Ernest Edward Wood (August 24, 1875 – January 10, 1952) was a

U.S. Representative The United States House of Representatives, often referred to as the House of Representatives, the U.S. House, or simply the House, is the lower chamber of the United States Congress, with the Senate being the upper chamber. Together they c ...

from

Missouri Missouri is a U.S. state, state in the Midwestern United States, Midwestern region of the United States. Ranking List of U.S. states and territories by area, 21st in land area, it is bordered by eight states (tied for the most with Tennessee ...

. Born in Chico, California, Wood attended the public schools and was graduated from the Stockton (California) High School in 1892. He was appointed as a cadet to the

United States Military Academy The United States Military Academy (USMA), also known metonymically as West Point or simply as Army, is a United States service academy in West Point, New York. It was originally established as a fort, since it sits on strategic high groun ...

at West Point in 1893 and remained two years. After studying law, Wood was admitted to the bar in 1898 and commenced practice in

St. Louis, Missouri St. Louis () is the second-largest city in Missouri, United States. It sits near the confluence of the Mississippi River, Mississippi and the Missouri Rivers. In 2020, the city proper had a population of 301,578, while the Greater St. Louis, ...

. Wood presented his credentials as a

Democrat Democrat, Democrats, or Democratic may refer to: Politics *A proponent of democracy, or democratic government; a form of government involving rule by the people. *A member of a Democratic Party: **Democratic Party (United States) (D) **Democratic ...

ic Member-elect to the Fifty-ninth Congress and served from March 4, 1905 to June 23, 1906, when he was succeeded by

Harry M. Coudrey Harry Marcy Coudrey (February 28, 1867 – July 5, 1930) was a United States House of Representatives, U.S. Representative from Missouri. Early life Born in Brunswick, Missouri, to J.N. and L.H. Coudrey, Harry moved with his parents to St. L ...

, who contested his election. The contest, in a district that at been involved in contests each of the four proceeding elections, swung on the claim of 2300 fraudulent votes in the notorious Fourth Ward - nicknamed the "Snake Kinney" ward - when the race was decided by only 950 votes. Coudrey submitted evidence that the voting rolls were filled with people who didn't exist and whose addresses were various saloons and boarding houses. There were numerous affidavits submitted accusing Wood of coercion and bribery and in the end the House unanimously voted to remove him and replace him with Coudrey. Wood moved to

Los Angeles, California Los Angeles ( ; es, Los Ángeles, link=no , ), often referred to by its initials L.A., is the largest city in the state of California and the second most populous city in the United States after New York City, as well as one of the world' ...

in 1907 and resumed the practice of law. He died in Los Angeles on January 10, 1952 and was interred in Hollywood Cemetery,

Hollywood, California Hollywood is a neighborhood in the central region of Los Angeles, California. Its name has come to be a shorthand reference for the U.S. film industry and the people associated with it. Many notable film studios, such as Columbia Pictures, ...

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Wood, Ernest Edward 1875 births 1952 deaths United States Military Academy alumni Lawyers from St. Louis Politicians from St. Louis Democratic Party members of the United States House of Representatives from Missouri Politicians from Stockton, California Members of the United States House of Representatives removed by contest Military personnel from California