Ernest Lundeen

Ernest Lundeen

Ernest Lundeen (born August 4, 1878 in Beresford , South Dakota , † August 31, 1940 in Lovettsville , Virginia ) was an American politician who represented the state of Minnesota in both chambers of Congress .

Life

Early life

Ernest Lundeen joined the United States Army shortly after graduating from high school and fought as a soldier in the Spanish-American War in the 12th Minnesota Volunteer Regiment. It was not until 1901 that he graduated from Carleton College in Northfield (Minnesota). After that, Lundeen studied law at the University of Minnesota and was inducted into the bar in 1906. He then worked as a lawyer in Minneapolis .

Political career

In 1910, Lundeen, who was still a Republican party member at the time, was elected to the Minnesota House of Representatives, where he held a seat until 1914. In 1916 he ran successfully for a seat in the US House of Representatives , to which he belonged from March 4, 1917 to March 3, 1919. Here Lundeen was one of only 50 MPs who spoke out against the United States participating in World War I. After a re-election in 1918 failed, Lundeen returned to his law office. During the 1920s, he ran several unsuccessful candidates for a seat in Congress or the post of governor of Minnesota.

Lundeen changed party membership and apparently had more success as a member of the Minnesota Farmer-Labor Party in 1932 when he was re-elected to the House of Representatives, where he held a seat from March 4, 1933 to January 3, 1937. In 1936 Lundeen ran for the post of US Senator and was again successful this time; he was inducted into office on January 3, 1937, the day he left Congress.

death

Ernest Lundeen only had a relatively short tenure as senator. Three years later, on the afternoon of August 31, 1940, Lundeen was a passenger on a Douglas DC-3 sailing from Washington to Detroit . The plane got caught in a storm 23 minutes after takeoff and crashed on the site of a farm 36 miles west of the federal capital. All 21 passengers and the four crew members were killed instantly - including Senator Lundeen. He died at the age of 62.

Web links

• Ernest Lundeen in the Biographical Directory of the United States Congress (English)

• Ernest Lundeen in the database of Find a Grave (English)