Bird J. Vincent was a soldier and politician from the U.S. state

U.S. state

A U.S. state is any one of the 50 federated states of the United States of America that share sovereignty with the federal government. Because of this shared sovereignty, an American is a citizen both of the federal entity and of his or her state of domicile. Four states use the official title of...

 of Michigan

Michigan

Michigan is a U.S. state located in the Great Lakes Region of the United States of America. The name Michigan is the French form of the Ojibwa word mishigamaa, meaning "large water" or "large lake"....

.

Early life

Vincent was born in Brandon Township

Brandon Township, Michigan

Brandon Charter Township is a charter township of Oakland County in the U.S. state of Michigan. The village of Ortonville is within the township, although some development near the village lies within adjacent Groveland Township. The population was 15,175 at the 2010 census.-Geography:According...

 near Clarkston, Michigan

Clarkston, Michigan

Clarkston, known officially by the name City of the Village of Clarkston, is a small city located within Independence Charter Township in Oakland County in the U.S. state of Michigan. The population was 882 at the 2010 census.-Overview:...

.

Education

Vincent attended the public schools of Oakland

Oakland County, Michigan

-Demographics:As of the 2010 Census, there were 1,202,362 people, 471,115 households, and 315,175 families residing in the county. The population density as of the 2000 census was 1,369 people per square mile . There were 492,006 housing units at an average density of 564 per square mile...

 and Midland

Midland County, Michigan

-Demographics:As of the census of 2000, there were 82,874 people, 31,769 households, and 22,683 families residing in the county. The population density was 159 people per square mile . There were 33,796 housing units at an average density of 65 per square mile...

 Counties and Ferris Institute (now Ferris State University

Ferris State University

Ferris State University is a public university with its main campus in Big Rapids, Michigan, USA. Founded in 1884 as the Big Rapids Industrial School by Woodbridge Nathan Ferris, an educator from New England who later served as governor of the State of Michigan and finally in the US Senate where...

) in Mecosta County

Mecosta County, Michigan

Mecosta County is a county in the U.S. state of Michigan. The county is named after Chief Mecosta, the leader of the Potawatomi Native American tribe that once traveled the local waterways in search of fish and game. Chief Mecosta was one of the signers the Treaty of Washington in 1836. The easily...

. He graduated from the law department of the University of Michigan

University of Michigan

The University of Michigan is a public research university located in Ann Arbor, Michigan in the United States. It is the state's oldest university and the flagship campus of the University of Michigan...

 at Ann Arbor in 1905, and was admitted to the bar

Bar (law)

Bar in a legal context has three possible meanings: the division of a courtroom between its working and public areas; the process of qualifying to practice law; and the legal profession.-Courtroom division:...

 the same year, and commenced practice in Saginaw

Saginaw, Michigan

Saginaw is a city in the U.S. state of Michigan and the seat of Saginaw County. The city of Saginaw was once a thriving lumber town and manufacturing center. Saginaw and Saginaw County lie in the Flint/Tri-Cities region of Michigan...

.

Career

He served as assistant prosecuting attorney of Saginaw County from 1909 to 1914 and prosecuting attorney from 1915 to 1917. In 1917, Vincent resigned to enter the Army

United States Army

The United States Army is the main branch of the United States Armed Forces responsible for land-based military operations. It is the largest and oldest established branch of the U.S. military, and is one of seven U.S. uniformed services...

. During World War I

World War I

World War I , which was predominantly called the World War or the Great War from its occurrence until 1939, and the First World War or World War I thereafter, was a major war centred in Europe that began on 28 July 1914 and lasted until 11 November 1918...

, he served ten months in France

France

The French Republic , The French Republic , The French Republic , (commonly known as France , is a unitary semi-presidential republic in Western Europe with several overseas territories and islands located on other continents and in the Indian, Pacific, and Atlantic oceans. Metropolitan France...

 as a first lieutenant

First Lieutenant

First lieutenant is a military rank and, in some forces, an appointment.The rank of lieutenant has different meanings in different military formations , but the majority of cases it is common for it to be sub-divided into a senior and junior rank...

 of the Sixth Train Headquarters and in the Three Hundred and Second Train Headquarters. After the war, he served as city attorney of Saginaw from 1919 to 1923. In 1922, Vincent was elected as a Republican from Michigan's 8th congressional district

Michigan's 8th congressional district

Michigan's 8th congressional district is a United States congressional district in Southern Michigan and Southeast Michigan. It consists of all of Clinton, Ingham, and Livingston counties, and includes the southern portion of Shiawassee and the northern portion of Oakland counties.The district was...

 to the 68th Congress

68th United States Congress

The Sixty-eighth United States Congress was a meeting of the legislative branch of the United States federal government, consisting of the United States Senate and the United States House of Representatives. It met in Washington, D.C. from March 4, 1923 to March 4, 1925, during the last months of...

, and subsequently re-elected to the four succeeding Congressional terms, serving from March 4, 1923 until his death in 1931. He was chairman of the Committee on Elections No. 2

United States House Committee on Elections

The United States House Committee on Elections is a former standing committee of the United States House of Representatives.Article 1, section 5, of the Constitution of the United States specifies: "Each House shall be the Judge of the Elections, Returns, and Qualifications of its own Members." The...

 in the 69th

69th United States Congress

The Sixty-ninth United States Congress was a meeting of the legislative branch of the United States federal government, consisting of the United States Senate and the United States House of Representatives. It met in Washington, D.C. from March 4, 1925 to March 4, 1927, during the third and fourth...

 and 71st

71st United States Congress

The Seventy-first United States Congress was a meeting of the legislative branch of the United States federal government, consisting of the United States Senate and the United States House of Representatives. It met in Washington, D.C. from March 4, 1929 to March 4, 1931, during the first two years...

 Congresses.

Death

Vincent died of heart disease, in office, while en route to San Francisco from Honolulu, Hawaii

Honolulu, Hawaii

Honolulu is the capital and the most populous city of the U.S. state of Hawaii. Honolulu is the southernmost major U.S. city. Although the name "Honolulu" refers to the urban area on the southeastern shore of the island of Oahu, the city and county government are consolidated as the City and...

 on board the transport USS Henderson

USS Henderson (AP-1)

The first USS Henderson was a transport in the United States Navy during World War I and World War II. In 1943, she was converted to a hospital ship and commissioned as USS Bountiful ....

. He interred in Forest Lawn Cemetery, Saginaw, Michigan.