John Kean (New Jersey)

Infobox Congressman
name = John Kean


imagesize = 125px
state = New Jersey
district = 3rd
party = Republican
term = March 4, 1883 – March 3, 1885
preceded = Miles Ross
succeeded = Robert Stockton Green
term2 = March 4, 1887 – March 3, 1889
preceded2 = Robert Stockton Green
succeeded2 = Jacob Augustus Geissenhainer
office3 = United States Senator from New Jersey (Class 1)
term3 = March 4, 1899 – March 3, 1911
preceded3 = James Smith, Jr.
succeeded3 = James Edgar Martine
alongside3 = William J. Sewell
John F. Dryden
Frank O. Briggs
date of birth = December 4, 1852
place of birth = Elizabeth, New Jersey, USA
date of death = November 4, 1914
place of death = Elizabeth, New Jersey, USA
spouse =
profession = Politician
relations = Thomas Kean, grandnephew
John Kean, great-grandfather
Hamilton Fish Kean, brother
Robert Winthrop Kean, nephew
footnotes =

John Kean (December 4, 1852 – November 4, 1914) was an American lawyer, banker and Republican Party politician from Elizabeth, New Jersey. He represented New Jersey in the U.S. Senate from 1899 to 1911 and served two separate terms in the United States House of Representatives, from 1883 to 1885, and from 1887 to 1889. A member of the Kean family of politicians, his great-grandfather, John Kean, had been a delegate to the Continental Congress for South Carolina, his brother was US Senator Hamilton Fish Kean, his nephew was US Representative Robert Winthrop Kean and his grand-nephew was Governor Thomas Kean.

Biography

Born at "Ursino" near Elizabeth, New Jersey, he studied in private schools and attended Yale College. He graduated from the Columbia Law School, New York City, in 1875, and was admitted to the New Jersey bar in 1877, but did not engage in extensive practice.

He worked in banking and manufacturing before entering politics. He was elected as a Republican to the 48th United States Congress (March 4 1883 - March 3 1885) to represent New Jersey's 3rd congressional district, but was an unsuccessful candidate for reelection in 1884.

He was elected to the 50th United States Congress (March 4, 1887 - March 3, 1889), and again was an unsuccessful candidate for reelection in 1888. He was named Chairman of the New Jersey Republican State Committee in 1891, [ [http://query.nytimes.com/gst/abstract.html?res=9907E5DC1339E033A25751C1A96F9C94609ED7CF "John Kean Elected Chairman"] . "The New York Times", September 12, 1891. Accessed March 31, 2008] resigning the following year to run as the Republican candidate for Governor of New Jersey. He lost the 1892 gubernatorial race to Democrat George Theodore Werts. He was a member of the committee to revise the judiciary system of New Jersey.

He was elected to the United States Senate in 1899 and reelected in 1905, serving in the Senate from March 4 1899 to March 3 1911. He was chairman of the Committee on the Geological Survey (Fifty-seventh United States Congress) and Committee to Audit and Control the Contingent Expenses (Fifty-eighth United States Congress through Sixty-first United States Congress).

After politics, he re-engaged in banking in Elizabeth, New Jersey. He died at "Ursino" and was interred in Evergreen Cemetery, in Hillside, New Jersey.

Keansburg, New Jersey is named in honor of John Kean. In 1884, Kean played a key part in helping the town, at the time called Granville, to obtain its first post office. During that year, the name Keansburg was adopted. [ [http://www.keansburg-historical.org/history.html A History of Keansburg] , Keansburg Historical Society. Accessed August 29, 2007. "The Granville section of Middletown & Raritan had its name changed to Keansburg in 1884, with the creation of a post office, obtained through the efforts of Congressman John Kean."]

References

External links

*CongBio|K000028
*findagrave|12930|John Kean
* [http://politicalgraveyard.com/bio/kaufmann-keast.html#R9M0J2JCD Biography from John Kean] at the Political Graveyard

Persondata
NAME=Kean, John
ALTERNATIVE NAMES=
SHORT DESCRIPTION=New Jersey politician, United States Senator
DATE OF BIRTH=December 4, 1852
PLACE OF BIRTH=Elizabeth, New Jersey
DATE OF DEATH=November 4, 1914
PLACE OF DEATH=Elizabeth, New Jersey