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Higher Office(s) Served: Representative

MICHAEL HAHN was born in Klingenmunster, Bavaria, Germany on November 24, 1830. Around 1840, his family immigrated to America, settling first in New York, and finally settling in Louisiana, where Hahn attended the New Orleans public schools. In 1850, he graduated from the University of Louisiana, earning a law degree. Hahn entered politics in 1862, serving as a member of the U.S. House of Representatives, an office he held until March 3, 1863. He also served as the New Orleans prize commissioner, and was publisher of the New Orleans True Delta, a pro slavery newspaper. On February 22, 1864, Hahn was elected governor of Louisiana parishes that were controlled by the Union Army and was sworn into office on March 4, 1864. He advocated for blacks suffrage, and state constitutional amendments were approved that eliminated slavery and improved the educational system. After being elected to the U.S. Senate, Hahn resigned from the governor's office on March 3, 1865. However, he was denied his senatorial seat, as were all Southern representatives at the time. From 1867 to 1871, he edited the New Orleans Republican, and from 1872 to 1876, he served as a member of the Louisiana House of Representatives. He served as speaker of the house in 1875, was named the state registrar of voters in 1876, and served as the superintendent of the U.S. Mint from 1878 to 1879. He also served on the bench of the Twenty-Sixth Judicial District from 1879 to 1885, and served as a member of the U.S. House of Representatives from March 4, 1885 until his death on March 15, 1886. Governor Michael Hahn, who founded the village of Hahnville, was buried at the Metairie Cemetery in New Orleans.

Sources:

Biographical Directory of the U.S. Congress

Dawson III, Joseph G. The Louisiana Governors: From Iberville to Edwards. Baton Rouge: Lousiana State University Press, 1990.

Encyclopedia Louisiana

Louisiana Secretary of State: The Governors of Louisiana

Sobel, Robert, and John Raimo, eds. Biographical Directory of the Governors of the United States, 1789-1978, Vol. 2, Westport, Conn.; Meckler Books, 1978. 4 vols.

Virtual American Biographies