Kahn, Julius, 1861-1924

<p>If you need more proof that San Francisco was welcoming to Jews in the 19th century, just look at the career of Congressman Julius Kahn.</p>

<p>Kahn was a conservative Republican who represented San Francisco for more than 20 years—and was elected by city voters 12 times, often overwhelmingly. When he died, his wife, Florence Prag Kahn, won his seat and served for another 13 years. Julius was born in Kuppenheim, in the German state of Baden, in 1861 and emigrated with his family to rural Calaveras County in 1868. The Kahns soon moved to San Francisco, where his father was a baker.</p>

<p>Before he entered politics, Kahn was a nationally renowned actor. He performed in Washington, DC, where he shared the stage with Edwin Booth, brother of John Wilkes Booth and considered America’s greatest actor of the 19th century. Kahn became friendly with the congressional sergeant at arms, who introduced Kahn to a number of members of Congress. Kahn decided to pursue law and politics, both of which he considered a more suitable profession than the stage.</p>

<p>So how could a Jew, in a city where only 10 percent of the population was Jewish, win a congressional race, not once, but 12 times? Running in a city as open and diverse as San Francisco was one reason.</p>

<p>Julius Kahn (February 28, 1861 – December 18, 1924) was a United States Congressman who was succeeded by his wife Florence Prag Kahn after his death. He has been described by the American Jerusalem as "among the most influential Jews in San Francisco—as well as national–civic life, from the middle of the 19th century into the 1930s".</p>

<p>Kahn was born in Kuppenheim, in the Grand Duchy of Baden, in what would become Germany. He immigrated to the United States with his parents, who settled in California in 1866. After studying law in San Francisco, he was elected a member of the State Assembly in 1892 and admitted to the bar in January 1894. He was elected as a Republican to the 56th and 57th Congresses (March 4, 1899 – March 3, 1903). Although he unsuccessfully contested the election of Edward J. Livernash to the 58th Congress, he was elected to the 59th and to the nine succeeding Congresses and served from March 4, 1905 until his death in 1924.</p>

<p>During his time in the House of Representatives he was noted as an advocate of military preparedness. He helped draft and secure the passage of the National Defense Act of 1916, the Selective Service Act of 1917, and the National Defense Act of 1920. He served as chairman of Committee on Military Affairs (66th–68th Congresses). Representative Kahn also authored the Kahn Exclusion Act, ultimately enacted as the Alien Exclusion Act, telling Congress that "I submit if the Chinese people themselves would deal honestly with us, and if they resorted less to trickery and duplicity to circumvent our laws, then there would be no need of closing up all possible loopholes in the law with the seemingly severely restrictive measures that the Chinese themselves make necessary."</p>

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KAHN, Julius, (husband of Florence Prag Kahn), a Representative from California; born in Kuppenheim, Grand Duchy of Baden, Germany, February 28, 1861; immigrated to the United States with his parents, who settled in California in 1866; attended the public schools of San Francisco; followed the theatrical profession for ten years; returned to San Francisco in 1890; studied law; member of the State assembly in 1892; was admitted to the bar in January 1894 and commenced practice in San Francisco; elected as a Republican to the Fifty-sixth and Fifty-seventh Congresses (March 4, 1899-March 3, 1903); unsuccessfully contested the election of Edward J. Livernash to the Fifty-eighth Congress; elected to the Fifty-ninth and to the nine succeeding Congresses and served from March 4, 1905, until his death; chairman, Committee on Military Affairs (Sixty-sixth through Sixty-eighth Congresses); had been reelected to the Sixty-ninth Congress; died in San Francisco, Calif., December 18, 1924; interment in the Home of Peace Cemetery, Colma, Calif.