James M. Mead

James M. Mead was born in Mount Morris, New York on December 27, 1885, a son of Thomas and Jane (Kelly) Mead. Mead moved to Buffalo with his family at the age of five. He was employed by the Delaware, Lackawanna and Western Railroad; his career included jobs as a water boy, lamp lighter, section hand, spike mauler, shop mechanic and switchman. He was subsequently employed as a switchman on the Erie Railroad, and was eventually elected president of the Switchmen's Union's Buffalo local. From 1911 to 1914 he was employed as an officer with the United States Capitol Police. ==Start of career==

Mead also continued his education during his railroad and police careers; he attended Buffalo's Caton School of Engineering and completed an engineering course of instruction at the Buffalo Institute of Technology. He also took courses at Canisius College and Catholic University. While working nights for the Capitol Police, Mead attended the Georgetown University Law Center during the day. As a well-known semiprofessional football and baseball player in the Buffalo area, Mead developed a following that aided his entry into politics. Among his successes were laws to improve the conditions of women and children in factories and enhancements to the state's worker's compensation laws. Mead's affability and power of persuasion marked him as an effective legislator despite the fact that he was a Democrat in a body controlled by Republicans. ==U.S. House==

In 1918, Mead defeated incumbent Republican congressman William Frederick Waldow for New York's 42nd District seat in the U.S. House of Representatives. He was reelected nine times, and served from 1919 to 1938. From 1931 to 1938, Mead served as chairman of the Committee on Post Office and Post Roads. In Congress, Mead was a strong advocate for worker's rights, and received credit for aiding the passage of several labor measures, including the Railway Labor Act, Railroad Retirement Act, and Railroad Unemployment Insurance Act. Mead was the author of a law mandating a reduction in work hours for post office department employees to 44 hours per week, and later to 40 hours. While supplementing his education by taking college courses during his Congressional service, Mead was well known for staying in good physical condition by trotting from campus to campus. At 6 feet 2 inches and 200 pounds, he maintained the athletic build of his youth, and was known as the House's best baseball and softball player. After 28 of his colleagues died during one session, Mead recognized the need for a Congressional gym and took the lead in organizing it and bringing it into operation. According to John W. McCormack, who served as Speaker of the House from 1961 to 1971, the House's Democratic leaders were grooming Mead to become Speaker. McCormack went on to say that the only reason he (McCormack) was placed on the path that enabled him to become majority leader and then Speaker was that Mead left the House when he was elected to the U.S. Senate. ==U.S. Senate==

In 1938, Mead defeated Republican Edward F. Corsi to fill the U.S. Senate seat left vacant after Royal S. Copeland died. ==Later career==

Mead was an unsuccessful candidate for the Democratic nomination for governor in 1942. ==Legacy==

In 1937, the Works Progress Administration built a Buffalo public library that was later named the James Mead Branch Library. Buffalo-area mail carriers recognized Mead's accomplishments on behalf of postal workers by naming their union local in his honor. ==Later life==

After retiring from New York's Department of Commerce, Mead moved to Florida. He settled in Clermont, where he owned and operated an orange grove. ==Retirement and death==

Mead died in Lakeland, Florida on March 15, 1964. He was buried at Oakhill Cemetery in Clermont. ==Family==

In 1915, Mead married Alice M. Dillon (1885–1964). They were the parents of a son, James Michael Mead Jr. (1918–1997). ==References==