John A. McMahon (February 19, 1833 – March 8, 1923) was a three-term

United States Representative The United States House of Representatives is a chamber of the Bicameralism, 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 Artic ...

from

Ohio Ohio ( ) is a U.S. state, state in the Midwestern United States, Midwestern region of the United States. It borders Lake Erie to the north, Pennsylvania to the east, West Virginia to the southeast, Kentucky to the southwest, Indiana to the ...

from 1875 to 1881. He was the nephew of

Clement Vallandigham Clement Laird Vallandigham ( ; July 29, 1820 – June 17, 1871) was an American lawyer and politician who served as the leader of the Copperhead (politics), Copperhead faction of Opposition to the American Civil War, anti-war History of the Unit ...

, another Representative from Ohio.

Biography

McMahon was born in

Frederick County, Maryland Frederick County is located in Maryland, United States. As of the 2020 United States census, 2020 U.S. census, the population was 271,717. The county seat is Frederick, Maryland, Frederick. The county is part of the Washington metropolitan area, ...

, and graduated from St.

Xavier College Xavier College is a Roman Catholic, day and boarding school predominantly for boys, founded in 1872 by the Society of Jesus, with its main campus located in Kew, an eastern suburb of Melbourne, Victoria, Australia. Classes started in 1878. The ...

in 1849. He taught at Xavier for a year, and settled in

Dayton, Ohio Dayton () is a city in Montgomery County, Ohio, United States, and its county seat. It is the List of cities in Ohio, sixth-most populous city in Ohio, with a population of 137,644 at the 2020 United States census, 2020 census. The Dayton metro ...

, in 1852. He studied law with his uncle, Vallandigham, and was

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 1854, forming a partnership with his uncle. In 1861 he formed a partnership with George W. Houk, which lasted 19 years.

Congress

He was elected to the Forty-fourth, Forty-fifth, and

Forty-sixth United States Congress The 46th United States Congress was a meeting of the legislative branch of the United States federal government, consisting of the United States Senate and the United States House of Representatives. It met in Washington, D.C. from March 4, 1879, ...

es, from 1875 until 1881. McMahon was appointed by the House of Representatives as a manager to conduct impeachment proceedings against

Secretary of War The secretary of war was a member of the U.S. president's Cabinet, beginning with George Washington's administration. A similar position, called either "Secretary at War" or "Secretary of War", had been appointed to serve the Congress of the ...

William W. Belknap William Worth Belknap (September 22, 1829 – October 12, 1890) was a lawyer, Union Army officer, government administrator in Iowa, and the 30th United States secretary of war, serving under President Ulysses S. Grant. Belknap was impeached o ...

. He was unsuccessful for re-election in 1880.

Later career

He returned to private law practice in Dayton. He served as the president of the

Ohio State Bar Association The Ohio State Bar Association (OSBA) is a Bar_association#Voluntary_bar_associations, voluntary bar association for the state of Ohio. History OSBA was founded on March 6, 1880 when the Cleveland Bar Association issued a call other Ohio local ...

in 1886, and was a losing candidate for the

Senate A senate is a deliberative assembly, often the upper house or chamber of a bicameral legislature. The name comes from the ancient Roman Senate (Latin: ''Senatus''), so-called as an assembly of the senior (Latin: ''senex'' meaning "the el ...

in 1889.

Death and burial

He died in Dayton and was buried in

Woodland Cemetery A woodland cemetery is a cemetery where the original landscape, with existing trees, is given much influence on the landscape architecture of the cemetery. A woodland cemetery is designed so that the landscape is given a more prominent position, ...

Family

McMahon was married January 23, 1861, to Mollie R. Sprigg, of

Cumberland, Maryland Cumberland is a city in Allegany County, Maryland, United States, and its county seat. At the 2020 United States census, 2020 census, the city had a population of 19,075. Located on the Potomac River, Cumberland is a regional business and comm ...

. They had a son, J. Sprigg McMahon, and daughter, Louise McMahon.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:McMahon, John A. 1833 births 1923 deaths People from Frederick County, Maryland Politicians from Dayton, Ohio Burials at Woodland Cemetery and Arboretum Xavier University alumni Sprigg family Democratic Party members of the United States House of Representatives from Ohio 19th-century members of the United States House of Representatives