Franklin Pierce Buyer (October 23, 1878 – March 1963) was a traveling salesman who was on the Los Angeles City Council between 1933 and 1939. He was a Democrat.

Biography

Buyer was born on October 23, 1878, in

Edgewood, Illinois Edgewood is a village in Effingham County, Illinois, United States. The population was 440 at the 2010 census, down from 527 at the 2000 census. Edgewood is part of the Effingham, IL Micropolitan Statistical Area. History Edgewood was founded ...

, the son of Mary Carter. He went to public schools in

Browns, Illinois Browns is a village in Edwards County, Illinois, United States. The population was 139 as of the 2020 census, slightly up from 134 as of the 2010 census. History Few records of the early history are available because the first books were des ...

. He and his wife, Dorothy, were married on November 35, 1907, and they adopted a daughter. He was a

salesman Sales are activities related to selling or the number of goods sold in a given targeted time period. The delivery of a service for a cost is also considered a sale. The seller, or the provider of the goods or services, completes a sale in r ...

who traveled about the country, but in 1920 he moved to Los Angeles.Los Angeles Public Library reference file
/ref> After he completed his City Council term in 1939, he became the manager of an American Express office at 10810 South Broadway, where he was held up at least twice: The first time, in January 1947, he rousted the bandits "with a well-placed right hook", and they escaped with no money; he was left with head

lacerations A wound is a rapid onset of injury that involves lacerated or punctured skin (an ''open'' wound), or a contusion (a ''closed'' wound) from blunt force trauma or compression. In pathology, a ''wound'' is an acute injury that damages the epider ...

. He was then living at 156 West 109th Place. The second holdup was in January 1959, when he was slugged and three gunmen escaped with $400 from a cash drawer. Buyer died in March 1963. leaving a wife, Viola.

Elections

Buyer was elected to

Los Angeles City Council District 15 Los Angeles's 15th City Council district is one of the fifteen districts in the Los Angeles City Council. It is currently represented by Democratic Party (United States), Democrat Tim McOsker since 2022, after previous member Joe Buscaino retired ...

in 1933, defeating incumbent Councilman

A.E. Henning August E. Henning (January 14, 1887 – 1970) was a civil engineer and businessman who was a member of the Los Angeles City Council between 1929 and 1933, disbursement officer for the California State Emergency Relief Administration from 1934 to ...

. Buyer was reelected in 1935 and 1937 but lost in 1939 to

Wilder W. Hartley Wilder W. Hartley (April 4, 1901 – August 17, 1970) was a member of the Los Angeles City Council from the Harbor and South Los Angeles districts from 1939 to 1943. Biography Hartley was born in Reno, Nevada, on April 4, 1901, and was brought ...

. In 1941, he was a candidate for election to the Los Angeles School Board.

City Council

In 1939, Buyer was said to be the leader among City Council members in winning the largest amount of city funding for improvements in any council district. During the preceding two years the city allocated $530,726 for his district. This sum did not include the construction and furnishing of a branch city hall in

Watts Watts is plural for ''watt'', the unit of power. Watts may also refer to: People *Watts (surname), list of people with the surname Watts Fictional characters *Watts, main character in the film '' Some Kind of Wonderful'' *Watts family, six chara ...

, which was achieved during his term."Records Show Buyer Lead in Achievements"
''Los Angeles Times'', March 25, 1939, page A-3

References

''Access to the ''Los Angeles Times'' links requires the use of a library card.'' {{DEFAULTSORT:Buyer, Franklin Pierce. Los Angeles City Council members California Democrats 1878 births 1963 deaths 20th-century American politicians