Being as today is election day I thought I’d throw in an extra bonus blog about a politician in my husband’s family. Orzo Martin Bond was my husband’s great-great-grandfather.
In September 1876 he was appointed as the Secretary of the Prohibition Congressional Convention. At the convention on the second ballot he was nominated as the Prohibition Party candidate for the US House of Representatives from the 24th District in New York. There had been a tie on the first ballot. In the election in November he also had the support of the Democratic Party. It doesn’t really seem to make any sense why the Democrats supported the Prohibition candidate, but apparently the person they originally nominated for their own ticket decided not to run. So I guess they needed to throw their support behind someone other than the incumbent Republican. I have read in a newpaper article from November 6, 1876 that “Every Democratic saloon-keeper in the city is expected to vote for O.M.Bond”. Why saloon keepers would vote for the Prohibition candidate is beyond me. Another newspaper article says “It is not likely that Bond will be elected, but if he should be, his election would be claimed as a “glorious Democratic victory” over which the usual amount of intoxication would be allowable.” He lost the election, but he did get 11,708 votes which was 40.63% of the vote. http://www.ourcampaigns.com/RaceDetail.html?RaceID=737019
His name is spelled incorrectly on this website, Orzo not Ozro, but I assume that is just on the modern day website and it was spelled correctly during the actual election.
He ran again in 1882, but this time he was only backed by the Prohibition Party. It was the 24th District again. He only received 594 votes which was 2.64%. http://www.ourcampaigns.com/RaceDetail.html?RaceID=730140
Then he ran again in 1884, but this time in the 27th District. If you look at the maps on the linked pages, you can see that Oswego was moved into the 27th District. The district location changed a great deal between 1882 and 1884. This time he received 1308 votes, 2.83%. http://www.ourcampaigns.com/RaceDetail.html?RaceID=729485
In 1886 he was the chairman of the County Prohibition Convention and he was nominated for County Treasurer.
In 1893 he was the Chairman of the County Committee of the Prohibition Party. He was also a delegate to the State Convention of the Prohibition Party.
In 1894, at the age of 78, he ran as the Prohibition Party candidate for County Clerk in Oswego County and the next year in 1895 he ran as the Prohibition Party candidate for County Treasurer in Oswego County.
At the Prohibition Party convention in August 1895 there was a group of younger members who were trying to take the leadership of the party away from Ozro and the other older members. The convention ended up splitting up into two groups. He was named chairman of the second convention.
According to his obituary he was also involved with financially supporting the Prohibition Party for many years at the city, county, and state levels. He was very committed to their cause.