Joseph R. Burton

Joseph Burton
United States Senator
from Kansas
In office
March 4, 1901 – June 4, 1906
Preceded byLucien Baker
Succeeded byAlfred W. Benson
Member of the Kansas House of Representatives
In office
1882–1892
Personal details
Born
Joseph Ralph Burton

(1852-11-16)November 16, 1852
Mitchell, Indiana, U.S.
DiedFebruary 27, 1923(1923-02-27) (aged 70)
Los Angeles, California, U.S.
Political partyRepublican
EducationUnited States Naval Academy
Franklin College, Indiana
DePauw University

Joseph Ralph Burton (November 16, 1852 – February 27, 1923) was a lawyer and United States Senator from the state of Kansas. He was the first Senator to be convicted of a crime. He served in the Kansas House of Representatives several times in the 1880s and was elected to the United States Senate in 1901, but he was convicted of accepting bribes in 1905. He appealed twice to the Supreme Court, but the judgment was eventually upheld and he resigned. He lived out his life as a lawyer and newspaperman.