Howard E. Dorsey

Howard Edward Dorsey (July 10, 1904 – August 7, 1937) was a hydraulic engineer who was a member of the Los Angeles City Council in 1937. He was the only council member since at least 1925 to die in office from accidental death and the member to have served the fewest days in office.

Biography

Dorsey was born July 10, 1904, in Eastside Los Angeles, the son of William Edward Dorsey of Pennellville, New York, and Berdena Cecelia Dales of Ohio. His father and grandfather were Los Angeles city police officers, and he was a nephew of Susan M. Dorsey, noted Los Angeles educator. He was educated in L.A. public schools in the Hollenbeck Heights district and graduated from Lincoln High School, after which, financing himself with odd jobs, he studied commercial law, banking and accounting and civil and hydraulic engineering at the American Institute in Los Angeles.

Dorsey was accompanied by Marion Gertrude Lonabaugh, 37, secretary to Councilman John W. Baumgartner; she died two hours after the accident.

City Council

In 1933, Dorsey was the manager of the unsuccessful campaign by Winfred J. Sanborn for election to the Los Angeles City Council in the 9th Councilmanic District against George W. C. Baker, and in 1935 Dorsey was a candidate himself for the same seat, losing to Parley Parker Christensen. He ran again in 1937, beating Jack Y. Berman in the runoff election "by a comfortable lead."

Dorsey was considered a liberal and a progressive. In his few weeks on the council, he was able to speak once at a gathering of property owners and businessmen on the need for a junior college in East Los Angeles "to save students' transportation time and to lessen the traffic accident toll."