J. Frank Aldrich
American politician
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
James Franklin Aldrich (April 6, 1853 – March 8, 1933) was an American politician and civil engineer. From 1893-1897 he served as a United States representative from Illinois.
J. Frank Aldrich | |
|---|---|
| |
| Member of the U.S. House of Representatives from Illinois's 1st district | |
| In office March 4, 1893 – March 3, 1897 | |
| Preceded by | Abner Taylor |
| Succeeded by | James Robert Mann |
| President of the Cook County Board of Commissioners | |
| In office 1886–1887 | |
| Preceded by | George C. Klehm |
| Succeeded by | Henry C. Senne |
| Member of the Cook County Board of Commissioners | |
| In office 1886–1888 | |
| Personal details | |
| Born | James Franklin Aldrich April 6, 1853 |
| Died | March 8, 1933 (aged 79) |
| Party | Republican |
| Spouse(s) |
Lulu M. Sherman
(m. 1878; died 1897) |
Biography
The son of William Aldrich and Anna Mary Aldrich (née Howard),[1] James Franklin Aldrich was born on April 6, 1853, in Two Rivers, Wisconsin.[2] He moved with his parents to Chicago, Illinois, in April 1861 where he attended the public schools.[3] Later, he attended Chicago University and graduated from Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute, Troy, New York, in 1877 with a degree in civil engineering.[2] In 1878 he was elected a member of the Civil Engineers' Club of the Midwest.[4] He initially was engaged in the manufacturing of linseed oil, and later worked in the gas business.[3]
On November 13, 1878 Aldrich married his first wife, Lulu M. Sherman, in Chicago. Lulu was the daughter of American Civil War general Francis Trowbridge Sherman.[5] They remained married until Lulu's death in 1897. They had three children, Eleanor, Martha, and Sherman.[6]
Aldrich was a member of the Cook County Board of Commissioners from 1886 to 1888, serving as president in 1887.[2] He declined to seek re-election to the board in 1888.[7] Aldrich was also a member of the county board of education in 1887 and commissioner of public works of Chicago from May 1, 1891, to January 1, 1893.[2] Aldrich was elected as a Republican to the Fifty-third and Fifty-fourth Congresses (March 4, 1893 – March 3, 1897) and served as chairman, Committee on Accounts (Fifty-fourth Congress).[3] He was not a candidate for renomination in 1896; deciding to retire at the end of the 54th United States Congress.[2]
After leaving Congress, Aldrich was appointed Consul General at Havana, Cuba in 1897,[8] but did not reach his post to serve owing to the sinking of the battleship Maine and to the war with Spain which followed.[3] He was the receiver of national banks, and railroad appraiser, from 1898 until 1923.[3]
On April 18, 1901,[9] Aldrich married opera singer Mariska Agan (known on the stage under her married name as Mariska Aldrich).[10][11] They divorced on October 21, 1915.[12] They had two children, Meeka and Fred.[13] Meeka had a career as a stage and film actress.[14]
Aldrich died on March 8, 1933 at the King Home For Old Men in Chicago, Illinois, at age 79.[8] He was buried in Rosehill Cemetery in Chicago, Illinois.[3]
