William Leighton Carss, (February 15, 1865 – May 31, 1931) was a U.S. Representative from

Minnesota Minnesota () is a state in the upper midwestern region of the United States. It is the 12th largest U.S. state in area and the 22nd most populous, with over 5.75 million residents. Minnesota is home to western prairies, now given over to ...

; born in

Pella Pella ( el, Πέλλα) is an ancient city located in Central Macedonia, Greece. It is best-known for serving as the capital city of the ancient Greek kingdom of Macedon, and was the birthplace of Alexander the Great. On site of the ancient cit ...

, Marion County,

Iowa Iowa () is a state in the Midwestern region of the United States, bordered by the Mississippi River to the east and the Missouri River and Big Sioux River to the west. It is bordered by six states: Wisconsin to the northeast, Illinois to th ...

and subsequently moved with his parents to

Des Moines, Iowa Des Moines () is the capital and the most populous city in the U.S. state of Iowa. It is also the county seat of Polk County. A small part of the city extends into Warren County. It was incorporated on September 22, 1851, as Fort Des Moines, ...

, in 1867. There he attended the public schools, studied civil and

mechanical engineering Mechanical engineering is the study of physical machines that may involve force and movement. It is an engineering branch that combines engineering physics and mathematics principles with materials science, to design, analyze, manufacture, an ...

and followed that profession for a number of years. He moved to St. Louis County, Minnesota in 1893 and settled in Proctor where he found work as a locomotive engineer and became a member of the

Brotherhood of Locomotive Engineers The Brotherhood of Locomotive Engineers and Trainmen (BLET) is a labor union founded in Marshall, Michigan, on 8 May 1863 as the Brotherhood of the Footboard. It was the first permanent trade organization for railroad workers in the US. A year late ...

. Carss was elected as a Farmer-Labor candidate to the

66th congress The 66th United States Congress was a meeting of the legislative branch of the United States federal government, comprising the United States Senate and the United States House of Representatives. It met in Washington, DC from March 4, 1919, to Ma ...

(March 4, 1919 – March 3, 1921) from Minnesota's 8th congressional district. Carss was fond of British literature, reciting selections from

Shakespeare William Shakespeare ( 26 April 1564 – 23 April 1616) was an English playwright, poet and actor. He is widely regarded as the greatest writer in the English language and the world's pre-eminent dramatist. He is often called England's natio ...

, Carlyle and Burns by heart. He sponsored pro-labor legislation during his first term, supporting

old age pension A pension (, from Latin ''pensiō'', "payment") is a fund into which a sum of money is added during an employee's employment years and from which payments are drawn to support the person's retirement from work in the form of periodic payments ...

s (anticipating the

Social Security Welfare, or commonly social welfare, is a type of government support intended to ensure that members of a society can meet basic human needs such as food and shelter. Social security may either be synonymous with welfare, or refer specifical ...

system),

women's rights Women's rights are the rights and entitlements claimed for women and girls worldwide. They formed the basis for the women's rights movement in the 19th century and the feminist movements during the 20th and 21st centuries. In some countries, ...

and (to the dismay of some of his supporters) the Prohibition Amendment.Hudelson, Richard & Ross, Carl. ''By the ore docks : a working people's history of Duluth'' Minneapolis : University of Minnesota Press, 2006. , , , pp. 146-147. Carss was an unsuccessful candidate for reelection as a Democrat in 1920 to the 67th congress and for election in 1922 to the 68th congress. He was elected on the Farmer-Labor ticket to the 69th and 70th congresses (March 4, 1925 – March 3, 1929); but was defeated for reelection in 1928 to the 71st congress. Carss moved to

Duluth , settlement_type = City , nicknames = Twin Ports (with Superior), Zenith City , motto = , image_skyline = , image_caption = Clockwise from top: urban Duluth skyline; Minnesota ...

in 1929 where he resumed his position as a locomotive engineer at Proctor. He was unsuccessful in his 1930 bid for election to the 72nd congress. He died in Duluth on May 31, 1931, and was interred in Oneota Cemetery.

References

External links

*
William L. Carss: An Inventory of His Papers at the Minnesota Historical Society
{{DEFAULTSORT:Carss, William Leighton Democratic Party members of the United States House of Representatives from Minnesota 1865 births 1931 deaths Locomotive superintendents American people in rail transportation Minnesota Farmer–Laborites Farmer–Labor Party members of the United States House of Representatives People from Pella, Iowa Brotherhood of Locomotive Engineers and Trainmen people