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From 1835 to 1839, Scranton was interested in agricultural pursuits. From 1835 to 1839, Scranton was interested in agricultural pursuits.


He and his brother Selden became interested in new developments in industry and moved to northeast Pennsylvania, in an area of mining of ]. He and his brother Selden became interested in new developments in industry and moved to northeast Pennsylvania, in an area of mining of ]. Together with Sanford Grant and Philip H. Mattes, they formed the firm of Scrantons, Grant & Company. Mattes was head of a branch of a bank in ].<ref name="hitchcock">Frederick Lyman Hitchcock, , Volume 1, 1914, p. 8</ref>


In 1839 Scranton started manufacture of iron, and began experimenting with the practicability of ] ore by means of "hard" or ] in Slocum (now ]). Extensive mining of the coal in this area was already underway. In 1839 Scranton started manufacture of iron, and began experimenting with the practicability of ] ore by means of "hard" or ] in Slocum (now ]). This area became the center of extensive mining of anthracite coal.


Scranton was the founder of the ], named after the river, and the city of Scranton, named after him. He constructed the Northumberland division of the ]. He was the president of two railroad companies.<!--name --> Scranton was the founder of the ], named after the river. He and his brother Selden, together with Grant and Mattes, are considered founders of the city of Scranton, named after him.<ref name="hitchcock9">Hitchcock (1914), ''History of Scranton,'' p. 9</ref> He constructed the Northumberland division of the ]. He was the president of two railroad companies.<!--name -->


===Politics=== ===Politics===

Revision as of 02:21, 23 May 2016

George Whitfield Scranton
Member of the U.S. House of Representatives
from Pennsylvania's 12th district
In office
March 4, 1859 – March 24, 1861
Preceded byPaul Leidy
Succeeded byHendrick Bradley Wright
Personal details
Born(1811-05-11)May 11, 1811
Madison, Connecticut, US
DiedMarch 24, 1861(1861-03-24) (aged 49)
Scranton, Pennsylvania
Political partyRepublican
RelationsJoseph A. Scranton (second-cousin)

George Whitfield Scranton (May 11, 1811 – March 24, 1861) was an industrialist and politician, a Republican member of the U.S. House of Representatives from Pennsylvania from March 4, 1859, until his death in 1861. Moving from Connecticut to Pennsylvania in the late 1830s, he was the founder of the city of Scranton, Pennsylvania, where he established the Lackawanna Iron and Coal Company. He became a major industrialist, leading two railroad companies.

After his death, his cousin's son, William Walker Scranton, became general manager of the Iron & Coal Company, serving during the Scranton General Strike of 1877.

Early life

George Scranton was born in Madison, Connecticut. Among his siblings was his brother Selden T. Scranton. He attended Lee’s Academy. He moved to Belvidere, New Jersey, in 1828 and became a teamster.

Career

Skyline of downtown Scranton, Pennsylvania. The city named after him and his family.

From 1835 to 1839, Scranton was interested in agricultural pursuits.

He and his brother Selden became interested in new developments in industry and moved to northeast Pennsylvania, in an area of mining of anthracite coal. Together with Sanford Grant and Philip H. Mattes, they formed the firm of Scrantons, Grant & Company. Mattes was head of a branch of a bank in Easton, Pennsylvania.

In 1839 Scranton started manufacture of iron, and began experimenting with the practicability of smelting ore by means of "hard" or anthracite coal in Slocum (now Scranton, Pennsylvania). This area became the center of extensive mining of anthracite coal.

Scranton was the founder of the Lackawanna Iron & Coal Company, named after the river. He and his brother Selden, together with Grant and Mattes, are considered founders of the city of Scranton, named after him. He constructed the Northumberland division of the Lackawanna Railroad. He was the president of two railroad companies.

Politics

Scranton was elected to Congress from Pennsylvania as a Republican in 1858 to the 36th Congress and served from March 4, 1859, until his death in Scranton on March 24, 1861.

Personal life

He was the second-cousin to Joseph A. Scranton of Atlanta, Georgia. In 1847, the latter's son Joseph Hand Scranton moved with his second wife and young family to Scranton, Pennsylvania. One of his sons, William Walker Scranton, became general manager of the Lackawanna Iron & Coal company, serving in 1877 during the Scranton General Strike.

Sources

External links

U.S. House of Representatives
Preceded byPaul Leidy Member of the U.S. House of Representatives
from Pennsylvania's 12th congressional district
1859–1861 		Succeeded byHendrick B. Wright


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  1. Frederick Lyman Hitchcock, History of Scranton and Its People, Volume 1, 1914, p. 8
  2. Hitchcock (1914), History of Scranton, p. 9
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