USA > Pennsylvania > Portraits of the heads of state departments and portraits and sketches of members of the legislature of Pennsylvania, 1893-1894 > Part 9
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91
House of Representatives.
W ILLIAM L. CASSIN, of the Twen- tieth district, Philadelphia, was born in Philadelphia May, 1850, and was educated in the private schools of that city. His father, John Cassin, was a native of Media, Delaware county, Pa., where he was born September 6, 1813, and his great grandfather, Joseph Cassin, came to Philadelphia from Queens county, Ireland, in 1725. Mr. Cassin's parents moved to Philadelphia early in this century. Here his father engaged in the lithographic business, being a mem- ber of the firm of J. T. Bowen & Co. He was a member of common and select councils, of the Academy of Natural Sciences, Zoological Society, American Philosophical Society and Pennsylvania Historical Society. He was one of the greatest ornithologists of his day and made the collection of birds at the Academy of Natural Sciences his chief care. At the time of Mr. Cassin's death it was considered to be the finest collection in the world. He wrote much, his prin- cipal works being the " Birds of California and 'Texas," "Synopsis of the Birds of North America," "Ornithology of the United States Japan Exploring Expedi- tion," "United States Astronomical Expedition to Chili," "Mammalogy and Ornithology of the Wilks Exploring Expedition " and " American Ornithology." He was a fine English, Latin, Greek and Hebrew scholar and was one of the most distinguished naturalists this country has produced. He died in Philadelphia, January 10, 1869, and was buried in Laurel Hill Cemetery. Mr. Cassin learned the trade of lithographie printing and after associated himself with the Oak Chem- ical Company, Philadelphia, with which he has since been connected. He has always taken active parts in politics and is a firm believer in the principles of the Democratic party. In 1892 he was elected to the Legislature from a Republican district and is a member of the Committees on Printing, Accounts, Compare Bills and Legislative Committee. He is also a member of the committee to investigate the Philadelphia Electric Light Trust. Mr. Cassin introduced and is interested in the passage of the measures known as the Lloyd's Association bill and the bill compelling pawnbrokers to give a description of the goods pawned with them to the police within twenty-four hours. He is a member of Roxborough Lodge No. 135, F. & A. M., the Independent Order of Odd Fellows, the American Legion of Honor, Independent Order of Red Men. the Encampment I. O. O. F. and the Ancient Order of United Workmen, White Cross Castle, K. G. E., and Union Commandery.
92
House of Representatives.
JOHN T. HARRISON, representing the Twenty-second ward of Phila- delphia in the House, was born in Eng- land on the 8th of March, 1848. Was brought to this country by his parents when five months old. He received his education in the admirable public schools of Germantown, which is an integral part of Philadelphia. His career began with the rebellion. Although a youth of between fifteen and sixteen years he determined to enlist through a patriotic impulse. His eagerness to don the blue was not ap- preciated by the recruiting officers of the Union army stationed in Philadel- phia and the vicinity, who rejected him by reason of his age disqualification and because he could not produce the consent of his parents. The youthful Harrison then journeyed to Baltimore, where he was more successful. On the 13th day of February, 1864, he became a member of company B. Eleventh Maryland, shouldering a musket. He served with distinction until the close of the war and received an honorable discharge. Upon the return to his home Mr. Harrison entered the service of the Philadelphia and Reading railroad, being appointed express messenger on the main line and branches for nine years. While employed in a similar capacity on the Texas and Pacific railway an episode occurred which serves to show the inflexibility of his character. He was injured in a train accident, but was so determined to guard the safe of the express company, containing a large amount of money, that he refused to leave it until cousiderable time after, and then only upon the ap- pearace of the proper officials. The delay in receiving surgical treatment caused Mr. Harrison to spend seven months in a hospstal. Mr. Harrison is a prosperous and wide-awake manufacturer at Germantown, which is a busy hive of industry. He is a member of the firm of Harrison & Maltratt, hosiery manufacturers. He is a member of the Masonic Order and of Ellis Post No. 6, G. A. R. Mr. Harrison has been an active Republican since his return from the army. He has served as delegate to party conventions and as a member of the ward committee. He was elected to the Legislature in 1892, after a memorable contest, Herbert Walsh President Cleveland's Indian Commissioner and a well-known reformer, running as a third candidate in the hope of diverting the Republican vote. Mr. Harrison was elected by almost the regulation party majority, which was a splendid testi- monial of the appreciation in which he is held by people of the Twenty-second ward.
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93
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House of Representatives.
D ANIEL MANNING COLLAMER, Representative of the Twenty- second district, Philadelphia, is, as his father was, a contractor and builder, having been engaged in the business ever since he learned the trade. He was born in New York City in 1856. His mother was a descendent of Pil- grim immigrants in the Mayflower, and his father's ancestry, originally Ger- man, is American for over two hundred and fifty years. His parents removed from Salem, Mass., to Philadelphia, about forty years ago. His father's uncle, Jacob Collamer, was United States Senator from Vermont, a judge at Woonsocket, Vt., and, subsequently, Lincoln's postmaster general. The ma- ternal great-grandfather of the Repre- sentative was a brother of Daniel Web- LEVY TYRREL , PHILA ster's mother. Mr. Collamer attended the Philadelphia public schools until he was thirteen years old, when he started life's battle as an errand boy around building operations. He was a member of the Philadelphia Board of Education for about two years, resigning to become a member of the present Legislature. He secured from city councils $20,000 for an addition to the Fairhill school and $40,000 for the new school at Coopersville. In a district with an average Republican majority of 600 he was elected Representa- tive as the Republican candidate, in November, 1892, by 812 majority over the strongest Democrat who could have been nominated against him, ex-Councilman Frank A. Hartranft, a relative of the late General John F. Hartranft, although there was factional trouble among the Republicans of the district at that time. He is a member of the House Committees on Education, Judicial and Congres- sional Apportionment and Retrenchment and Reform. He was largely instru- mental in defeating the plan to make the basis of distributing the school fund, the number of months spent in teaching and the number of divisions or single schools. He introduced the bills to make election day a legal holiday, to abolish the travel- obstructing gate of the Fifth and Sixth Streets railway at Lehigh and Kensington avenues, to extend to five years the term of contracts for cleaning streets and collecting ashes and garbage in Philadelphia, and to enable the sureties of build- ing inspectors to be released. He has been a leader in the battles for rapid transit in his city, and advocated making Saturday afternoon throughout the year a legal half-holiday. He engineered, in the House of Representatives, the bill empower- ing mechanics and laborers in and around buildings in course of construction or repair, to bring levies against the property for wages. Besides serving as a dele- gate in state and local conventions, he was chairman of the Republican Magistrate Convention in 1891. Seven political clubs, including those of his own district and the Anti-Cobden and Tom Reed clubs, have him as a member, and he is Past Master of Apollo Lodge 386, ex-Past High Priest of Corinthian Chapter 250 (Masonic), a member of Corinthian Commandery 53, K. T., a past officer of Delta Castle, Knights of the Golden Eagle, and a member of Kensington Lodge I. O. O. F. Mr. Collamer is a concise and forcible public speaker.
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94
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House of Representatives.
W TILLIAM LITTLEY, of the Thirty- fifth ward, Philadelphia, enjoys the distinction of more nearly repre- senting himself than any other member of that delegation, perhaps. He was nominated for the present session against the command of the powerful conbina- tion that controls the Republican pol- itics of Philadelphia, against the leaders of his district and of great and rich cor- porations. The subject of this sketch was born in Birmingham, England, July 3, 1855. When at the age of fifteen he accompanied his parents to this country, they settling in Philadelphia. Soon after he was articled as an apprentice to the trade of a wagon blacksmith and at the completion of his trade entered the employ of the Disston Saw Works, then located in the Kensington district. He was assigned to the drop forging depart- ment. He followed these great works when they were moved to Tacony, in the Twenty-third ward, and was made foreman of his department. His skill as a workman and his inventive genius led him to suggest and to invent improvements in this department which actually doubled its output. His services thereby be- came invaluable to the firm, so much so that its operations were turned over to him under a contract. No man has a higher standing, in the Disston Saw Works than he. Mr. Littly identified himself with the Republican party when he came of age. He has been a member of the ward committee for a number of years, a delegate to many city nominating conventions and a factor in the political affairs of the ward. He is a member of the Masonic fraternity, the Knights of Sparta and the Red Men. He was largely instrumental in the organization of the Tacony Republican Club and is an active member of the Union Republican Club, the cen- tral Republican club organization of the city. He is a member of the House Com- mittees on Corporations and Centennial Affairs. He swept the primaries for the nomination after one of the biggest contests the ward probably ever witnessed.
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95
House of Representatives."
S AMUEL PELTZ, Representative of the Twenty-fourth Philadelphia, district, is one of the ablest of the younger members of the Legislature, and, although this is his first term at law-making, has already won distinction as a calm, logical, forceful speaker and an industrious and sagacious worker. Mr. Peltz was born in Philadelphia on September 9, 1860. His father, Richard Peltz, is deputy clerk of the quarter sessions of Philadelphia, an ex-member of the city councils and one of the Pub- lic Building Commissioners to whom special tributes of respect were paid by members of the present Legislature in their fight to abolish that commission. The paternal grandfather of the subject of this sketch was a member of the LEVETYPE ER PHILA House of Representatives in 1830. The grandson was educated in private schools and the University of Pennsylvania, graduating from the college depart- ment of the latter institution in 1880. He studied law with the late William Nelson West, city solicitor of Philadelphia, and Henry J. McCarthy, and was ad- mitted to the bar in 1882. He has practiced his profession ever since in his native city, mainly in civil cases, but very successful at the criminal bar also. He was assistant city solicitor from 1882 to 1884, and solicitor of the Public Buildings Commission for nearly four years, resigning the latter position to be a candidate for Representative. He served as a delegate in numerous nominating conventions, particularly those for judges and city solicitor. In November, 1892, he was elected Representative by a majority of about 2,700 over his Democratic opponent, Charles M. Beitenmiller. He is a member of the House Committees on Judiciary Local, Constitutional Reform, Judicial and Congressional Apportionment and Centennial Affairs. Among the bills introduced by him are those making appro- propriations to the Blind Men's Home, Western Temporary Home and Western Home for Infants, and several bills relating to practice in the courts of common pleas. His ability as a presiding officer has been shown in temporarily acting as Speaker of the House, and his extensive legal knowledge and forensic skill were displayed in his leadership, on the side of the Public Buildings Commission, of the discussion on the bill to abolish that body. Besides being enrolled in several local political clubs, including the Lincoln and Belmont Clubs of the Twenty- fourth wards, Mr. Peltz is a member of the Young Republicans and the Union League.
96
House of Representatives.
G YEORGE W. WEISSHAAR, who, in part, represents the Twenty-fourth district of Philadelphia, was born in that city March 31, 1860. When nine years old he went to Newark, Illinois, where he attended the Newark Acad- emy for two years. He returned to Philadelphia at the expiration of that time, attended the Fayette Grammar school and after having graduated de- voted three years and a half to the acquirement of additional education in the Central high school at Broad and Green streets. Soon after he left the institution he entered the Carleton Print Works and was employed as a finisher, remaining in the establishment five years. He then made his home at Stott- ville, Columbia county, New York, ATTPECA FRIL where he passed eighteen months and from which place he again went to Philadelphia. On his return to his native city he entered the employ of Bement, Miles & Co., the owners of the most extensive tool works in the United States. He started with the firm as a clerk but was gradually promoted until made pay- master, which position he continues to hold. He has been in the service of the company for twelve years. Mr. Weisshaar has never held any office but the one to which his constituents elected him by about 2,700 majority, but he has been a delegate frequently to conventions of the Republican party in Philadelphia. He served in the House on the Banks, Military, Pensions and Gratuities and other committees. His father was a carriage-maker, and his ancestry dates back to Wirtemburg, Germany.
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97
House of Representatives.
JOSEPH G. RICHMOND, one of the Representatives of the Twenty-fifth district, although of Philadelphia par- entage on his mother's side, was born in Yonkers, N. Y., February 4, 1857. Mr. Richmond's mother was Miss Sarah M. Gilmore. His father is a well and wide- ly-known business man, having been in the wholesale and retail grocery busi- ness for the last fifty years. Mr. Rich- mond's early education was obtained in the public and private schools of Yonk- ers, N. Y., and Newark, N. J., and the famous High School of Mont Clair, N. J. From the time of leaving school until a few years ago he had always been en- gaged with his father in the grocery business. He is now with Koons, Schwarz & Co., wholesale grocers, Phil- adelphia. Since coming of age Mr. Richmond has ever been active in poli- tics, having attended as a delegate all the ward and city conventions for which he was a candidate, and was chairman of too many ward conventions to remember. He was a delegate to the state convention which nominated General Beaver and Lieutenant-Governor Davies for the second time. He was also chairman of the congressional convention which sent Mayor Stuart and Congressman H. H. Bing- ham as delegates to the National convention which nominated General B. H. Har- rison for President the first time. He has been a member of the House of Repre- sentatives three times, in the sessions of 1889, 1891 and 1893. At the last time that he was chosen he had a higher vote in the district than any other candidate on the ticket with him. Mr. Richmond has also achieved prominence in secret society circles, being a member and past master of Mozart Lodge No. 436, F. & A. M., Caledonia Lodge No. 700, I. O. O. F., and Aurora Castle No. 15, K. G. E. He is also a member of the Young Repubhean Club of Philadelphia. He was cap- tain of its Company O in the campaigns of 1884, 1888 and 1892, and for several years served on its board of directors. Mr. Richmond has acquired prominence in the present House by his championship of the Penrose bill and has made himself solid with his constituents as well as by the interest which he has taken in other bills which were purely local in their effects.
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98
House of Representatives.
ROBERT SMITH, who was elected to represent the Twenty-sixth ward, now divided into the Twenty-sixth and Thirty-sixth wards, is one of the young- est members of the House of Represent- atives. He was born in the ward which he now represents in the Legis- lature and will not have rounded out thirty years of life until June 13 of the present year. He was born in Philadel- phia and is of Irish descent. His father also acquired prominence in the administration of affairs in Philadelphia and at one time occupied a responsible position under the municipal govern- ment in the Bureau of Gas. Mr. Smith is one of the many Philadelphia Repre- sentatives whose education has been obtained in the public schools of his native city. He carly entered mercan- tile life, first in the grocery business, but shortly afterwards went into the clothing business. After remaining for sixteen years in the employ of Wanamaker & Brown, he joined the forces of W. H. Wanamaker, with whom he yet retains a position. Mr. Smith, ever since his majority, has been very active in Republican politics in his ward and is looked upon as one of Mayor Stuart's direct Representatives on the floor of the House. For several years he has been a member of his ward executive committee. He was one of the incorporators of the Harmony Legion, of Company T, of which he was captain in the presidential campaign of 1888. He has been a member of the school board of the Twenty-sixth ward, from that portion which has been cut off to form the Thirty-sixth ward, and is a director of the Young Men's Republican Club of that ward. In 1891 he was elected without opposition to fill the unex- pired term of John M. Smith in the House and was re-elected for the full term in 1892 by a majority of 2,600. Mr. Smith is serving as member and secretary of the Committees on Congressional Apportionment and of Mines and Mining, and as a member of the Committees on Pensions and Gratuities and Constitutional Reform. Mr. Smith's society relations are very extensive at home and include membership . in Lodge No. 3, F. & A. M .; American Star Lodge, I. O. O. F .; Triumph Lodge, K. of P., of which he is past chancellor ; American Star Lodge, A. P. A .; Reli- ance Council, Jr. O. U. A. M., and Court Columbus, A. O. of Foresters.
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99
House of Representatives.
SAMUEL CROTHERS, who repre- sents the district comprising the Twenty-seventh ward, West Philadel- phia, is one of the prominent young members of the House of Representa- tives, and has acquired distinction' at the present session as the champion of rapid transit measures endorsed by a town meeting of the citizens of Phila- delphia. Mr. Crothers was born in Phil- adelphia county on October 12, 1856, when the word "county " as attached to Philadelphia indicated a large area of rural territory. Mr. Crothers' father was a farmer and dairyman of the suc- cessful kind. At as early an age as the law allowed he started off to the public schools the lad who was subsequently to attain distinction as the Representa- tive of his neighbors, first. in the muni- cipal legislature and later in the law- making body of the state. For ten years young Crothers pursued the studies pre- scribed, when his desire to enter upon the active field of business life was yielded to by his parents. He learned the trade of marble worker in all its branches, and as soon as he reached the line which the law draws between youth and manhood he entered upon an active career in the marble business for himself, and became an extensive employer. In this business he remained for eight years, when he recognized the enormous strides which Philadelphia was making in house build- ing and he embarked in the real estate business, at which he has been successful and in which he is now engaged. Upon his entering into political life Mr. Crothers was chosen to represent his ward in common councils, and was re-elected twice. While serving his third term he resigned to become a member of the Legislature of 1891. There was no opposition to his nomination last fall, and the Democrats, recognizing the futility of opposition to his election, made no nomination for the office. Mr. Crothers' Committees in the present Legislature are Insurance, Manu- factures, Federal Relations, City Passenger Railways and Congressional Apportion- ment.
100
House of Representatives.
C `HARLES HARRY FLETCHER, of Philadelphia, was born in the old district of Southwark on the 11th day of February, 1849, and in October of that year moved into the Twenty-first ward, now.the Twenty-eighth. He is a son of Joshua L. Fletcher, who achieved a national fanie, as the editor and pub- lisher of the Philadelphia Daily Sun, the influential organ of the Native American party. During the riots of 1844 the office of the Daily Sun was attacked by an infuriated mob and threatened with destruction. Mr. Flet- cher was made of stern stuff, however, and refused to be cowed by the mob intimidation. For a number of years he was one of the political leaders of the city and a man of strong force of char- acter and literary ability. The subject of this sketch received a sound educa- tion in the public and private schools of Philadelphia. He began his active career in life as a clerk in the general office of the Pennsylvania railroad, in which employment he acquired a high standing. Like his distinguished father, Mr. Fletcher took to political activity as a duck gravitates to water, and, when he had attained his majority, he was even then known as an enthusiastic party worker. From that time to this his influence in the field and in the councils of his party has steadily increased and widened so that now he is the Republican leader of the Twenty-eighth ward, one of the largest, most populous and intelligent in the city. His first public appointment was in the water de- partment of the city. He subsequently transferred his services to the Gas Bureau of the Receiver of Taxes where he filled the position of chief clerk with marked ability. In 1888, Mr. Fletcher was elected to the Legislature from the district now known as the Twenty-seventh and which includes the Twenty-eighth, Thirty-second and Thirty-seventh wards, and has served continuously since, there having been no opposition to either of his three nominations. He is looked upon as one of the leading and influential members of the city delegation. For twenty- one years he has been a member of the Republican Executive Committee of his ward, a political record rarely attained in a great city where the competition in politics is so sharp and constant. He has been secretary of the Republican City Committee for eight years for which he is peculiarily adapted both by training and experience, and in which capacity he has enjoyed intimate and confidential relations with the party leaders, has aided in molding the party policy and the selection of the candidates. He holds an active membership in eleven political and social clubs. He is president of the Twenty-eighth-Thirty-second club, the leading Republican organization of his ward. Mr. Fletcher's popularity extends far beyond the bounds of his own district and he has been prominently mentioned as a candidate for a luerctive Row office. He is a rare type of the bustling tire- less junior Republican leaders who have maintained Philadelphia steadily as the Gibraltar of Republicanism. He resides in the family homestead. He is a brother of the late L. B. Fletcher of the Eighth Pennsylvania Cavalry and of Colonel J. S. Fletcher of the United States Regular Army, now on the retired list.
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House of Representatives.
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H ENRY F. WALTON, the popular young Republican leader of the House, is one of the Representatives from the Twenty-seventh district, Phil- adelphia. He was born in Stroudsburg, Monroe county, Pa., October 2, 1858, and removed to Philadelphia with his parents the following year. After hav- ing been educated in the public schools and by private tutors he entered the law office of Hon. Wayne Mac Veagh & George Tucker Bispham, Esqs., and was shortly afterward appointed assist- ant librarian of the law library by Mr. Bispham. In 1876 he was registered as a law student under that gentleman, and in the meantime was a prominent member and officer of the law academy. Two days after his twenty-first birth- LEVYTYPE LO. PHIL A day, October 4, 1879, he was admitted to the bar, and immediately entered the law office of Francis Rawle, Esq. In April, 1884, when Charles F. Warwick be- came city solicitor of Philadelphia, that gentleman, in recognition of Mr. Walton's abilities, appointed him as one of his assistants, and retained his services until he was elected a member of the Legislature. For fourteen years Mr. Walton has been one of the most popular and progressive residents of the Twenty-eighth and Twenty-second wards, Philadelphia, an active worker in the Republican ranks, and has performed yeoman's service therein. Before he attained his majority he made a brilliant address in favor of James A. Garfield's candidacy for President, and since that time he has been a prominent and pleasing stump orator. In November, 1890, Mr. Walton was elected to the Legislature from the Twenty- seventh district, which comprises the Twenty-eighth and Thirty-second wards of Philadelphia. He was re-elected in 1892, and was the choice of the Philadelphia delegation for Speaker of the House. Mr. Walton's candidacy for this honorable position challenged the admiration of all who knew him, and many of his col- leagues were pledged to his support. On the day on which the Republican caucus was held he withdrew, and was selected by Hon. Caleb C. Thompson, of War- ren, who was unanimously nominated, to place his name before the cancus. Mr. Walton is an able lawyer and a legislator with a promising future. He is chair- man of the House Judiciary General Committee and a member of other important committees. He is a prominent and influential member of many fraternal organi- zations. He is a charter member of the Young Republicans of Philadelphia, and his name is upon the rolls of several political organizations. He was married in 1882 to Ella G. Norman, of Baltimore. His family consists of his wife and three daughters. This is the way the Philadelphia Record, that staunch Democratic daily, speaks of Mr. Walton, who, of course, is a Republican : "Eloquence is not the only characteristic of ability which Mr. Walton possesses. He is a born parlia- mentarian, and can hold the Honse in better command than any other member whom Speaker Thompson has called to the chair. He has a dignified manner that befits a presiding officer. During the session he has given his attention to general legislation with marked industry and ability."
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