt finally stripped the office of much of its power. His birthplace once stood about a mile and a half southwest of here.
Why it matters
Cannon's domineering speakership—and the 1910 revolt against it—reshaped how power flows through the U.S. House of Representatives to this day.
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Related people
- · Joseph Gurney Cannon
Themes & tags
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