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<!DOCTYPE HTML PUBLIC "-//W3C//DTD HTML 4.01 Transitional//EN"> <html> <head> <title>The Political Graveyard: Modern Language Association, politicians</title> <meta name="description" content="A database of political history and cemeteries, with brief biographical entries for 338,260 U.S. political figures, living and dead, from the 1700s to the present."> <meta name="keywords" content="political biography history genealogy cemeteries politics candidates congress senators legislators governors politicians biographies ancestors mayors birthplace geography elections"> <meta name="author" content="Lawrence Kestenbaum"> <script type="text/javascript"> var _gaq = _gaq || []; _gaq.push(['_setAccount', 'UA-7383562-1']); _gaq.push(['_trackPageview']); (function() { var ga = document.createElement('script'); ga.type = 'text/javascript'; ga.async = true; ga.src = ('https:' == document.location.protocol ? 'https://ssl' : 'https://www') + '.google-analytics.com/ga.js'; var s = document.getElementsByTagName('script')[0]; s.parentNode.insertBefore(ga, s); })(); </script> </head> <body bgcolor="#FFFFDD" text="#000000" link="#cc0000" alink="#ff0000" vlink="#760000"> <style type="text/css"> p {font-family:georgia,garamond,serif} td {font-family:georgia,garamond,serif} A:link {text-decoration: none} A:visited {text-decoration: none} A:active {text-decoration: none} A:hover {text-decoration: underline} </style> PoliticalGraveyard.com <a href="https://politicalgraveyard.com/index.html" border=0> <img src="https://politicalgraveyard.com/images/tpgmain6.gif" width=450 height=216 border=0 alt="The Political Graveyard: A Database of American History"></a> Modern Language Association Politicians <table width=100%><tr><td valign="top"> Very incomplete list! <table align="left" cellpadding=5> <tr><td width=82 align="right" valign="top"> </td><td valign="top"><img src="rd.gif" width=13 height=13> Harry Morgan Ayres (1881-1948) — also known as Harry M. Ayres — of Westport, <a href="https://politicalgraveyard.com/geo/CT/FA-lived.html">Fairfield County</a>, Conn.; Woodbury, <a href="https://politicalgraveyard.com/geo/CT/LI-lived.html">Litchfield County</a>, Conn. Born in Montclair Heights, Montclair, <a href="https://politicalgraveyard.com/geo/NJ/ES-born.html">Essex County</a>, N.J., <a href="https://politicalgraveyard.com/chrono/1881/10-06.html">October 6, 1881</a>. Democrat. <a href="https://politicalgraveyard.com/occ/faculty.html">University professor</a>; member of <a href="https://politicalgraveyard.com/geo/CT/ofc/sthse.html">Connecticut state house of representatives</a> from Westport, 1923-24. Member, <a href="https://politicalgraveyard.com/group/phi-beta-kappa.html">Phi Beta Kappa</a>; Modern Language Association. Died <a href="https://politicalgraveyard.com/chrono/1948/11-20.html">November 20, 1948</a> (age <a href="https://politicalgraveyard.com/death/age/67.html">67 years, 45 days</a>). Burial location unknown. <table width=100% align="left"><tr><td width=20> </td> <td width=26 valign="top"><img src="hand.gif" width=26 height=17></td> <td valign="top">Relatives: Son of Morgan Willcox Ayres and Sarah Ella (Roe) Ayres; married, <a href="https://politicalgraveyard.com/chrono/1905/06-06.html">June 6, 1905</a>, to Amy Wentworth Sawyer.</td></tr> </table> </td></tr> <tr><td width=82 align="right" valign="top"> </td><td valign="top"><img src="rd.gif" width=13 height=13> Arthur Amory Houghton Jr. (b. 1906) — also known as Arthur A. Houghton, Jr. — of Manhattan, <a href="https://politicalgraveyard.com/geo/NY/NY-lived.html">New York County</a>, N.Y. Born in Corning, <a href="https://politicalgraveyard.com/geo/NY/ST-born.html">Steuben County</a>, N.Y., <a href="https://politicalgraveyard.com/chrono/1906/12-12.html">December 12, 1906</a>. Republican. Vice-president, Corning <a href="https://politicalgraveyard.com/occ/glass.html">Glass Works</a>, 1935-40; director, Delaware, Lackawanna and Western <a href="https://politicalgraveyard.com/occ/railroading.html">Railroad</a>; served in the U.S. Army Air Force in World War II; alternate delegate to Republican National Convention from New York, <a href="https://politicalgraveyard.com/parties/R/1960/NY.html">1960</a>. <a href="https://politicalgraveyard.com/group/episcopalian.html">Episcopalian</a>. Member, <a href="https://politicalgraveyard.com/group/nat-trust-hist-pres.html">National Trust for Historic Preservation</a>; <a href="https://politicalgraveyard.com/group/cfr.html">Council on Foreign Relations</a>; Modern Language Association. Burial location unknown. <table width=100% align="left"><tr><td width=20> </td> <td width=26 valign="top"><img src="hand.gif" width=26 height=17></td> <td valign="top">Relatives: Son of <a href="https://politicalgraveyard.com/bio/houghtaling-housley.html#274.90.71">Arthur Amory Houghton</a> and Mabel (Hollister) Houghton; married to Elizabeth Douglas McCall.</td></tr> </table> </td></tr> <tr><td width=82 align="right" valign="top"><a href="https://www.flickr.com/photos/politicalgraveyard/3353928341/"><img src="https://politicalgraveyard.com/thumb/141/30.51.jpg" width=70 height=106 border=0 alt="Thomas W. Nadal"></a></td><td valign="top"><img src="rd.gif" width=13 height=13> Thomas William Nadal (b. 1875) — also known as Thomas W. Nadal — of Olivet, <a href="https://politicalgraveyard.com/geo/MI/EA-lived.html">Eaton County</a>, Mich.; Springfield, <a href="https://politicalgraveyard.com/geo/MO/GR-lived.html">Greene County</a>, Mo. Born near Milroy, <a href="https://politicalgraveyard.com/geo/IN/RU-born.html">Rush County</a>, Ind., <a href="https://politicalgraveyard.com/chrono/1875/06-17.html">June 17, 1875</a>. Republican. <a href="https://politicalgraveyard.com/occ/faculty.html">College professor</a>; member of <a href="https://politicalgraveyard.com/geo/MI/ofc/sbe.html">Michigan state board of education</a>, 1911-17; appointed 1911; acting <a href="https://politicalgraveyard.com/occ/univpres.html">president</a>, Olivet College, Olivet, Mich., 1915-16; <a href="https://politicalgraveyard.com/occ/univpres.html">president</a>, Drury College, Springfield, Mo., 1917. <a href="https://politicalgraveyard.com/group/congregationalist.html">Congregationalist</a>. <a href="https://politicalgraveyard.com/group/english.html">English</a> and <a href="https://politicalgraveyard.com/group/french.html">French</a> ancestry. Member, <a href="https://politicalgraveyard.com/group/phi-beta-kappa.html">Phi Beta Kappa</a>; <a href="https://politicalgraveyard.com/group/delta-kappa-epsilon.html">Delta Kappa Epsilon</a>; Modern Language Association. Burial location unknown. <table width=100% align="left"><tr><td width=20> </td> <td width=26 valign="top"><img src="hand.gif" width=26 height=17></td> <td valign="top">Relatives: Son of Benjamin Franklin Nadal and Jerusha (Richey) Nadal; married, <a href="https://politicalgraveyard.com/chrono/1909/06-02.html">June 2, 1909</a>, to Kathryne Dillingham Wyckoff.</td></tr> <tr><td width=20> </td> <td width=26 valign="top"><img src="hand.gif" width=26 height=17></td> <td valign="top">Image source: Michigan Manual 1911</td></tr> </table> </td></tr> <tr><td width=82 align="right" valign="top"> </td><td valign="top"><img src="rd.gif" width=13 height=13> Peter Oppewall (b. 1922) — of Grand Rapids, <a href="https://politicalgraveyard.com/geo/MI/KE-lived.html">Kent County</a>, Mich. Born in Northbridge, <a href="https://politicalgraveyard.com/geo/MA/WO-born.html">Worcester County</a>, Mass., <a href="https://politicalgraveyard.com/chrono/1922/index.html">1922</a>. Democrat. Served in the U.S. Army Air Force in World War II; <a href="https://politicalgraveyard.com/occ/faculty.html">college professor</a>; candidate for <a href="https://politicalgraveyard.com/geo/MI/ofc/cncn7.html">delegate to Michigan state constitutional convention</a> from Kent County 1st District, 1961; member of <a href="https://politicalgraveyard.com/geo/MI/ofc/sbe.html">Michigan state board of education</a>, 1965-70. <a href="https://politicalgraveyard.com/group/reformed.html">Christian Reformed</a>. Member, <a href="https://politicalgraveyard.com/group/urban-league.html">Urban League</a>; Modern Language Association. Presumed deceased. Burial location unknown. </td></tr> <tr><td width=82 align="right" valign="top"> </td><td valign="top"><img src="rd.gif" width=13 height=13> Alfred John Pearson (1869-1939) — also known as Alfred J. Pearson — of Des Moines, <a href="https://politicalgraveyard.com/geo/IA/PO-lived.html">Polk County</a>, Iowa. Born in Landskrona, <a href="https://politicalgraveyard.com/geo/ZZ/SW-born.html">Sweden</a>, <a href="https://politicalgraveyard.com/chrono/1869/09-29.html">September 29, 1869</a>. Republican. <a href="https://politicalgraveyard.com/occ/faculty.html">University professor</a>; U.S. Minister to <a href="https://politicalgraveyard.com/geo/ZZ/PL-diplomats.html ">Poland</a>, 1924-25; <a href="https://politicalgraveyard.com/geo/ZZ/FI-diplomats.html ">Finland</a>, 1925-30. <a href="https://politicalgraveyard.com/group/lutheran.html">Lutheran</a>. <a href="https://politicalgraveyard.com/group/scandinavian.html">Swedish</a> ancestry. Member, Modern Language Association; <a href="https://politicalgraveyard.com/group/labor-unions.html">American Association of University Professors</a>; <a href="https://politicalgraveyard.com/group/phi-beta-kappa.html">Phi Beta Kappa</a>. Died <a href="https://politicalgraveyard.com/chrono/1939/08-09.html">August 9, 1939</a> (age <a href="https://politicalgraveyard.com/death/age/69.html">69 years, 314 days</a>). Interment at <a href="https://politicalgraveyard.com/geo/MN/HE-buried.html#cms00172">Lakewood Cemetery</a>, Minneapolis, Minn. <table width=100% align="left"><tr><td width=20> </td> <td width=26 valign="top"><img src="hand.gif" width=26 height=17></td> <td valign="top">Relatives: Son of Hans Pearson and Johanna (Nilson) Pearson; married <a href="https://politicalgraveyard.com/chrono/1901/">1901</a> to Thea Pauline Swenson (daughter of <a href="https://politicalgraveyard.com/bio/sweetland-swinburne.html#304.89.13">Lars Swenson</a>).</td></tr> <tr><td width=20> </td> <td width=26 valign="top"><img src="hand.gif" width=26 height=17></td> <td valign="top"> Political family: <a href="https://politicalgraveyard.com/families/12899.html">Swenson family</a> of Minnesota.</td></tr> <tr><td width=20> </td> <td width=26 valign="top"><img src="hand.gif" width=26 height=17></td> <td valign="top">See also <a href="https://history.state.gov/departmenthistory/people/pearson-alfred-john ?">U.S. State Dept career summary</a></td></tr> </table> </td></tr> <tr><td width=82 align="right" valign="top"> </td><td valign="top"><img src="rd.gif" width=13 height=13> Walter Frederick Sanders (1880-1961) — also known as W. F. Sanders — of Parkville, <a href="https://politicalgraveyard.com/geo/MO/PL-lived.html">Platte County</a>, Mo. Born in Silver Lake, <a href="https://politicalgraveyard.com/geo/KS/SH-born.html">Shawnee County</a>, Kan., <a href="https://politicalgraveyard.com/chrono/1880/04-27.html">April 27, 1880</a>. Republican. <a href="https://politicalgraveyard.com/occ/faculty.html">College teacher</a>; Republican candidate for Presidential Elector for Missouri, <a href="https://politicalgraveyard.com/geo/MO/ofc/pr1944-election.html">1944</a>; <a href="https://politicalgraveyard.com/geo/MO/PL-parties.html">chair of Platte County Republican Party</a>, 1949. <a href="https://politicalgraveyard.com/group/presbyterian.html">Presbyterian</a>. <a href="https://politicalgraveyard.com/group/scandinavian.html">Swedish</a> ancestry. Member, Modern Language Association; <a href="https://politicalgraveyard.com/group/am-legion.html">American Legion</a>. Died in Parkville, <a href="https://politicalgraveyard.com/geo/MO/PL-died.html">Platte County</a>, Mo., <a href="https://politicalgraveyard.com/chrono/1961/09-17.html">September 17, 1961</a> (age <a href="https://politicalgraveyard.com/death/age/81.html">81 years, 143 days</a>). Burial location unknown. <table width=100% align="left"><tr><td width=20> </td> <td width=26 valign="top"><img src="hand.gif" width=26 height=17></td> <td valign="top">Relatives: Son of William August Sanders and Caroline (Dahlstrom) Sanders; married, <a href="https://politicalgraveyard.com/chrono/1909/09-25.html">September 25, 1909</a>, to Astrid C. Tulien.</td></tr> </table> </td></tr> </table> </td> <td width=180 align="center" valign="center"> </td></tr></table> <hr> <table width=100%> <tr><td align="center"> "Enjoy the hospitable entertainment of a political graveyard." Henry L. Clinton, Apollo Hall, New York City, February 3, 1872</td> <td><a href="https://politicalgraveyard.com/"> <img src="https://politicalgraveyard.com/images/tpgsub.gif" width=450 height=71 align="right" border=0 alt="The Political Graveyard"></a></td></tr></table> <table width=100% cellpadding=2> <tr><td colspan=3> <a href="https://politicalgraveyard.com/index.html">The Political Graveyard</a> is a web site about U.S. political history and cemeteries. Founded in 1996, it is the Internet's most comprehensive free source for American political biography, listing 338,260 politicians, living and dead.</td></tr> <tr><td colspan=3> </td></tr> <tr><td width=32 align="right" valign="top"> </td> <td valign="top"> <img src="rd.gif" width=10 height=10> The coverage of this site includes (1) the President, Vice President, members of Congress, elected state and territorial officeholders in all fifty states, the District of Columbia, and U.S. territories; and the chief elected official, typically the mayor, of qualifying municipalities; (2) candidates at election, including primaries, for any of the above; (3) all federal judges and all state appellate judges; (4) certain federal officials, including the federal cabinet, diplomatic chiefs of mission, consuls, U.S. district attorneys, collectors of customs and internal revenue, members of major federal commissions; and political appointee (pre-1969) postmasters of qualifying communities; (5) state and national political party officials, including delegates, alternate delegates, and other participants in national party nominating conventions; (6) Americans who served as "honorary" consuls for other nations before 1950. Note: municipalities or communities "qualify", for Political Graveyard purposes, if they have at least half a million person-years of history, inclusive of predecessor, successor, and merged entities.</td> <td width=100 align="right" valign="top"> </td></tr> <tr><td width=32 align="right" valign="top"> </td> <td valign="top"> <img src="rd.gif" width=10 height=10> The listings are incomplete; development of the database is a continually ongoing project.</td> <td width=100 align="right" valign="top"> </td></tr> <tr><td width=32 align="right" valign="top"> </td> <td valign="top"> <img src="rd.gif" width=10 height=10> Information on this page — and on all other pages of this site — is believed to be accurate, but is not guaranteed. Users are advised to check with other sources before relying on any information here.</td> <td width=100 align="right" valign="top"> </td></tr> <tr><td width=32 align="right" valign="top"> </td> <td valign="top"> <img src="rd.gif" width=10 height=10> The official URL for this page is: <a href="https://politicalgraveyard.com/group/modern-lang-assoc.html">https://politicalgraveyard.com/group/modern-lang-assoc.html</a>.</td> <td width=100 align="right" valign="top"> </td></tr> <tr><td width=32 align="right" valign="top"> </td> <td valign="top"> <img src="rd.gif" width=10 height=10> Links to this or any other Political Graveyard page are welcome, but specific page addresses may sometimes change as the site develops.</td> <td width=100 align="right" valign="top"> </td></tr> <tr><td width=32 align="right" valign="top"> </td> <td valign="top"> <img src="rd.gif" width=10 height=10> If you are searching for a specific named individual, try the <a href="https://politicalgraveyard.com/alpha/index.html">alphabetical index of politicians</a>.</td> <td width=100 align="right" valign="top"> </td></tr> <tr><td colspan=3 align="left" valign="top"> Copyright notices: (1) Facts are not subject to copyright; see <a href="https://www.law.cornell.edu/copyright/cases/499_US_340.htm">Feist v. Rural Telephone</a>. (2) Politician portraits displayed on this site are 70-pixel-wide monochrome thumbnail images, which I believe to constitute fair use under applicable copyright law. Where possible, each image is linked to its online source. However, requests from owners of copyrighted images to delete them from this site are honored. (3) Original material, programming, selection and arrangement are © 1996-2025 Lawrence Kestenbaum. (4) This work is also licensed for free non-commercial re-use, with attribution, under a <a href="https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-sa/4.0/deed.en">Creative Commons License</a>.</td></tr> <tr><td colspan=3 align="left" valign="top"> What is a "political graveyard"? See <a href="https://politicaldictionary.com/words/political-graveyard">Political Dictionary</a>; <a href="https://www.urbandictionary.com/define.php?term=political%20graveyard">Urban Dictionary</a>.</td></tr> <tr><td colspan=3 align="left" valign="top"> Site information: The Political Graveyard is created and maintained by Lawrence Kestenbaum, who is solely responsible for its structure and content. — The mailing address is The Political Graveyard, P.O. Box 2563, Ann Arbor MI 48106. — This site is hosted by <a href="https://www.hdlmi.com">HDLmi.com</a>. — The Political Graveyard opened on July 1, 1996; the last full revision was done on February 17, 2025. </td></tr> </table> </body> </html>