Renaming of Memphis Federal Building Celebrated

July 28, 2022

The Memphis Federal Building was officially renamed the Odell Horton Federal Building, during a ceremony held on July 25. The new name recognizes the late Judge Odell Horton, the first Black federal judge in the Western District of Tennessee appointed since Reconstruction. 

In 2007, Rep. Steve Cohen (D-Tennessee) successfully lobbied for Horton's name to be added to the building’s name alongside the name of former Congressman Clifford Davis. 

But in 2021, Cohen proposed a bill to rename the building solely after Horton. “Davis had a history with the Ku Klux Klan and white supremacy, and that was not deserving of this building,” he said. President Joe Biden signed HR 390, a bipartisan bill authored by Cohen authorizing the name change. 

“With the history and legacy of Odell Horton and his family - the legacy of a man who knew only grace, honor and distinction - today we are here to name this building,” Cohen declared before the new courthouse sign was revealed.

Cohen hosted Monday’s celebration, which included remarks by Nina Albert, Commissioner for Public Buildings Service at GSA; Chief US District Judge Thomas Anderson; U.S. Court of Appeals Circuit Judge Bernice Donald; and Odell Horton Jr., the son of Judge Horton.

“Of the Federal buildings that are named after a person, only 12% are named after people of color and only 4% are named after women,” said Albert.  “We know that the contributions of people of color and women to our country are great, so today’s ceremony to rename this federal building in honor of Judge Odell Horton symbolizes our commitment to acknowledge great leaders from all backgrounds.”

Highlights of the event included the unveiling of the new sign by several members of the Horton Family and a musical performance by local students.

Horton held a number of positions throughout his life, but is remembered for his role as a federal prosecutor. He was the first Black assistant U.S. attorney in West Tennessee and served for five years before being appointed as a judge for the Shelby County Criminal Court. In 1980, then President Jimmy Carter appointed Horton to serve on a federal bench in West Tennessee. 

Judge Horton died in February 2006, at the age of 76.