Howard Aldridge Coffin (June 11, 1877 – February 28, 1956) was a politician from the
U.S. state of
Michigan
Michigan () is a state in the Great Lakes region of the upper Midwestern United States. With a population of nearly 10.12 million and an area of nearly , Michigan is the 10th-largest state by population, the 11th-largest by area, and the ...
.
Biography
Coffin was born in
Middleborough, Massachusetts and attended the
Vermont Academy
Vermont Academy (VA) is a private, co-educational, college preparatory, boarding and day school in Saxtons River, Vermont, serving students from ninth through twelfth grade, as well as postgraduates. Founded in 1876, the campus was listed on the ...
at
Saxtons River. He graduated from
Brown University
Brown University is a private research university in Providence, Rhode Island. Brown is the seventh-oldest institution of higher education in the United States, founded in 1764 as the College in the English Colony of Rhode Island and Providenc ...
,
Providence, Rhode Island
Providence is the capital and most populous city of the U.S. state of Rhode Island. One of the oldest cities in New England, it was founded in 1636 by Roger Williams, a Reformed Baptist theologian and religious exile from the Massachusetts Bay ...
, in 1901 and was a teacher in the Providence Friends School that same year.
He worked as a representative for the book publishers,
Ginn & Company
Pearson Education is a British-owned education publishing and assessment service to schools and corporations, as well for students directly. Pearson owns educational media brands including Addison–Wesley, Peachpit, Prentice Hall, eCollege, ...
, 1901-1911; controller,
Warren Motor Car Company,
Detroit
Detroit ( , ; , ) is the largest city in the U.S. state of Michigan. It is also the largest U.S. city on the United States–Canada border, and the seat of government of Wayne County. The City of Detroit had a population of 639,111 at th ...
,
Michigan
Michigan () is a state in the Great Lakes region of the upper Midwestern United States. With a population of nearly 10.12 million and an area of nearly , Michigan is the 10th-largest state by population, the 11th-largest by area, and the ...
, 1911-1913; manager,
Firestone Tire and Rubber Company, of Michigan, 1913-1918; secretary,
Detroit Pressed Steel Company, 1918-1921; assistant to president,
Cadillac Motor Company
The Cadillac Motor Car Division () is a division of the American automobile manufacturer General Motors (GM) that designs and builds luxury vehicles. Its major markets are the United States, Canada, and China. Cadillac models are distributed i ...
, of Detroit, 1921-1925; vice president and later president,
White Star Refining Company
Vacuum Oil Company was an American oil company known for its ''Gargoyle'' 600-W steam cylinder motor oil. After being taken over by the original Standard Oil Company and then becoming independent again, in 1931 Vacuum Oil merged with the Standar ...
, 1925-1933; general manager,
Socony-Vacuum Oil Company, 1933–1946.
In 1946, Coffin was elected as a
Republican to the
United States House of Representatives
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 house, lower chamber of the United States Congress, with the United States Senate, Senate being ...
from
Michigan's 13th congressional district
Michigan's 13th congressional district is a United States congressional district in Wayne County, Michigan. It is currently represented by Democrat Shri Thanedar.
The district includes portions of Detroit and some of its suburbs, and it was t ...
, defeating former Representative
Clarence J. McLeod
Clarence John McLeod (July 3, 1895 – May 15, 1959) was a politician from the U.S. state of Michigan who served as a member of the U.S. House of Representatives.
McLeod was born in Detroit, the son of a well-to-do Scottish father who had serve ...
in the Republican primary and going on to defeat incumbent
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 ...
George D. O'Brien
George Donoghue O'Brien (January 1, 1900 – October 25, 1957) was a politician from the U.S. state of Michigan who served as a member of the U.S. House of Representatives on three separate occasions.
Early life and education
O'Brien was born in ...
in the general election. Coffin served in the
80th Congress, from January 3, 1947 to January 3, 1949. In a re-match, Coffin lost to O'Brien in the general election of 1948.
Coffin organized the Industrial Service Bureau in
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, ...
, and was a business consultant until his retirement in 1954. He died in Washington, D.C., in 1956 and is interred in
Woodlawn Cemetery,
Detroit
Detroit ( , ; , ) is the largest city in the U.S. state of Michigan. It is also the largest U.S. city on the United States–Canada border, and the seat of government of Wayne County. The City of Detroit had a population of 639,111 at th ...
,
Michigan
Michigan () is a state in the Great Lakes region of the upper Midwestern United States. With a population of nearly 10.12 million and an area of nearly , Michigan is the 10th-largest state by population, the 11th-largest by area, and the ...
.
References
Howard A. Coffinat The Political Graveyard
External links
*
{{DEFAULTSORT:Coffin, Howard Aldridge
1877 births
1956 deaths
Baptists from Michigan
People from Middleborough, Massachusetts
Brown University alumni
ExxonMobil people
Republican Party members of the United States House of Representatives from Michigan
Burials at Woodlawn Cemetery (Detroit)
Vermont Academy alumni