Coursin Lafayette Mohney (1860-1922)

Portrait from the Memoirs of Allegheny County, Pennsylvania, 1904.

   Lifelong Pennsylvania native Coursin Lafayette Mohney was for many years a leading contractor and builder in Pittsburgh, and in addition to his chosen profession also ventured into politics, being a member of the Pittsburgh common council and later a Progressive Party candidate for the Pennsylvania state senate. The son of Samuel and Elizabeth (Cribbs) Mohney, Coursin Lafayette Mohney's birth occurred in Clarion County, Pennsylvania on September 9, 1860. He attended public schools in the county of his birth and later embarked on a teaching career in Jefferson County, Pennsylvania that extended three years.

   Relocating to Pittsburgh in the early 1880s, Mohney continued schooling in that city, enrolling at the Duff's Mercantile College. Following his graduation, Mohney entered into a career as a building contractor, a vocation that saw him operate "throughout the country." The succeeding years saw Mohney's reputation in his field soar, with the Memoirs of Allegheny County noting:

"Some of the largest and finest buildings in Pittsburgh, Allegheny City and the surrounding country have been erected under his personal supervision, and few contractors are better known or sustain a high reputation."

   Coursin Mohney married in 1883 to Verona, Pennsylvania native Anne DeGraff (1861-1942), and the couple's near four-decade union saw the births of four children, Eva, Clyde (1887-1966), Clare, and Paul. In 1901 he joined the contracting firm of Langenheim, Cochran, and Co., and two years later made his first run for elective office, successfully running for the Pittsburgh Common Council. His time on the council saw him named to the committees on surveys and public works and retained his seat until 1907.

   In 1914 Mohney set his sights on higher office, becoming the Washington Party candidate for the Pennsylvania state senate. An offshoot of Theodore Roosevelt's "Bull Moose" or Progressive Party, the Washington Party ran a number of legislative candidates in the Pennsylvania elections of 1912 and 1914. Hoping to represent the state's 42nd senatorial district (comprising part of Allegheny County), Mohney would poll a total of 3,273 votes on election day, over 5,000 votes behind winning Republican candidate William Joseph Burke (1862-1925).

   Mohney's life following his senatorial candidacy saw him employed as a carpenter and maintained memberships in several fraternal clubs, including the Pride of the West, the Odd Fellows, the Ancient Order of United Workmen, the Junior Order of United American Mechanics, and the Masons. Notice has been found as to his declaring bankruptcy in February 1917 and on December 5, 1922, he died at his Pittsburgh home, aged 62. He was survived by his wife Anna and both were interred at the Union Dale Cemetery in Pittsburgh.

   

From the Pittsburgh Daily Post, December 8, 1922.