Charles J. Colden | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Member of theU.S. House of Representatives fromCalifornia's17th district | |
| In office March 4, 1933 – April 15, 1938 | |
| Preceded by | District created |
| Succeeded by | Lee E. Geyer |
| Member of theLos Angeles City Council from the15th district | |
| In office July 1, 1925 – June 30, 1929 | |
| Preceded by | District created |
| Succeeded by | A. E. Henning |
| Member of theMissouri House of Representatives from theNodaway County district | |
| In office January 2, 1901 – January 4, 1905 | |
| Personal details | |
| Born | (1870-08-24)August 24, 1870 Peoria County, Illinois, U.S. |
| Died | April 15, 1938(1938-04-15) (aged 67) Washington, D.C., U.S. |
| Resting place | Roosevelt Memorial Park Cemetery,Gardena, California |
| Spouse | |
| Children | Charles Jr. |
Charles J. Colden (August 24, 1870 – April 15, 1938) was a politician who served on theLos Angeles City Council and from 1933 to 1938 as a member of theU.S. Congress.
Colden was born on a farm inPeoria County, Illinois, and moved at age 10 with his parents toNodaway County, Missouri, in 1880. He attended grade school at the Ireland Schoolhouse near their farm, and later went toMaryville High School some ten miles distant inMaryville, Missouri. He attended Stanberry Normal School inStanberry, Missouri, andShenandoah College inShenandoah, Iowa.[1]
Colden taught school in Missouri and Iowa from 1889 to 1896. He was the editor and publisher of theParnell Sentinel from 1896 to 1900 and theNodaway Forum (which became theMaryville Daily Forum, inMaryville, Missouri, from 1900 to 1908.[1]
He was president of theboard of regents ofNorthwest Missouri Teachers College from 1905 to 1908. Colden Hall at the school is named for him. From 1908 to 1912 he was in the construction business in Kansas City, Missouri.[1]
Colden took a vacation tour of the West in 1912 and "was attracted to the possibilities" of theLos Angeles harbor inSan Pedro and soon settled there,[2] continuing in the real estate and building business. He was the president of the San PedroChamber of Commerce from 1922 to 1924.[3]
He died in Washington, D.C., and was buried in Roosevelt Memorial Park Cemetery inGardena, California,[1] but in 1965 his body was reinterred at Green Hills Memorial Park inRancho Palos Verdes, California.[4] He was survived by his wife, Clara N. Colden; a sister, Mrs. B.C. Hall, two daughters, Mrs. Lester Hawthorne and Abbe Colden; and two sons, John C. Colden and Charles J. Colden Jr.[3]
Colden was a member of theMissouri House of Representatives from 1901 to 1905.[1]
He was a member of the city's firstplanning commission in 1920, which at that time was composed of 51 people appointed by the City Council "to work out an organized, comprehensive plan of city development." Other notable members wereEugene Biscailuz,Charles A. Holland,Evan Lewis andW.H. Workman Jr.[5]
Colden was president of the Los Angeles Harbor commission from 1923 to 1925. While on the commission, he worked vigorously for the Harbor Belt Line that linked all the port facilities via rail. He also led a fight to give theSanta Fe Railroad access to the waterfront.[3]
In January 1925, Edgar McKee, former president of the harbor board, filed suit against Colden, charging him with "having conspired . . . to oust McKee as president of the Harbor Board and to have plotted to ruin him." McKee claimed that Colden and others attempted to involve McKee 'in various deals involving the purchase of lands for the Harbor Commission and through which they intended to make a private profit."[6] Colden denied the charge, and the matter was later settled out of court.[7]
Colden was the first resident of theHarbor Area to serve on theLos Angeles City Council sincethe area was annexed to the city in 1909 through ashoestring strip that attachedthe district to the main part of the city some 20 miles to the north. He ran for the council in anat-large election in 1923, but placed 10th in a field of eighteen and only the first nine were elected.
In 1925 a newcity charter gave the district and 14 others their own representatives on the council, creating the15th District. He ran for this new post and edged James H. Dodson Jr. in the general election, 4,750 votes to 4,599. He was reelected in the May 1927 primary. Colden did not run in the 1929 election, noting his disappointment that the city had chosen to purchase "an airport and the classification yards at the harbor" when "These projects might have been [better] promoted by the beneficiaries and by private enterprise."[8]
Colden was elected to Congress as aDemocrat from California's 17th district and served from March 4, 1933, until his death in 1938.
During the1934 California gubernatorial election, Colden supportedGeorge Creel in the Democratic primary. However, afterUpton Sinclair won, Colden announced his support for him as the Democratic nominee, and endorsed his "End Poverty in California" program.[9]
TheCharles J. Colden (hull number 2691) was one of the type EC2-S-C1Liberty ships built byPermanente Metals Yard No. 2 inRichmond, California, for theU.S. Maritime Commission from 1941 to 1945.[10]
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| Political offices | ||
|---|---|---|
| Preceded by — | Los Angeles City Council 15th District 1925–1929 | Succeeded by |
| U.S. House of Representatives | ||
| Preceded by — | Member of the U.S. House of Representatives fromCalifornia's 17th congressional district 1933-1938 | Succeeded by |
