Gordon Ryerson Hahn (April 15, 1919 – March 29, 2001) was a member of the

Los Angeles City Council The Los Angeles City Council is the Legislature, lawmaking body for the Government of Los Angeles, city government of Los Angeles, California, the second largest city in the United States. It has 15 members who each represent the 15 city council ...

and California State Assembly in the mid-20th Century. While on the council, he cast the decisive vote that brought the

Brooklyn Dodgers The Brooklyn Dodgers were a Major League Baseball team founded in 1883 as the Brooklyn Grays. In 1884, it became a member of the American Association as the Brooklyn Atlantics before joining the National League in 1890. They remained in Brook ...

to Los Angeles and was instrumental in the appointment of Gilbert Lindsay, who became the first African American on the city council. His brother, Kenneth Hahn, was Los Angeles County supervisor for 40 years. After Kenneth suffered a stroke in 1987, Gordon was his field deputy until Kenneth retired in 1992.

Biography

Hahn was born in Kindersley, Saskatchewan, the sixth of the seven children of John and Hattie (Wiggins) Hahn. The family moved to a small house on Flower Street in Los Angeles when Gordon was an infant. His father died shortly afterward, leaving his mother to raise the large family on a $60-per-month pension. Gordon's younger brother,

Kenneth Kenneth is a given name of Gaelic origin. The name is an Anglicised form of two entirely different Gaelic personal names: ''Cainnech'' and '' Cináed''. The modern Gaelic form of ''Cainnech'' is ''Coinneach''; the name was derived from a byna ...

, was born soon after their father's death. Gordon Hahn worked his way through

Pepperdine University Pepperdine University () is a private university, private Christianity, Christian research university affiliated with the Churches of Christ, with its main campus in Los Angeles County, California, United States. Pepperdine's main campus consists ...

and graduated from the

United States Merchant Marine Academy The United States Merchant Marine Academy (USMMA or Kings Point) is a United States service academies, United States service academy in Kings Point, New York. It trains its midshipman, midshipmen (as students at the academy are called) to serv ...

, and was a Naval Reserve officer during World War II. After leaving office, he worked in the real estate business. He died of pneumonia caused by respiratory failure on March 29, 2001. Hahn was buried in Riverside National Cemetery in

Riverside, California Riverside is a city in and the county seat of Riverside County, California, United States. It is named for its location beside the Santa Ana River. As of the 2020 census, the city has a population of 314,998. It is the most populous city in th ...

Political career

Assembly

In 1946, at the age of 27, he was elected as a Republican in the 66th District of the

California State Assembly The California State Assembly is the lower house of the California State Legislature (the upper house being the California State Senate). The Assembly convenes, along with the State Senate, at the California State Capitol in Sacramento, Califor ...

, becoming the youngest legislator in a decade. He served three and a half terms in the Assembly, from 1947 until his resignation in 1953.

City Council

Hahn was appointed to fill the Los Angeles City Council District 8 seat vacated by his brother, Kenneth, who had been elected to the

Los Angeles County Board of Supervisors The Los Angeles County Board of Supervisors (LACBOS) is the five-member Board of Supervisors, governing body of Los Angeles County, California, United States. History On April 1, 1850 the citizens of Los Angeles elected a three-man Court of Se ...

. Gordon was elected to the council in his own right after the expiration of his brother's term and served on the council until 1963. In 1955 District 8 included an area ". . . bordering on

Huntington Park Huntington Park is a city located in the South Central region of Los Angeles County, California, United States. The area includes the separate communities of Florence, California, Florence, Firestone Park, California, Firestone Park, Graham, ...

and Vernon, from Vernon Avenue to 94th Street. . . . A considerable percentage of the population is Negro; they hold that their race should have some representation in the City Council. On the other hand, left-wing Democrats, following the banner of Rep. Jimmy Roosevelt, also have a candidate in the race, which may split the Negro vote.""Unusual Setup for Council's Contests," ''Los Angeles Times,'' April 3, 1955, page B-2
/ref> While he was on the council he chaired the Revenue and Taxation Committee. During an eight-day smog blanket over Los Angeles in 1954, Hahn told the Associated Press, "this thing has gone far enough, health should come before industry."

Other contests

He ran to represent California's 31st District in the

U.S. House of Representatives The United States House of Representatives is a chamber of the bicameral United States Congress; it is the lower house, with the U.S. Senate being the upper house. Together, the House and Senate have the authority under Article One of th ...

in 1962, losing to Democrat Charles H. Wilson, 48 percent to 52 percent. In 1986, he made an unsuccessful bid for Los Angeles County Assessor.

References

External links

*
Join California Gordon Hahn
{{DEFAULTSORT:Hahn, Gordon 1919 births 2001 deaths American members of the Churches of Christ Burials at Riverside National Cemetery Canadian emigrants to the United States Los Angeles City Council members Republican Party members of the California State Assembly People from Kindersley Pepperdine University alumni Hahn family United States Navy personnel of World War II 20th-century members of the California State Legislature