Harry Bunkers
Democratic
Candidate Biography:
Born: June 30, 1874 in Dubuque, Iowa
Married.
1905: Expelled from the State Senate on February 27th.
- Legal Troubles: Bunkers was expelled from the Senate for accepting bribes (along with Senators Emmons, French, and Wright). Following their resignations, Bunkers and Emmons were convicted by juries and sentenced to five years in prison (Emmons at Folsom and Bunkers at San Quentin). French was tried and acquitted. Wright fled to South America as a fugitive for four years after being arraigned and released on $5000 bail; the charges against him were dismissed after his return.
- While in prison, Bunkers' house in San Francisco burned down on April 17, 1906. In one of the greatest ironies ever, articles about the fire appeared in the April 18th editions of the San Francisco Call, Sacramento Union, and Los Angeles Herald. On that day, the 1906 San Francisco Earthquake struck, in which (together with three days of fires that followed) destroyed 80% of the city including 25,000 buildings.
Source: "Calmly Dresses as Fire Rages," San Francisco Call, Volume 99, Number 139, 18 April 1906
Source: "Bunkers Residence Burns" by Associated Press, Los Angeles Herald, Volume 33, Number 200, 18 April 1906
Source: "Harry Bunkers' Home Destroyed," Sacramento Union, Volume 111, Number 56, 18 April 1906