Joseph Edward Bland

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Joseph Edward Bland


Member of the Michigan Senate from the 3rd district
In office January 1, 1907 – January 1, 1909
Preceded by	Noble Ashley
Succeeded by	John Donald M. MacKay
Member of the Michigan House of Representatives from the Wayne County 1st district
In office January 1, 1905 – January 1, 1907
In office January 1, 1901 – January 1, 1903

Personal details
Born	(1866-05-05)May 5, 1866 London, Ontario
Died	October 2, 1945(1945-10-02) (aged 79) Lakeland, Florida
Political party	Republican
Alma mater	University of Michigan Law School
Military service
Allegiance	United States
Branch/service	United States Navy
Battles/wars	Spanish–American War

Joseph Edward Bland, also known as J. Edward Bland, (May 5, 1866 – October 2, 1945) was a Michigan politician.

Early life and education

Bland was born on May 5, 1866, in London, Canada West. Bland's parents were of an Irish branch of an English family. Bland was educated in the United States. He went to public school and business college before attending the University of Michigan Law School. There, Bland earned a Bachelor of Laws, and a Master of Laws degree in 1896.^[1]^[2]

Career

Bland practiced law in Detroit. At some point, Bland had a few years' residency in California. Bland enlisted into the United States Navy during the Spanish–American War. He was on the crew of the USS Yosemite. After his time in the navy, Bland remained active in the naval militia.^[1] On November 6, 1900, Bland was elected to the Michigan House of Representatives where he represented the Wayne County 1st district from January 1, 1901, to January 1, 1903. He served another term from January 1, 1905, to January 1, 1907. In the state house, from 1905 to 1906, Bland was the chair of the committee on game laws.^[3] In the book The Men of '05, editor Harry M. Nimmo criticized Bland's ability to regulate gambling properly due to Bland's gambling tendencies. Nimmo then expressed that Bland was one to fight for the common man as opposed to the wealthy, citing Bland's demand to regulate electric rail fares.^[4] On November 6, 1906, Bland was elected to the Michigan Senate where represented the 3rd district from January 1, 1907, to January 1, 1909.^[3]

Personal life

Bland was unmarried by the time of his second term in the state house in 1905. This fact is poked fun at in Harry M. Nimmo's book, The Men of '05.^[4]

Death

Bland died on October 2, 1945, in Lakeland, Florida.^[2]

References

^ ^a ^b Michigan Historical Commission (1924). Michigan Biographies: Including Members of Congress, Elective State Officers, Justices of the Supreme Court, Members of the Michigan Legislature, Board of Regents of the University of Michigan, State Board of Agriculture and State Board of Education, Volume 1.
^ ^a ^b Alumni Association of the University of Michigan (1945). The Michigan Alumnus, Volume 53. HathiTrust. p. 287.
^ ^a ^b "Legislator Details - Joseph Edward Bland". Library of Michigan. Retrieved August 13, 2020.
^ ^a ^b Nimmo, Hary M. (1905). The Men of '05: Some Pen Pictures and a Few Other Things Concerning One Hundred Or More Gentlemen Connected with the First All-Republican Government of Michigan.

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