A Study of the Brabender Family and Their Role in Erie Political History

Abstract

Since the first meeting of the Erie Borough Council on May 9, 1806 until the most recent elections approaching the twenty-first century Erie has always been a city that thrived on politics. Whether it was in the spring before the primary, or in the fall before the main election, one could not travel down the street without seeing a political banner or without shaking hands with a politician. Even Horace Greeley, a prominent politician and publisher who worked in Erie for a short time, noticed the unusual attention that the politics received in the city. As he described it in his autobiography:

Politics in Erie seemed the universal and engrossing topic, to an extent and degree that I have never seen paralleled. Possibly, however, there was a temporary frenzy on the subject while I stayed there, from a people which have long since recovered. At all events, I hope so