George Wolf
George Wolf | |
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7th Governor of Pennsylvania | |
In office December 15, 1829 – December 15, 1835 | |
Preceded by | John Andrew Shulze |
Succeeded by | Joseph Ritner |
Member of the U.S. House of Representatives from Pennsylvania's 8th district | |
In office 1824–1829 | |
Preceded by | Thomas J. Rogers, Samuel D. Ingham |
Succeeded by | Peter Ihrie, Jr., Samuel A. Smith |
Member of the Pennsylvania House of Representatives | |
In office 1814 | |
Personal details | |
Born | Allen Township, Pennsylvania | August 12, 1777
Died | March 11, 1840 Philadelphia, Pennsylvania | (aged 62)
Resting place | Harrisburg Cemetery |
Nationality | American |
Political party | Democratic |
Spouse(s) | Mary Erb (1798–1833; her death) |
Signature | ![]() |
George Wolf (August 12, 1777 – March 11, 1840) was the seventh Governor of Pennsylvania from 1829 to 1835. On June 29, 1888, he was recognized as the "father of the public-school system" in Pennsylvania by the erection of a memorial gateway at Easton.[1]
Biography[]
Early years[]
Wolf was born in Allen Township, Pennsylvania. His parents, George and Mary Wolf, had immigrated from Alsace, then a province of the Holy Roman Empire, in 1751.[2] George Wolf was educated at a classical school, taught for some time, and then studied law.[1] He was admitted to the bar in 1799 and commenced practice in Easton, Pennsylvania. He became a member of the Democratic Republican Party at the start of Thomas Jefferson's administration,[1] and was appointed postmaster of Easton, which office he filled in 1802 and 1803. He was a clerk of the orphans' court of Northampton County, Pennsylvania, from 1803 to 1809. He was a member of the Pennsylvania House of Representatives in 1814.
Wolf married Mary Erb (1781–1833) of Lancaster, Pennsylvania, on June 5, 1798.[2] The couple had eight sons and one daughter.[2]
U.S. House of Representatives[]
Wolf was elected without opposition to the United States House of Representatives in 1824 to the Eighteenth Congress to fill the vacancy caused by the resignation of Thomas J. Rogers. He was reelected to the Nineteenth, Twentieth, and Twenty-first Congresses. He took the protectionist side in debates on the tariff.[1]
Governor of Pennsylvania[]
As member of the Jacksonian Democratic Party, Wolf defeated Joseph Ritner in both 1829 and 1832 to become the Governor of Pennsylvania. He lost the governor's seat to the Anti-Mason candidate Ritner in 1835, owing to the defection of a part of the Democrats, who voted for Henry A. Muhlenberg.[1]
As governor, Wolf persuaded the legislature to construct canals and impose new taxes for the liquidation of debts that had already been incurred on account of internal improvements. Wolf advocated the establishment of a general system of common schools, and by strenuous efforts accomplished this reform where former governors had failed.[1]
Later years[]
From 1827 to 1840, Wolf was a trustee of Lafayette College.[3] In 1836 Andrew Jackson appointed him as first Comptroller of the Treasury. Two years later President Martin Van Buren appointed him as Collector of Customs for the District of Philadelphia in a job swap with James Nelson Barker. He held this office until his death.[1][4]
Legacy[]
Wolf Hall on the campus of Penn State University is named for George Wolf. Wolf Township in Lycoming County is also named for him, as is Wolf Street in Philadelphia. The Governor Wolf Building, built in 1893 as the first Easton High School in Easton, the George Wolf Elementary School in Bath, and the Governor Wolf Elementary School in Bethlehem are also named for Governor Wolf. The Governor Wolf Historical Society in East Allen Township is named for George Wolf and is the historic site of Wolf Academy where young George received a classical education and went on to become a teacher there.
References[]
- ^ Jump up to: a b c d e f g One or more of the preceding sentences incorporates text from a publication now in the public domain: Wilson, J. G.; Fiske, J., eds. (1889). . Appletons' Cyclopædia of American Biography. New York: D. Appleton.
- ^ Jump up to: a b c Richards, Miles (January 14, 2015). "Exploring History: Pennsylvania's 1st Governor Wolf". Pittsburgh Tribune Review. Retrieved May 25, 2015.
- ^ Skillman, David Bishop (1932). The Biography of a College: Being the History of the First Century of the Life of Lafayette College. Easton, Pennsylvania: Lafayette College. Retrieved March 4, 2018.
- ^ "George Wolf Esq". Raleigh Register. March 13, 1840. p. 5. Retrieved May 7, 2021 – via Newspapers.com.
Sources[]
- Pennsylvania Historical and Museum Commission Biography at the Wayback Machine (archived September 8, 2006)
- United States Congress. "George Wolf (id: W000673)". Biographical Directory of the United States Congress.
- The Political Graveyard
External links[]
- George Wolf at Find a Grave
- The George Wolf papers, containing much of Wolf's correspondence from his time in office, are available for research use at the Historical Society of Pennsylvania.
- 1777 births
- 1840 deaths
- Burials at Harrisburg Cemetery
- Governors of Pennsylvania
- Members of the United States House of Representatives from Pennsylvania
- Members of the Pennsylvania House of Representatives
- Pennsylvania lawyers
- American people of German descent
- Pennsylvania Dutch people
- Comptrollers of the United States Treasury
- Pennsylvania postmasters
- Pennsylvania Jacksonians
- Pennsylvania Democratic-Republicans
- Democratic-Republican Party members of the United States House of Representatives
- Jacksonian members of the United States House of Representatives
- 19th-century American politicians
- Democratic-Republican Party state governors of the United States
- Lafayette College trustees