Global InformationMark Alton Barwise information
Mark Alton Barwise (June 6, 1881 – May 29, 1937)[1] was one of the only publicly practicing member of the Spiritualist religion known to have been elected to a state office in the United States. Born in Chester, Maine of a mediumistic mother, Barwise became an attorney and nationally prominent member of the National Spiritualist Association (N.S.A.).[2] He wrote extensively on spiritualism, represented the church in court cases, served on its board of trustees, and became Curator of its Bureau of Phenomenal Evidence. Despite his leadership position in a religion outside the American mainstream, he was elected to the Maine House of Representatives from Bangor (Penobscot County) in 1921-24, and in 1925-26 to the Maine State Senate.
- ^ United States, Selective Service System. World War I Selective Service System Draft Registration Cards, 1917-1918. Washington, D.C.: National Archives and Records Administration. M1509, 4,582 rolls. Imaged from Family History Library microfilm. Registration State: Maine; Registration County: Penobscot; Roll: 1654011; Draft Board: 2.; "Mark Barwise Dies Thursday at Age of 55," Bangor Daily Commercial, 7 June 1937.
- ^ Iowa governor and US senator Harold E. Hughes (1922-1996) was also a one-time spiritualist and self-described "seeker," which became an issue when he was being considered as a possible candidate for President of the United States in the 1972 election. James Risser and George Anthan, "'Personal' Religion of Senator Hughes," The Des Moines Register 11 July 1971, p1; National Spiritualist Association, Centennial Book of Modern Spiritualism in America (1948), p. 123