Julius Kahn (congressman)

Julius Kahn
Portrait by Harris & Ewing c. 1920s
Member of the U.S. House of Representatives from California's 4th district
In office March 4, 1905 – December 18, 1924
Preceded by	Edward J. Livernash
Succeeded by	Florence Prag Kahn
In office March 4, 1899 – March 3, 1903
Preceded by	James G. Maguire
Succeeded by	Edward J. Livernash
Member of the California State Assembly from the 39th district
In office January 2, 1893 – January 7, 1895
Preceded by	Charles S. Arms
Succeeded by	H. G. W. Dinkelspiel
Personal details
Born	(1861-02-28)February 28, 1861 Kuppenheim, German Confederation
Died	December 18, 1924(1924-12-18) (aged 63) San Francisco, California, U.S.
Party	Republican
Spouse	Florence Prag Kahn ​ (m. 1899)​

Julius Kahn (February 28, 1861 – December 18, 1924) was a United States Congressman who was succeeded by his wife Florence Prag Kahn after his death. He has been described by the American Jerusalem as "among the most influential Jews in San Francisco—as well as national–civic life, from the middle of the 19th century into the 1930s".

Biography

Portrait by C. M. Bell c. 1899–1901

Kahn was born in Kuppenheim, in the Grand Duchy of Baden, in what would become Germany. He immigrated to the United States with his parents, who settled in California in 1866. After studying law in San Francisco, he was elected a member of the State Assembly in 1892 and admitted to the bar in January 1894. He was elected as a Republican to the 56th and 57th Congresses (March 4, 1899 – March 3, 1903). Although he unsuccessfully contested the election of Edward J. Livernash to the 58th Congress, he was elected to the 59th and to the nine succeeding Congresses and served from March 4, 1905, until his death in 1924.

During his time in the House of Representatives he was noted as an advocate of military preparedness. He helped draft and secure the passage of the National Defense Act of 1916, the Selective Service Act of 1917, and the National Defense Act of 1920. He served as chairman of Committee on Military Affairs (66th–68th Congresses). Representative Kahn also authored the Kahn Exclusion Act, ultimately enacted as the Alien Exclusion Act, telling Congress that "I submit if the Chinese people themselves would deal honestly with us, and if they resorted less to trickery and duplicity to circumvent our laws, then there would be no need of closing up all possible loopholes in the law with the seemingly severely restrictive measures that the Chinese themselves make necessary."

At the time of his death, he had been re-elected to the 69th Congress. His wife, Florence Prag Kahn, succeeded him in Congress and served until 1937. He was buried in the Home of Peace Cemetery in Colma, California. A well-known playground and adjacent ballpark in San Francisco was named in his honor; in 2018, it was proposed to strip his name from the playground due to the fact that he championed the extension of the Chinese Exclusion Act in 1902 which he justified by stating that the Chinese people were "morally, the most debased people on the face of the earth."

Electoral history

Julius Kahn electoral history

1898 United States House of Representatives elections

Party	Candidate	Votes	%
	Republican	Julius Kahn	13,695	50.0
	Democratic	James H. Barry	12,084	44.1
	Socialist Labor	W. J. Martin	1,006	3.7
	Independent	Joseph P. Kelly	594	2.2
Total votes	27,379	100.0
Turnout
	Republican gain from Democratic

1900 United States House of Representatives elections

Party	Candidate	Votes	%
	Republican	Julius Kahn (Incumbent)	17,111	55.2
	Democratic	R. Porter Ashe	11,742	37.8
	Independent	C. C. O'Donnell	1,116	3.6
	Socialist	G. B. Benham	969	3.1
	Prohibition	Joseph Rowell	84	0.3
Total votes	31,022	100.0
Turnout
	Republican hold

1902 United States House of Representatives elections

Party	Candidate	Votes	%
	Democratic	Edward J. Livernash	16,146	49.2
	Republican	Julius Kahn (Incumbent)	16,005	48.7
	Socialist	William Costley	616	1.9
	Prohibition	Joseph Rowell	69	0.2
Total votes	16,836	100.0
Turnout
	Democratic gain from Republican

1904 United States House of Representatives elections

Party	Candidate	Votes	%
	Republican	Julius Kahn	20,012	57.0
	Democratic	Edward J. Livernash (Incumbent)	12,812	36.4
	Socialist	William Costley	2,267	6.4
Total votes	35,091	100.0
Turnout
	Republican gain from Democratic

1906 United States House of Representatives elections

Party	Candidate	Votes	%
	Republican	Julius Kahn (Incumbent)	5,678	62.4
	Democratic	David S. Hirshberg	3,016	33.2
	Socialist	Oliver Everett	399	4.4
Total votes	9,093	100.0
Turnout
	Republican hold

1908 United States House of Representatives elections

Party	Candidate	Votes	%
	Republican	Julius Kahn (Incumbent)	9,202	52.7
	Democratic	James G. Maguire	7,497	42.9
	Socialist	K. J. Doyle	699	4.0
	Prohibition	William N. Meserve	60	0.3
Total votes	17,458	100.0
Turnout
	Republican hold

1910 United States House of Representatives elections

Party	Candidate	Votes	%
	Republican	Julius Kahn (Incumbent)	10,188	56.5
	Democratic	Walter MacArthur	6,636	36.8
	Socialist	Austin Lewis	1,178	6.5
	Prohibition	E. F. Dinsmore	35	0.2
Total votes	18,037	100.0
Turnout
	Republican hold

1912 United States House of Representatives elections

Party	Candidate	Votes	%
	Republican	Julius Kahn (Incumbent)	25,515	56.1
	Democratic	Bert Schlesinger	14,884	32.7
	Socialist	Norman W. Pendleton	5,090	11.2
Total votes	45,489	100.0
Turnout
	Republican hold

1914 United States House of Representatives elections

Party	Candidate	Votes	%
	Republican	Julius Kahn (Incumbent)	41,044	69.1
	Democratic	Henry Colombat	13,550	22.8
	Socialist	Allen K. Gifford	3,928	6.6
	Prohibition	J. C. Westenberg	895	1.5
Total votes	59,417	100.0
Turnout
	Republican hold

1916 United States House of Representatives elections

Party	Candidate	Votes	%
	Republican	Julius Kahn (Incumbent)	51,968	77.2
	Democratic	J. M. Fernald	10,579	15.7
	Socialist	Allen K. Gifford	3,775	5.6
	Prohibition	Henry W. Hutchinson	981	1.5
Total votes	67,303	100.0
Turnout
	Republican hold

1918 United States House of Representatives elections

Party	Candidate	Votes	%
	Republican	Julius Kahn (Incumbent)	38,278	86.6
	Socialist	Hugo Ernst	5,913	13.4
Total votes	43,191	100.0
Turnout
	Republican hold

1920 United States House of Representatives elections

Party	Candidate	Votes	%
	Republican	Julius Kahn (Incumbent)	50,841	84.6
	Socialist	Hugo Ernst	9,289	15.4
Total votes	60,130	100.0
Turnout
	Republican hold

1922 United States House of Representatives elections

Party	Candidate	Votes	%
	Republican	Julius Kahn (Incumbent)	46,527	83
	Socialist	Hugo Ernst	9,547	17
Total votes	56,074	100
Turnout
	Republican hold

1924 United States House of Representatives elections

Party	Candidate	Votes	%
	Republican	Julius Kahn (Incumbent)	44,048	81
	Socialist	William McDevitt	10,360	19
Total votes	54,408	100
Turnout
	Republican hold

Source materials

The Western Jewish History Center, of the Magnes Collection of Jewish Art and Life, in Berkeley, California has a large collection of family papers, documents, correspondence, and photographs relating to Julius Kahn and to his wife, Florence Prag Kahn.

See also

• List of Jewish members of the United States Congress
• List of members of the United States Congress who died in office (1900–1949)

References

• United States Congress. "Julius Kahn (id: K000003)". Biographical Directory of the United States Congress.
• Florence Kahn: Congressional Widow to Trailblazing Lawmaker Archived 2009-05-02 at the Wayback Machine Multimedia presentation created by the Office of History and Preservation, Office of the Clerk of the U.S. House of Representatives.

External links

• Media related to Julius Kahn at Wikimedia Commons