NAME, Years Elected to City Council

Emil C Hahn (1869-1927) served two terms on City Council: 1905 and 1907.

POLITICAL AFFILIATION

Union League1 or Republican3

BIO

Emil Hahn was born August 25, 1869 in San Francisco. His parents, John William Hahn and Elizabeth Bunz Hahn were from Germany and France respectively and came to California in the 1850s. Hahn worked as a tailor, a cigarmaker and a coppersmith. He moved to Oakland in 1894 started working for Southern Pacific Railroad as a coppersmith and steamfitter. He then owned a business and worked for Wells Fargo Express. Eventually, in 1904 he was one of the founders of the West Oakland Bank and worked as the Vice President. One biography states that he served as postmaster in 1904 before leaving the position to run for City Council, but a review of contemporary directories shows that he was the postal clerk in charge of Station A at 1792 Seventh Street, rather than actually serving as postmaster. After two terms on Council, he served as the Superintendent of the Street Cleaning Department for 16 years. 

According to a contemporary report, "He earned a reputation as an enterprising, progressive man of affairs, and a broad minded, charitable and upright citizen, traits which the public was not slow to recognize and appreciate, and at his death many splendid testimonials to his life and character indicated the strong hold he had on the hearts of his fellowmen."

Hahn married Josephine Duffy. Emil and Josephine lived at 3667 Dimond Avenue in 1920.

Mr. Hahn was a member of Liberty Lodge No. 35, K. P.; Liberty Company, No. 11; Vorwarts Lodge, No. 113, I. O. O. F., and Andrio Aerie, No. 7, F. O. E. While he still lived in San Francisco he was a member of the Native Sons of the Golden West.2

He died at Highland Hospital on December 27, 1927 and is buried in a family plot at Cypress Lawn in Colma, CA

Note: there was also an Emil J Hahn at this time, but they don't appear to have been related.

 

OTHER POSITIONS IN CITY GOVERNMENT

1904: postal clerk in charge of Station A at 1792 Seventh Street

1909-1925: Superintendent of Street Cleaning Department

REFERENCES

  1. "CITY READY FOR ITS ELECTION: Contests Over Picking of Some Councilmen Considered Close." San Francisco Chronicle:  Mar 11, 1907.

  2. Merritt, Frank. History of Alameda County, California. SJ Clarke, 1928.

  3. "REPUBLICAN MEETING IN OAKLAND TO-NIGHT." San Francisco Call: Oct 20, 1898.

  4. Husted's Oakland, Alameda and Berkeley Directory, page 12

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