Thomas J. Latham

Judge Thomas Jefferson Latham (November 22, 1831 – July 24, 1911) was an American lawyer and businessman. Growing up in rural Weakley County, Tennessee, in the Antebellum South, he became a lawyer and remained neutral during the American Civil War. In the post-bellum era, he served as the debt receiver of the City of Memphis, Tennessee, and the president of the Memphis Water Company. He was an investor in land development in Tennessee and coal mining in Alabama. By the time of his death, he was a millionaire.

Early life Thomas Jefferson Latham was born on November 22, 1831, in Washington, North Carolina. He moved to Tennessee with his parents in 1833.

Latham acquired the bankrupt Memphis Water Company for US$155,000 in 1880. He served as its president until 1903.

Personal life The Judge T. J. Latham Residence in Memphis, Tennessee, circa 1910

Latham married Mary Helen Wooldridge in 1861. She was critical in the erection of the Nathan Bedford Forrest Monument in Memphis.

Death and legacy Latham died on July 24, 1911, in Memphis, Tennessee. He was buried at the Elmwood Cemetery. By the time of his death, he was worth an estimated US$1 million.