Grant, John Gaston

1 Jan. 1858–21 June 1923

John Gaston Grant, farmer and congressman, was born in Edneyville Township, rural Henderson County, the son of William C. and Elizabeth Grant. He attended local schools for a few months and afterwards was self-educated. From his early years he was engaged in farming in Henderson County, where he also worked as a blacksmith. He was a successful Republican candidate for the North Carolina House of Representatives but served only one term (1889–91), declining renomination. One year later he was elected sheriff of Henderson County and served from 1892 until 1896. He would not accept nomination for another term. Upon the termination of his duties as sheriff he was a presidential elector on the Republican ticket that put William McKinley in the White House and elected Garret A. Hobart vice-president. Grant was elected in 1908 from the Tenth North Carolina District to the United States House of Representatives and served from 1909 to 1911; he was unsuccessful in his bid for reelection. Resuming his agricultural pursuits in his native county, he was not a candidate for public office again.

Grant and his wife, Zura Edney, whom he married on 30 Mar. 1876, were the parents of four children: sons V. Echols and L. Grant, and daughters Alda and Elizabeth. He was buried in Oakdale Cemetery, Hendersonville.