Democratic National Convention in St. Louis, Missouri. On December 26, 1907, Bryan was appointed to the United States Senate to fill the vacancy caused by the death of Stephen Mallory II. Bryan traveled to Washington, DC to take the seat on January 8, 1908. Death and legacy About a month after his arrival in the nation's capital, Bryan was stricken with typhoid fever, an illness which caused his premature death on March 22, 1908, at the age of 31. Bryan was buried at Evergreen Cemetery in Jacksonville, Florida. Bryan's older brother, Nathan Philemon Bryan (1872–1935), would be elected to the United States Senate in 1910 and served a full term in Washington before becoming a Federal Circuit Court judge. See also List of United States Congress members who died in office (1900–49) Footnotes Further reading William James Bryan (Late a Senator from Florida): Memorial Addresses, 60th Congress, 1st Session: Senate of the United States, May 2, 1908; House of Representatives, May 3, 1908. Washington, DC: U.S. Government Printing Office, 1909. 1876 births 1908 deaths 19th-century American lawyers 20th-century American lawyers 20th-century American politicians Deaths from typhoid fever Democratic Party United States senators from Florida Emory University alumni Florida Democrats Florida lawyers Infectious disease deaths in Washington, D.C. People from Lake County, Florida Washington and Lee University School of Law alumni