Joseph L. Bristow

Joseph Little Bristow
United States Senator from Kansas
In office March 4, 1909 – March 3, 1915
Preceded by	Chester I. Long
Succeeded by	Charles Curtis
Fourth Assistant United States Postmaster General
In office March 22, 1897 – March 20, 1905
President	William McKinley Theodore Roosevelt
Preceded by	Robert A. Maxwell
Succeeded by	Peter Voorhees De Graw
Chairman of the Kansas Public Utilities Commission
In office April 1, 1915 – March 31, 1918
Preceded by	Charles F. Foley
Succeeded by	Charles H. Sessions
Member of the Kansas Public Utilities Commission
In office March 5, 1915 – March 31, 1918
Preceded by	James Cable
Succeeded by	Charles H. Sessions
Personal details
Born	(1861-07-22)July 22, 1861 Hazel Green, Kentucky, U.S.
Died	July 14, 1944(1944-07-14) (aged 82) Annandale, Virginia, U.S.
Resting place	Gypsum Hill Cemetery, Salina, Kansas, U.S.
Political party	Republican
Spouse	Margaret Hendrix (m. 1879)
Children	5
Education	Baker University
Occupation	Newspaper editor
Signature

Joseph Little Bristow (July 22, 1861 – July 14, 1944) was a Republican politician from the American state of Kansas. Elected in 1908, Bristow served a single term in the United States Senate where he gained recognition for his support of several political causes of the Progressive era. In retirement, Bristow was a farmer in Annandale, Virginia.

Bristow was a bit player in a legendary episode in American political folklore when his Senate speech on "what the country needs" moved a bored Vice President Thomas R. Marshall, the presiding officer, to stage whisper "What this country really needs is a good five-cent cigar."