Robert Erastus McKisson (January 30, 1863 – October 14, 1915) was an American politician of the

Republican party Republican Party is a name used by many political parties around the world, though the term most commonly refers to the United States' Republican Party. Republican Party may also refer to: Africa *Republican Party (Liberia) * Republican Part ...

and served as the 33rd mayor of Cleveland, Ohio, from 1895 to 1898. McKisson first arrived in Cleveland with his family in the early 1870s, and moved to

LaGrange, Ohio LaGrange is a village in Lorain County, Ohio, United States. The population was 2,595 at the 2020 census. The village derives its name from Château de la Grange-Bléneau, the French home of Gilbert du Motier, Marquis de Lafayette, an officer in ...

, in 1879. In 1887, he began studying law in Cleveland, passed the Ohio bar exam in 1889, and began practicing law with John Webster and Elgin Angell in 1891.MCKISSON, ROBERT ERASTUS , Encyclopedia of Cleveland History , Case Western Reserve University , Case Western Reserve University
Retrieved 2018-05-29. McKisson, who was interested in politics, was elected to

Cleveland City Council Cleveland City Council is the legislative branch of government for the City of Cleveland, Ohio. Its chambers are located at Cleveland City Hall at 601 Lakeside Avenue, across the street from Public Auditorium in Downtown Cleveland. Cleveland Ci ...

in 1894 and became an outspoken critic of the mayoral administration of

Robert Blee Robert Blee (January 31, 1839 – February 26, 1898) was the mayor of Cleveland, Ohio from 1893 to 1894. For Robert Blee, all of the following information is from "Annals of the Early Settlers Association of Cuyahoga County" Volume IV. Pub ...

, 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 ...

. His rhetoric paid off when he beat Blee in the 1895 mayoral race. In his two-term tenure as mayor, McKisson began construction on a new city water and sewer system. He also widened and straightened the

Cuyahoga River The Cuyahoga River ( , or ) is a river located in Northeast Ohio that bisects the City of Cleveland and feeds into Lake Erie. As Cleveland emerged as a major manufacturing center, the river became heavily affected by industrial pollution, so mu ...

to facilitate steamer traffic, and built five new bridges across the river. He created a powerful

political machine In the politics of Representative democracy, representative democracies, a political machine is a party organization that recruits its members by the use of tangible incentives (such as money or political jobs) and that is characterized by a hig ...

loyal to him that challenged Mark Hanna for control of the local Republican party. In 1898, he ran against Hanna for a seat in 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 ...

, but lost in a very close election. In the 1899 election, McKisson was defeated by

John H. Farley John Harrington Farley (February 5, 1846 – February 9, 1922), also known as "Honest John" Farley, was an American politician of the Democratic Party who served as the 27th and 34th mayor of Cleveland, Ohio, from 1883 to 1884 and from 1899 to 1 ...

, a former mayor of Cleveland. He retired from politics and returned to private practice.

References

1863 births 1915 deaths Mayors of Cleveland 19th-century American politicians People from LaGrange, Ohio Ohio Republicans {{Ohio-mayor-stub