John Cessna

John Cessna

John Cessna (born June 29, 1821 in Bedford County , Pennsylvania , †  December 13, 1893 in Bedford , Pennsylvania) was an American politician . Between 1869 and 1871 and again from 1873 to 1875 he represented the state of Pennsylvania in the US House of Representatives .

Career

John Cessna attended public schools in his home country and then Hall's Military Academy in Bedford. In 1842 he graduated from Marshall College in Mercersburg . After that he worked as a teacher for some time. After studying law and being admitted to the bar in 1845, he began to work in this profession in Bedford. Politically, he was a member of the Democratic Party at the time . He was a member of the Pennsylvania House of Representatives in 1850, 1851, 1862, and 1863, and served as President in 1850 and 1863. In June 1856, Cessna took part as a delegate to the Democratic National Convention in Cincinnati , where James Buchanan was nominated as a presidential candidate. Four years later he was also a delegate to the two Democratic Party Conventions in Charleston and Baltimore, respectively . In 1863 he switched to the Republican Party ; two years later he was chairman of their regional convention in Pennsylvania. Also in 1865 he was elected head of state of his party. In the years 1868, 1876 and 1880 he was a delegate to the respective Republican National Conventions , at which Ulysses S. Grant or Rutherford B. Hayes and James A. Garfield were nominated as presidential candidates.

In the congressional elections of 1868 Cessna was elected as a Republican in the 16th  constituency of Pennsylvania to the US House of Representatives in Washington, DC , where he succeeded William Henry Koontz on March 4, 1869 . Since he was defeated by Benjamin Franklin Meyers in 1870 , he was initially only able to complete one legislative period in Congress until March 3, 1871 . In 1872 he managed his return to the Congress, where he replaced Meyers on March 4, 1873 and was able to spend another legislative period until March 3, 1875. In 1874 he renounced another candidacy.

After his time in the US House of Representatives, John Cessna practiced as a lawyer again. In 1892 he was again a member of the House of Representatives from Pennsylvania. He died on December 13, 1893 in Bedford, where he was also buried.

Web links

• John Cessna in the Biographical Directory of the United States Congress (English)

• John Cessna in the database of Find a Grave (English)

predecessor	Office	successor
William Henry Koontz	United States House Representative for Pennsylvania (16th constituency) March 4, 1869 - March 3, 1871	Benjamin Franklin Meyers
Benjamin Franklin Meyers	United States House Representative for Pennsylvania (16th constituency) March 4, 1873 - March 3, 1875	Sobieski Ross