Frederic Thomas Woodman (June 2, 1871 – March 25, 1949) was an American politician who served as the 31st Mayor of Los Angeles from September 5, 1916 to July 1, 1919. Previously serving in the New Hampshire House of Representatives, he moved to

Los Angeles Los Angeles ( ; es, Los Ángeles, link=no , ), often referred to by its initials L.A., is the List of municipalities in California, largest city in the U.S. state, state of California and the List of United States cities by population, sec ...

in 1908 and was appointed Mayor in September 5, 1916 after the resignation of incumbent Charles E. Sebastian.

Personal life and early career

Woodman was

Plainfield, New Hampshire Plainfield is a town in Sullivan County, New Hampshire, United States. At the time of the 2020 census, the town had a population of 2,459. The town is home to the Helen Woodruff Smith Bird Sanctuary and Annie Duncan State Forest. The village of P ...

on June 28, 1872 to Alfred Woodman and Maria Thomas Gallup Woodman. His sister was Kathryn Woodman Leighton, who became an artist in Los Angeles. He attended public school in

White River Junction, Vermont White River Junction is an unincorporated village and census-designated place (CDP) in the town of Hartford in Windsor County, Vermont, United States. The population was 2,528 at the 2020 census, up from 2,286 in 2010, making it the largest c ...

and went to study law in

Lebanon, New Hampshire Lebanon is a city in Grafton County, New Hampshire, United States. The population was 14,282 at the 2020 United States census, 2020 census, up from 13,151 at the 2010 census. Lebanon is in western New Hampshire, south of Hanover, New Hampshire, H ...

. He was later admitted to the bar in 1897 and started practice in Concord, New Hampshire. In 1901, he was elected to the New Hampshire House of Representatives where he served for two years. He youngest chair of a committee and was encouraged to run for the

New Hampshire Senate The New Hampshire Senate has been meeting since 1784. It is the upper house of the New Hampshire General Court, alongside the lower New Hampshire House of Representatives. It consists of 24 members representing Senate districts based on populatio ...

, but declined to do so. He married twice, first to Etta M. Sanborn in 1908 who died in 1916 and then to Katherine Potter Winter in 1921. He died in Los Angeles on March 25, 1949.

Mayor of Los Angeles

In 1907, he left New Hampshire to move to

and made investments within the city, establishing himself in practice. By 1902, he was appointed as a member of the Los Angeles Harbor Commission and was elected as its president at their first meeting. He was a member until 1916. As a member, he helped with harbor improvement and recovered all the tide lands at the harbor. In 1916, he was appointed as Mayor of Los Angeles after the resignation of Charles E. Sebastian. The next year, he was elected to a full term against former Mayor Meredith P. Snyder. In March 1919, Woodman was indicted on charges of asking and receiving a bribe, and during his campaign for the 1919 election, he was arrested and tried but was later acquitted of all charges. Two months later, Woodman lost the election to Snyder. After retiring, he returned to law and became the president of the Woodman-Gray Company and the Vista Irrigation District. He contemplated running in the 1921 Los Angeles mayoral election, but decided not to.

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Woodman, Frederic T. American civil servants Mayors of Los Angeles 1871 births 1949 deaths Burials at Angelus-Rosedale Cemetery Politicians from Concord, New Hampshire California Republicans