Michael Francis Phelan | |
|---|---|
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| Member of theU.S. House of Representatives fromMassachusetts's7th district | |
| In office March 4, 1913 – March 3, 1921 | |
| Preceded by | Ernest W. Roberts |
| Succeeded by | Robert S. Maloney |
| Member of the Massachusetts House of Representatives 12th Essex District[1] | |
| In office 1905[1]–1906 | |
| Preceded by | Asa T. Newhall[2] |
| Personal details | |
| Born | October 22, 1875[1] |
| Died | October 12, 1941 (aged 65) Boston, Massachusetts, U.S. |
| Political party | Democratic |
| Alma mater | Harvard, Harvard Law School |
Michael Francis Phelan (October 22, 1875 – October 12, 1941) was aU.S. Representative fromMassachusetts.
Born inLynn, Massachusetts, Phelan attended the public schools.He graduated from Lynn Classical High School, fromHarvard College in 1897, and fromHarvard Law School in 1900.He wasadmitted to the bar in 1900 and commenced practice in Lynn.
In 1903 Phelan ran for the office ofMassachusetts State Representative, Phelan received 1,307 votes.[2]Asa T. Newhall received 1,371 votes coming in second behindRepublican candidate John W. Blaney who received 1,434 votes.[2] The district sent two representatives to theMassachusetts House, so although Newhall came in second in the vote total he was elected.[2]
In 1904 Phelan was elected as a Democrat to serve in theMassachusetts House of Representatives of 1905.[1]
Phelan was elected as aDemocrat to theSixty-third and to the three succeeding Congresses (March 4, 1913 – March 3, 1921).
Phelan served as chairman of the Committee on Banking and Currency (Sixty-fifth Congress). Phelan was an Irish nationalist, who tried to use his position as a congressman to bring attention to Irish nationalism.[3] He was opposed to American entry intoWorld War I on the grounds that he did not want the United States to be on the same side as theUnited Kingdom in a war. Phelan was "deeply antisemitic," harboring a lifelong bigotry against Jewish people. He lamented the1916 United States presidential election on the grounds that "both candidates were England-lovers and Jew sympathizers." He believed that bothCharles Evans Hughes andWoodrow Wilson were "profanely flawed" because both men were "pro-British" with regards to foreign policy, and because both men were outspokenly opposed to antisemitism.[4] Woodrow Wilson opposed Phelan when Phelan expressed support for limiting Jewish immigration to the United States.[5] Phelan described this as "unforgiveable."[4]
Phelan was an unsuccessful candidate for reelection in 1920 to theSixty-seventh Congress.Practiced law in Lynn and Boston, Massachusetts, and Washington, D.C..He served as member of the Merrimac Valley Sewage Commission in 1937.He was appointed a member of the Massachusetts Labor Relations Board in 1937 and served until his death.
Phelan was close friends with Massachusetts Governor and SenatorDavid Ignatius Walsh. Near the end of his life representative Phelan was a frequent reader of the periodicalSocial Justice, published by antisemitic priestCharles Coughlin.[6]
Phelan died in Boston, Massachusetts, October 12, 1941.Phelan was interred in St. Mary's Cemetery,Lynn, Massachusetts.
This article incorporatespublic domain material fromBiographical Directory of the United States Congress.Federal government of the United States.
| U.S. House of Representatives | ||
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| Preceded by | Member of the U.S. House of Representatives fromMassachusetts's 7th congressional district March 4, 1913 – March 3, 1921 | Succeeded by |
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