The time a congressman was killed on the Chamber Trip

One piece of advise for the almost 1,000 New Jerseyans who are taking the train to Washington today: be wary of those balconies over French doors.

The New Jersey Chamber of Commerce Walk to Washington and Congressional Reception has been a political tradition in New Jersey for over 80 years. Following a five-year break due to a hotel shutdown and a worldwide epidemic, the train excursion is returning with nine gubernatorial contenders.

At the chamber’s dinner held at the Carlton Hotel in Washington in January 1938, 53-year-old Representative Edward Aloysius Kenney (D-Cliffside Park) served as the main speaker.

Kenney couldn’t make it back to his apartment after what might have been a fun evening. Kenney was given a hotel room by the Chamber. He may have been confused when he woke up in the middle of the night and went looking for the facilities. He plummeted six stories to his death after mistaking a French window that was eighteen inches from the floor for a door. In the morning, his body was discovered on a concrete walkway.

Kenney supported a national lottery based on the Irish Sweepstakes while he was a lawmaker.

In 1932, Kenney, helped by Franklin Roosevelt’s coattails, defeated World War I veteran and Cliffside Park Mayor Joseph Marini, 34, by 890 votes, 47.6%-46.8%. In 1921, he ran as an independent for mayor of Cliffside Park; in 1923, he ran as a Republican; and in 1927, he ran as a Democrat.

Later in the year, in a special election, Republicans won his ninth district seat.