Bryan Francis Mahan (May 1, 1856 – November 16, 1923) was an American legislator and Representative from

Connecticut Connecticut ( ) is a U.S. state, state in the New England region of the Northeastern United States. It borders Rhode Island to the east, Massachusetts to the north, New York (state), New York to the west, and Long Island Sound to the south. ...

Biography

Born in

New London, Connecticut New London is a seaport city and a port of entry on the northeast coast of the United States, located at the outlet of the Thames River (Connecticut), Thames River in New London County, Connecticut, which empties into Long Island Sound. The cit ...

, Mahan attended public schools and graduated from Robert Bartlett High School where he studied to become a

plumber A plumber is a tradesperson who specializes in installing and maintaining systems used for potable (drinking) water, hot-water production, sewage and drainage in plumbing systems.

. He later attended the

Albany Law School Albany Law School is a private law school in Albany, New York. It was founded in 1851 and is the oldest independent law school in the nation. It is accredited by the American Bar Association The American Bar Association (ABA) is a voluntary ...

, and graduated in 1880. He was subsequently

admitted to the bar An admission to practice law is acquired when a lawyer receives a license to practice law. In jurisdictions with two types of lawyer, as with barristers and solicitors, barristers must gain admission to the bar whereas for solicitors there are dist ...

in 1881 and commenced practice in New London. Mahan served as a member of the

Connecticut House of Representatives The Connecticut House of Representatives is the lower house in the Connecticut General Assembly, the state legislature of the U.S. state of Connecticut. The house is composed of 151 members representing an equal number of districts, with each ...

in 1882 and 1883, followed by membership on the Board of School Visitors (1885–1887) where he held the position of secretary. He was appointed as

prosecuting attorney A prosecutor is a legal representative of the prosecution in states with either the adversarial system, which is adopted in common law, or inquisitorial system, which is adopted in civil law. The prosecution is the legal party responsible ...

in 1891 but resigned in 1892. Mahan was one of the organizers of the City of Richmond Steamboat Co. (1893) and served as president. Mahan's work as a public servant continued as

Postmaster A postmaster is the head of an individual post office, responsible for all postal activities in a specific post office. When a postmaster is responsible for an entire mail distribution organization (usually sponsored by a national government), ...

of New London from October 30, 1894, to December 20, 1898,

mayor In many countries, a mayor is the highest-ranking official in a Municipal corporation, municipal government such as that of a city or a town. Worldwide, there is a wide variance in local laws and customs regarding the powers and responsibilitie ...

(1904–1906 and 1910–1913), and as a member of the

Connecticut Senate The Connecticut State Senate is the upper house of the Connecticut General Assembly, the state legislature of the U.S. state of Connecticut. The state senate comprises 36 members, each representing a district with around 99,280 inhabitants. Se ...

from 1910 and 1911. He also served as a delegate to the

Democratic National Convention The Democratic National Convention (DNC) is a series of presidential nominating conventions held every four years since 1832 by the United States Democratic Party. They have been administered by the Democratic National Committee since the 18 ...

s of 1904, 1908, 1912, and 1916. Mahan was elected as a Democrat to the Sixty-third Congress (March 4, 1913 to March 3, 1915) and made an unsuccessful bid for reelection in 1914. He was again appointed as Postmaster of New London on March 23, 1915, and served until his death on November 16, 1923. He is interred at St. Mary's Cemetery.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Mahan, Bryan Francis 1856 births 1923 deaths 20th-century mayors of places in Connecticut Albany Law School alumni American prosecutors Connecticut postmasters Democratic Party members of the Connecticut House of Representatives Democratic Party Connecticut state senators Mayors of New London, Connecticut Connecticut lawyers Democratic Party members of the United States House of Representatives from Connecticut 19th-century American lawyers 20th-century members of the United States House of Representatives