Robert Crosser (June 7, 1874 – June 3, 1957) was an American lawyer and politician who served 19 terms as a U.S. Representative from

Ohio Ohio () is a U.S. state, state in the Midwestern United States, Midwestern region of the United States. Of the List of states and territories of the United States, fifty U.S. states, it is the List of U.S. states and territories by area, 34th-l ...

. He remains the longest-serving member of the United States House of Representatives from the state of

, serving from 1911 to 1919, then again from 1923 until 1955.

Life and career

Born in

Holytown Holytown ( sco, 'Holy-Town' - Holytown, gd, Baile a' Chuilinn)

,
Lanarkshire, Scotland Lanarkshire, also called the County of Lanark ( gd, Siorrachd Lannraig; sco, Lanrikshire), is a historic county, lieutenancy area and registration county in the central Lowlands of Scotland. Lanarkshire is the most populous county in Scotlan ...
, Crosser emigrated to the
United States The United States of America (U.S.A. or USA), commonly known as the United States (U.S. or US) or America, is a country Continental United States, primarily located in North America. It consists of 50 U.S. state, states, a Washington, D.C., ...
in 1881 with his parents and settled in
Cleveland, Ohio Cleveland ( ), officially the City of Cleveland, is a city in the U.S. state of Ohio and the county seat of Cuyahoga County. Located in the northeastern part of the state, it is situated along the southern shore of Lake Erie, across the U.S ...
. He moved to
Salineville, Ohio Salineville( ) is a village in southwestern Columbiana County, Ohio, United States. The population was 1,206 at the 2020 census. Salineville is located in the Salem micropolitan area and the greater Youngstown–Warren area. History Saline ...
, the same year and attended the public schools. He graduated from
Kenyon College Kenyon College is a private liberal arts college in Gambier, Ohio. It was founded in 1824 by Philander Chase. Kenyon College is accredited by the Higher Learning Commission. Kenyon has 1,708 undergraduates enrolled. Its 1,000-acre campus is s ...
,
Gambier, Ohio Gambier is a village in Knox County, Ohio, United States. The population was 2,391 at the 2010 census. Gambier is the home of Kenyon College. A major feature is a gravel path running the length of the village, referred to as "Middle Path". This ...
, in 1897. He studied law at
Columbia Law School Columbia Law School (Columbia Law or CLS) is the law school of Columbia University, a private Ivy League university in New York City. Columbia Law is widely regarded as one of the most prestigious law schools in the world and has always ranked i ...
in
New York City New York, often called New York City or NYC, is the List of United States cities by population, most populous city in the United States. With a 2020 population of 8,804,190 distributed over , New York City is also the L ...
and graduated from
Cincinnati Law School The University of Cincinnati College of Law was founded in 1833 as the Cincinnati Law School. It is the fourth oldest continuously running law school in the United States — after Harvard, the University of Virginia, and Yale — and the first in ...
in 1901. He was
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 1901 and commenced practice in
Cleveland, Ohio Cleveland ( ), officially the City of Cleveland, is a city in the U.S. state of Ohio and the county seat of Cuyahoga County. Located in the northeastern part of the state, it is situated along the southern shore of Lake Erie, across the U.S ...
. He taught law at Baldwin-Wallace Law School in 1904 and 1905. He served as member of the State house of representatives in 1911 and 1912. He served as member of the fourth constitutional convention in 1912. At the convention, he was the author of the Initiative and referendum amendment adopted by the voters in 1912.

Congress
Robert Crosser was elected as a Democrat to the Sixty-third, Sixty-fourth, and Sixty-fifth Congresses (March 4, 1913 – March 3, 1919). He served as chairman of the Committee on Expenditures in the Department of Commerce ( Sixty-fifth Congress). He was an unsuccessful candidate for renomination in 1918 and for election in 1920. Crosser was elected to the Sixty-eighth and to the fifteen succeeding Congresses (March 4, 1923 – January 3, 1955). He served as chairman of the Committee on Interstate and Foreign Commerce ( Eighty-first and Eighty-second Congresses). He was an unsuccessful candidate for renomination in 1954. In that race, he was defeated in the primary by
Charles Vanik Charles Albert Vanik (April 7, 1913 – August 30, 2007) was a Democratic politician from Ohio. He served in the United States House of Representatives from 1955 to 1981. Early life Vanik was born in Cleveland, Ohio, the son of Stella (Kvasn ...
in a field of candidates that also included African-American challenger John Holly, founder of the Negro Future Outlook League.

Death
He resided in
Bethesda, Maryland Bethesda () is an unincorporated, census-designated place in southern Montgomery County, Maryland. It is located just northwest of Washington, D.C. It takes its name from a local church, the Bethesda Meeting House (1820, rebuilt 1849), which ...
, until his death there on June 3, 1957. He was interred in Highland Park Cemetery, Warrensville, Ohio. Robert Crosser was married to Isabelle Dargarvel Hogg. Crosser was a member of
Phi Delta Phi Phi Delta Phi () is an international legal honor society and the oldest legal organization in continuous existence in the United States. Phi Delta Phi was originally a professional fraternity but became an honor society in 2012. The fraternity ...
.

Election results

See also
* List of United States representatives from Ohio

References

Sources
{{DEFAULTSORT:Crosser, Robert 1874 births 1957 deaths Kenyon College alumni Columbia Law School alumni University of Cincinnati College of Law alumni Politicians from Cleveland Ohio Constitutional Convention (1912) Scottish emigrants to the United States Democratic Party members of the Ohio House of Representatives People from Salineville, Ohio Democratic Party members of the United States House of Representatives from Ohio