Representative Charles Bonnell Ward

Charles Bonnell Ward (April 27, 1879 – May 27, 1946) was a Republican member of the United States House of Representatives from New York who served five consecutive terms in Congress from 1915 to 1925. Born in Newark, Essex County, New Jersey, he was educated in the public schools of Newark before pursuing formal military and academic training. He graduated from Pennsylvania Military College in Chester, Pennsylvania (now Widener University) in 1899, receiving an education that combined military discipline with technical and liberal studies, an experience that helped shape his later pursuits in business, agriculture, and public service.

After completing his education, Ward moved from New Jersey to New York and settled in the small community of De Bruce in Sullivan County, in the Catskill region. There he engaged in agricultural pursuits, reflecting both the rural character of the area and his interest in farming and land management. His move to Sullivan County placed him in a growing resort and agricultural region, and he became closely identified with the economic and civic life of the county.

Ward expanded his activities beyond agriculture into journalism and publishing. He became editor and owner of the Liberty Register, a local newspaper published in Liberty, New York, a nearby town in Sullivan County. He held this position from 1910 to 1928. Through the Liberty Register he played a prominent role in shaping public opinion and local political discourse, using the paper as a platform to address community issues and Republican Party policies. His work as a newspaper editor and proprietor enhanced his visibility and influence in the region and provided a natural pathway into elective office.

Ward was elected as a Republican to the Sixty-fourth Congress and to the four succeeding Congresses, serving in the U.S. House of Representatives from March 4, 1915, to March 3, 1925. His decade in Congress coincided with a significant period in American history, encompassing World War I, the immediate postwar years, and the early 1920s. As a member of the House of Representatives from New York, he participated in the legislative process during these transformative years, representing the interests of his constituents from Sullivan County and the surrounding region. During his five terms in office, he contributed to debates and legislation affecting both national policy and the economic and social concerns of upstate New York, including issues important to rural communities, agriculture, and local development.

A loyal member of the Republican Party, Ward aligned with the party’s positions during an era marked by wartime mobilization, postwar readjustment, and the beginning of the 1920s economic expansion. He was reelected four times, reflecting sustained support from his district. In 1924, however, he declined to be a candidate for reelection to the Sixty-ninth Congress, choosing to retire from national office at the conclusion of his fifth term on March 3, 1925. His decision ended a continuous ten-year period of congressional service.

After leaving Congress, Ward returned to private life in Sullivan County and resumed his agricultural pursuits, maintaining his longstanding connection to farming and rural enterprise. He continued to own and operate the Liberty Register until 1928, extending his influence in local affairs through journalism even after his departure from Washington. In addition, he became owner and operator of the De Bruce Club Inn in De Bruce, a resort and hospitality establishment that catered to visitors drawn to the Catskills. Through this enterprise he contributed to the region’s growing tourism industry and remained an active figure in the community.

Charles Bonnell Ward died in Liberty, New York, on May 27, 1946. His death marked the close of a career that combined agriculture, journalism, business, and public service at both the local and national levels. He was interred in Mount Pleasant Cemetery in his native Newark, New Jersey, returning in death to the city where he had been born and educated before embarking on his varied and productive life in New York.