From the Ohio Manual of Legislative Practice, 1914.
A leading county official and citizen residing in Tiffin, Ohio at the turn of the 19th century, Romanus Rudolphus Bour served several years as Seneca County auditor prior to his election to two consecutive terms as a state representative. A lifelong resident of Tiffin, Romanus R. Bour was born in that city on January 19, 1860, the son of John and Elizabeth (Swope) Bour. A student at the St. Mary's Parochial School in that city, Bour went on to attend the Tiffin High School and for two years enrolled at the Heidelberg College in Tiffin.
Bour briefly followed a teaching career and joined his father in the former's business in Tiffin before taking a clerkship in the Seneca County auditor's office in 1882. The next year saw Bour enter into the role of deputy county auditor, which he would fill for many years afterward. In May 1884 he married to Ida Matilda Strauss (1864-1938), with who he had seven children: Emery George (1887-89), James Norton (born 1889), Bertha (born 1892) Charles R. (born 1894), Elmer William (1896-1974), Margaret Louisa (1900-1998), and Paul Herbert (1902-1973).
In 1903 Romanus Bour was elected as Seneca County auditor and would serve two terms, leaving office in 1909. In 1910 he announced his candidacy for the Ohio House of Representatives and was elected "by an 857 majority" that November. The 1911-13 session saw him sit on the committees on Mines and Mining, the Soldiers and Sailors Home, and Taxation and Revenues. He would win a second term in 1912 and during the 1913-15 term chaired the committee on Public Buildings and Lands.
After leaving the legislature Bour continued prominence in Tiffin, being named as teller for the Commercial National Bank in that city. A longstanding member of the Knights of Pythias and the Knights of Columbus, Bour died of a heart attack at his home in Tiffin on February 9, 1931, aged 71. He was survived by his wife Ida and children and was interred at the St. Mary's Cemetery in Tiffin. In addendum to this article, Bour's middle name is variously spelled as both Rudolph and Rudolphus by genealogical webpages, such as Ancestry.com, MyHeritage and FamilySearch.
Romanus Bour, from Tiffin's Seventy-Fifth Anniversary, 1897.
From the Bismarck Tribune, June 9, 1941.
Another "Romanus" that made an impact through public service was Romanus James Downey of North Dakota. A one-term member of the state house of representatives from Ramsey County, Downey would later be tapped to serve as State Commissioner of Veterans Affairs. He served in that capacity until his death a decade later, losing his life in a bizarre "elevator mishap" at a Fargo hotel. Born in Barnesville, Minnesota on August 6, 1896, Romanus James Downey was the son of Thomas W. and Sarah A. Downey.
Removing with his family to Devil's Lake, North Dakota in 1909, Downey attended the local high school and later enrolled at the University of North Dakota. He would put his studies on hold to enlist in WWI, and served overseas with Co. D, 2nd North Dakota Infantry from 1917-1919. Following his return to Devil's Lake in the last-named year, Downey recommenced with his studies and later relocated to Washington, D.C., where he was a student at the Georgetown Law School. His time in the nation's capital saw him enter government service for the first time when he took a clerkship in a "senate committee that was investigating the Teapot Dome scandal."
Earning his law degree in 1924, Downey established himself in practice in Devil's Lake and in 1934 was elected as a Democrat to the North Dakota House of Representatives. He served in the session of 1935-37, and in August 1937 was named by then-Governor William Langer as State Commissioner of Veteran's Affairs, with Langer himself referring to Downey as "the most qualified candidate". His decade long tenure in that post also saw Downey flirt with a congressional bid, and in November 1940 was an unsuccessful Democratic candidate for the U.S. House of Representatives, polling over 63,000 votes.
On April 22. 1947 the 50-year-old Downey was staying at the Gardner Hotel in Fargo, North Dakota when he entered into an elevator to ride to his room on the fourth floor. He was "stricken by either a dizzy spell or a heart attack and fell against a floor while it was being passed by the elevator." Downey died of a crushed skull received from the accident and was survived by his wife Frederica (1897-1973). Both were later interred at the Holy Cross Cemetery in Fargo.
From the Bismarck Tribune, April 23, 1947.
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