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Christianson, Theodore Andrew

House 1915-24 (District 24)

Party when first elected:  Nonpartisan Election

Counties Served:  Lac Qui Parle

BIOGRAPHICAL INFORMATION

Date of Birth: 9/12/1883
Birth Place: Lac Qui Parle Township, Minnesota
Birth County: Lac Qui Parle
Birth Country: United States
Date of Death: 12/10/1948
Gender: Male
Religion: Christian
Reported Minority: None Reported
Other Names:
City of Residence (when first elected): Dawson
Occupation (when first elected): Newspaper Editor, Dawson

EDUCATION

Dawson High School; Secondary;
University of Minnesota, Arts College; College Graduate; Minneapolis Campus, 1906
University of Minnesota, Law School; Law Degree; 1909; Admitted to the Bar, 1909

OTHER GOVERNMENT SERVICE

Municipal Council/Aldermen: Dawson, Minnesota (Village Council, President); 1910 to 1911
State Governor: Minnesota; 01/06/1925 to 01/06/1931 [Elected]
U.S. Representative: At Large Congressional District, Minnesota; 03/04/1933 to 01/1935 [Elected]
U.S. Representative: 5th Congressional District, Minnesota; 01/03/1935 to 01/03/1937 [Elected]

FAMILY RELATIONSHIPS

Spouse: Ruth E. Donaldson Christianson (first wife, married June 4, 1907); Mayme Bialeschki Bundy Christianson (Shipley) (second wife, married in 1946)
Children: Two children
Family Members Who Have Served in the Minnesota Legislature:

GENERAL NOTES

He was of Norwegian ancestry.

He was born on a farm.

He sought and lost the nomination to the United States Senate in 1930.

He was an unsuccessful candidate for election to the United States Senate in 1936.

He was a member of the Republican Party.

His son, Theodore Christianson, Jr. was an Associate Justice of the Minnesota Supreme Court.

Religion provided by In Memoriam.

Total Days Served: 3654

SESSIONS SERVED

43rd Legislative Session (1923-1924)

  Session Details
Body: House
District: 24
Elected: 11/7/1922
Residence: Dawson
Term of Office: 1/2/1923 to 1/5/1925
Counties Represented: Lac Qui Parle
Occupation: Practicing Law/Owner and Publisher, Dawson Sentinel
Party: Nonpartisan Election
Committees:
  • Appropriations (Chair)
  • Judiciary

42nd Legislative Session (1921-1922)

  Session Details
Body: House
District: 24
Elected: 11/2/1920
Residence: Dawson
Term of Office: 1/4/1921 to 1/1/1923
Counties Represented: Lac Qui Parle
Occupation: Practicing Law/Owner and Publisher, Dawson Sentinel
Party: Nonpartisan Election
Committees:
  • Appropriations (Chair)
  • Judiciary
  • Soldiers Home and State Bonus Act

41st Legislative Session (1919-1920)

  Session Details
Body: House
District: 24
Elected: 11/5/1918
Residence: Dawson
Term of Office: 1/7/1919 to 1/3/1921
Counties Represented: Lac Qui Parle
Occupation: Practicing Law/Owner and Publisher, Dawson Sentinel
Party: Nonpartisan Election
Committees:
  • Appropriations (Chair)
  • Board of Control and Public Buildings
  • Civil Administration
  • Judiciary

40th Legislative Session (1917-1918)

  Session Details
Body: House
District: 24
Elected: 11/7/1916
Residence: Dawson
Term of Office: 1/2/1917 to 1/6/1919
Counties Represented: Lac Qui Parle
Occupation: Newspaper Editor
Party: Nonpartisan Election
Committees:
  • Appropriations (Chair)
  • Education
  • Elections
  • Judiciary

39th Legislative Session (1915-1916)

  Session Details
Body: House
District: 24
Elected: 11/3/1914
Residence: Dawson
Term of Office: 1/5/1915 to 1/1/1917
Counties Represented: Lac Qui Parle
Occupation: Newspaper Editor, Dawson
Party: Nonpartisan Election
Committees:
  • Judiciary
  • Judiciary: Pleading and Criminal Law
  • Judiciary: Remedial Law
  • Printing
  • Public Accounts and Expenditures
  • State Hospitals
  • State School at Owatonna
Articles & Books By
Christianson, Theodore. Minnesota: the Land of Sky-Tinted Waters: a History of the State and its People, Chicago: American Historical Society, 1935.


Articles & Books About
"A Resolution in Memoriam for the Honorable Theodore Christianson." Minnesota Journal of the House, March 29, 1949, p. 1418-1419.

Christianson, Theodore. Biographical Directory of the United States Congress.

Governor Theodore Christianson. Biographical Information from Minnesota Governors, 1849-Present.


These files are available in the Legislative Reference Library.