George W. Morgan

George W. Morgan

George Washington Morgan (born September 20, 1820 in Washington , Pennsylvania , †  July 26, 1893 in Fort Monroe , Virginia ) was an American politician . Between 1867 and 1873 he represented the state of Ohio in the US House of Representatives twice .

Career

George Morgan attended Washington College , now Washington & Jefferson College in Pennsylvania , until 1836 . Despite his youth, he took in 1836 at the War of Independence of Texas in part. He then belonged to the Texas Rangers until 1839 . He then returned to Pennsylvania. Between 1841 and 1843 he was enrolled at the United States Military Academy at West Point . However, he did not graduate there because of poor grades. After studying law and being admitted to the bar, he began to work in this profession from 1845 in Mount Vernon (Ohio). He also served as a Knox County attorney for some time . He also took part in various units in the Mexican-American War and, despite his failure at West Point, made it to colonel and brevet brigadier general. In the meantime he was wounded in the fighting.

After the war, George Morgan continued his legal practice in Ohio. Politically, he became a member of the Democratic Party . In 1855 he became the American consul in Marseille ( France ); from 1858 to 1861 he was the successor to John L. O'Sullivan US envoy to Portugal . Between 1861 and 1863 he served as a Brigadier General in various units of the Union Army in the Civil War . On June 8, 1863, he had to quit military service for health reasons. He was a loyal supporter of the Union. But he condemned the abolition of slavery in the southern states. In 1865 he ran unsuccessfully for governor of Ohio.

In the congressional election of 1866 Morgan was elected to the US House of Representatives in Washington, DC in the 13th  constituency of Ohio , where he succeeded Columbus Delano on March 4, 1867 , whom he had defeated in the election. He became a member of the Foreign Affairs Committee. In the impeachment proceedings against President Andrew Johnson , Morgan voted in favor of the President. He was outspoken against the reconstruction policy of the radical wing of the Republican Party . His opponent from 1866, Columbus Delano, had appealed against the outcome of the election at the time. When this was granted, Morgan had to surrender his mandate to Delano on June 3, 1868. In the elections of 1868 he managed to return to Congress, where he replaced Delano on March 4, 1869. After re-election, he was able to complete two full legislative terms in the US House of Representatives until March 3, 1873. He was again a member of the Foreign Affairs Committee. He was also a member of the Military Committee and the Reconstruction Committee. He applied unsuccessfully for the office of speaker .

In 1872 Morgan was no longer elected to Congress. Four years later, he was a delegate to the Democratic National Convention in St. Louis , where Samuel J. Tilden was nominated as a presidential candidate. He died on July 26, 1893 at Fort Monroe and was buried at Mount Vernon.

Web links

Commons : George W. Morgan  - Collection of Images, Videos and Audio Files

• George W. Morgan in the Biographical Directory of the United States Congress (English)

• George W. Morgan in the database of Find a Grave (English)