Jacob Haight Morrison

Jacob Haight Morrison IV (March 12, 1905 - December 4, 1974), was a 20th century New Orleans, Louisiana, attorney, preservationist, and author. He was the half-brother of former Mayor deLesseps Story "Chep" Morrison, Sr. (1912-1963), and the half-uncle of deLesseps Story "Toni" Morrison, Jr. (1944-1996), a former member of the Louisiana House of Representatives.

Morrison was born in New Roads, the seat of Pointe Coupee Parish (pronounced COO PEA), to the former Eloise Yancy (1876-1905) of Jonesville in Catahoula Parish and Jacob Haight Morrison, III (1875-1929). Morrison, III, was the Pointe Coupee Parish district attorney. Morrison, IV, was educated in public schools and received a bachelor of arts degree from Louisiana State University in Baton Rouge. He received his law degree from the Catholic-affiliated Tulane University in New Orleans. On July 4, 1938, Morrison married the former Mary Meek (February 2, 1911 - February 26, 1999) of McComb, Mississippi. There were no children.

Before he entered his law practice, Jacob Morrison was the LSU reporter for the "New Orleans Times-Picayune" and sports editor of the former "Baton Rogue State Times". His two law partners were half-brother deLesseps S. Morrison and future U.S. Representative Thomas Hale Boggs, Sr., of New Orleans. Morrison served on the Louisiana State Board of Education in the late 1930s, an elected position. Morrison served in the U.S. Army during World War II from 1943–1945. He resumed his law practice after the war for some two decades.

He led the Vieux Carre or French Quarter preservation project during the 1940s through his presidency of the Vieux Carre Property Owners and Association, Inc. He wrote the pioneer law textbook on preservation: "Historic Preservation Law" (1957). He was a member of the National Trust for Historic Preservation. Two months before his death, Morrison and his wife received the Louise DuPont Crownshield Award for outstanding work in preservation.

Morrison was a member of the local, state, and national bar associations, Phi Delta Phi national legal fraternity, Sigma Delta Chi society of journalists, and the Roman Catholic Church.

Jacob Morrison died in New Orleans. He and Mrs. Morrison are buried in Lafayette Cemetery No. 1 in New Orleans. The two deLesseps Morrisons are interred in Metairie Cemetery in New Orleans.

References

"Jacob Haight Morrison", "A Dictionary of Louisiana Biography" (1988), pp. 585-586

Morrison obituary, "New Orleans Times-Picayune", December 5, 1974

Judy Riffel, ed., "A History of Pointe Coupee Parish and Its Families" (1983)

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