Francis Bernard Condon (November 11, 1891 – November 23, 1965) 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

Rhode Island Rhode Island (, like ''road'') is a U.S. state, state in the New England region of the Northeastern United States. It is the List of U.S. states by area, smallest U.S. state by area and the List of states and territories of the United States ...

Early life and career

Condon was born in

Central Falls, Rhode Island Central Falls is a city in Providence County, Rhode Island, United States. The population was 22,583 at the 2020 census. With an area of only , it is the smallest and most densely populated city in the smallest state, and the 27th most densely ...

and attended the public schools. He graduated from

Georgetown University Law School The Georgetown University Law Center (Georgetown Law) is the law school of Georgetown University, a private research university in Washington, D.C. It was established in 1870 and is the largest law school in the United States by enrollment and ...

Washington, D.C. ) , image_skyline = , image_caption = Clockwise from top left: the Washington Monument and Lincoln Memorial on the National Mall, United States Capitol, Logan Circle, Jefferson Memorial, White House, Adams Morgan, ...

, in 1916. He was then

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 1916 and commenced practice in

Pawtucket, Rhode Island Pawtucket is a city in Providence County, Rhode Island, United States. The population was 75,604 at the 2020 census, making the city the fourth-largest in the state. Pawtucket borders Providence and East Providence to the south, Central Falls ...

. He served as a

sergeant Sergeant (abbreviated to Sgt. and capitalized when used as a named person's title) is a rank in many uniformed organizations, principally military and policing forces. The alternative spelling, ''serjeant'', is used in The Rifles and other uni ...

in the One Hundred and Fifty-second Regiment, Depot Brigade, Twenty-third Company, from May 1918 to June 1919. He was also the Rhode Island department commander of the

American Legion The American Legion, commonly known as the Legion, is a non-profit organization of U.S. war War is an intense armed conflict between states, governments, societies, or paramilitary groups such as mercenaries, insurgents, and militi ...

in 1927 and 1928.

Political career and death

Condon served as member of the

Rhode Island House of Representatives The Rhode Island House of Representatives is the lower house of the Rhode Island General Assembly, the state legislature of the U.S. state of Rhode Island, the upper house being the Rhode Island Senate. It is composed of 75 members, elected t ...

from 1921 to 1926, serving as Democratic floor leader from 1923 to 1926. He also served as member of the Democratic State committee from 1924 to 1926 and 1928–1930, serving as a member of the executive committee from 1928 to 1930. He was an unsuccessful candidate for

Lieutenant Governor of Rhode Island The current lieutenant governor of Rhode Island is Sabina Matos, who was sworn in on April 14, 2021, after Daniel McKee succeeded to the office of governor. The first lieutenant governor was George Brown. In Rhode Island, the lieutenant gover ...

in 1928. Condon was elected as a Democrat to the

Seventy-first Congress The 71st United States Congress was a meeting of the legislature 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, 1929, to Ma ...

to fill the vacancy caused by the resignation of Jeremiah E. O'Connell and, at the same time, was elected to the

Seventy-second Congress The 72nd 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, 1931 ...

. He was re-elected to the Seventy-third and Seventy-fourth Congresses and served from November 4, 1930, until his resignation on January 10, 1935, having been appointed an

Associate Justice Associate justice or associate judge (or simply associate) is a judicial panel member who is not the chief justice in some jurisdictions. The title "Associate Justice" is used for members of the Supreme Court of the United States and some state ...

of the

Rhode Island Supreme Court The Rhode Island Supreme Court is the court of last resort in the U.S. State of Rhode Island. The Court consists of a Chief Justice and four Associate Justices, all selected by the Governor of Rhode Island from candidates vetted by the Judicial No ...

, the newly Democratic state legislature having appointed an entirely new court."R. I. Republicans Left Groggy By Democratic Coup", ''St. Albans Daily Messenger'' (January 2, 1935), p. 7. He served in that capacity until January 7, 1958, when he was appointed Chief Justice. He remained Chief Justice until his death in Boston, Massachusetts on November 23, 1965. He was interred in Mount St. Mary's Cemetery in Pawtucket, Rhode Island.

References

Sources

{{DEFAULTSORT:Condon, Francis Bernard 1891 births 1965 deaths People from Central Falls, Rhode Island Democratic Party members of the United States House of Representatives from Rhode Island Democratic Party members of the Rhode Island House of Representatives Chief Justices of the Rhode Island Supreme Court 20th-century American judges 20th-century American politicians Georgetown University Law Center alumni United States Army soldiers American military personnel of World War I