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John A. Elston


Member of the U.S. House of Representatives from California's 6th district
In office March 4, 1915 – December 15, 1921
Preceded by	Joseph R. Knowland
Succeeded by	James H. MacLafferty

Personal details
Born	John Arthur Elston (1874-02-10)February 10, 1874 Woodland, California, US
Died	December 15, 1921(1921-12-15) (aged 47) Washington, D.C., US
Cause of death	suicide by drowning
Resting place	Chapel of the Chimes (Oakland, California)
Political party	Progressive Party Republican Party
Alma mater	University of California, Berkeley

John Arthur Elston (February 10, 1874 – December 15, 1921) was an American educator, lawyer and politician who served four terms as a U.S. Representative from California from 1915 to 1921.

Early life and career

Born in Woodland, California, Elston attended public schools. He graduated from Hesperian College, Woodland, 1892. He graduated from the University of California, Berkeley, California, 1897.

Early career

He was a teacher and was admitted to the California state bar, 1901. He worked as a lawyer in private practice. He served as executive secretary to the Governor of California (George C. Pardee) from 1903 to 1907.

He served as member of the board of trustees of the State Institution for the Deaf and Blind from 1911 to 1914.

Congress

Elston was elected as a Progressive to the Sixty-fourth Congress and reelected as a Republican to the three succeeding Congresses (March 4, 1915 – December 15, 1921). He served as chairman of the Committee on Mileage (Sixty-sixth Congress).

Death

After missing congressional proceedings the previous day and being treated by a physician for “nervousness,” Elston killed himself in Washington, D.C., on December 15, 1921, by drowning in the Potomac River. He was cremated and the ashes placed in the California Crematorium, now the Chapel of the Chimes, Oakland, California.

Electoral history

1914 United States House of Representatives elections
Party		Candidate	%
	Progressive	John A. Elston	44.4
	Republican	George H. Derrick	37.7
	Socialist	Howard H. Caldwell	13.9
	Prohibition	Harlow E. Wolcott	3.9
Total votes			100.0
	Progressive gain from Republican

1916 United States House of Representatives elections
Party		Candidate	Votes	%
	Republican	John A. Elston (Incumbent)	56,520	64.6
	Democratic	H. Avery Whitney	19,787	22.6
	Socialist	Luella Twining	7,588	8.7
	Prohibition	Harlow E. Wolcott	3,605	4.1
Total votes			87,500	100.0
	Republican hold

1918 United States House of Representatives elections
Party		Candidate	Votes	%
	Republican	John A. Elston (Incumbent)	59,082	88.4
	Socialist	Luella Twining	7,721	11.6
Total votes			66,803	100.0
	Republican hold

1920 United States House of Representatives elections
Party		Candidate	Votes	%
	Republican	John A. Elston (Incumbent)	75,610	83.3
	Democratic	Maynard Shipley	15,151	16.7
Total votes			90,761	100.0
	Republican hold

References

^
- United States Congress. "John A. Elston (id: E000161)". Biographical Directory of the United States Congress.
Stephen Finacom (December 14, 2021). "A look back at the apparent suicide in DC of Representative John Elston". East Bay Times.
"Congressman is Potomac Suicide". Daily Tribune. Chicago. 16 December 1921. Retrieved 16 December 2015.
Chapel of the Chimes
"1920 election results" (PDF). Retrieved June 30, 2023.

John A. Elston, late a representative from California, Memorial addresses delivered in the House of Representatives and Senate frontispiece 1924

U.S. House of Representatives
Preceded byJoseph R. Knowland	Member of the U.S. House of Representatives from California's 6th congressional district 1915–1921	Succeeded byJames H. MacLafferty

This article incorporates public domain material from the Biographical Directory of the United States Congress

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