George Cookman Sturgiss (August 16, 1842 – February 26, 1925) was an American

lawyer A lawyer is a person who is qualified to offer advice about the law, draft legal documents, or represent individuals in legal matters. The exact nature of a lawyer's work varies depending on the legal jurisdiction and the legal system, as w ...

and Republican politician who served as

United States Representative The United States House of Representatives is a chamber of the Bicameralism, bicameral United States Congress; it is the lower house, with the U.S. Senate being the upper house. Together, the House and Senate have the authority under Artic ...

for

West Virginia's 2nd congressional district West Virginia's 2nd congressional district consists of the northern half of the state. It contains Barbour, Berkeley, Brooke, Doddridge, Grant, Hampshire, Hancock, Hardy, Harrison, Jefferson, Lewis, Marion, Marshall, Mineral, Monongalia, Morgan ...

. He was a member of the 60th and

61st United States Congress The 61st United States Congress was a meeting of the legislative branch of the United States federal government, composed of the United States Senate and the United States House of Representatives. It met in Washington, D.C., from March 4, 1909, ...

es.

Biography

Sturgiss was born in

Poland, Ohio Poland is a village (United States)#Ohio, village in eastern Mahoning County, Ohio, United States. The population was 2,463 at the 2020 United States census. A suburb about south of Youngstown, Ohio, Youngstown, it is part of the Mahoning Vall ...

in Mahoning County and attended country schools. In 1859, he moved to Morgantown, Virginia (now

West Virginia West Virginia is a mountainous U.S. state, state in the Southern United States, Southern and Mid-Atlantic (United States), Mid-Atlantic regions of the United States.The United States Census Bureau, Census Bureau and the Association of American ...

). He attended and then taught at Monongalia Academy in Morgantown. He was admitted to the bar in 1863 and entered practice at Morgantown. During the

Civil War A civil war is a war between organized groups within the same Sovereign state, state (or country). The aim of one side may be to take control of the country or a region, to achieve independence for a region, or to change government policies.J ...

he served as a clerk under Maj. James V. Boughner, paymaster of United States Volunteers. After the war, he became superintendent of free schools for Monongalia County and served in that capacity from 1865 to 1869. From 1870 to 1872, Sturgiss was a member of the

West Virginia House of Delegates The West Virginia House of Delegates is the lower house of the West Virginia Legislature in West Virginia. Only three states—Maryland, Virginia, and West Virginia—refer to their lower house as the House of Delegates. Organization Regular se ...

. He then served as

prosecuting attorney A prosecutor is a legal representative of the prosecution in states with either the adversarial system, which is adopted in common law, or inquisitorial system, which is adopted in civil law. The prosecution is the legal party responsible ...

from 1872 to 1880. He became Republican nominee for

Governor A governor is an politician, administrative leader and head of a polity or Region#Political regions, political region, in some cases, such as governor-general, governors-general, as the head of a state's official representative. Depending on the ...

1880 Events January *January 27 – Thomas Edison is granted a patent for the incandescent light bulb. Edison filed for a US patent for an electric lamp using "a carbon filament or strip coiled and connected ... to platina contact wires." gr ...

but lost to Jacob B. Jackson. Subsequently, he was appointed by President

Benjamin Harrison Benjamin Harrison (August 20, 1833March 13, 1901) was the 23rd president of the United States, serving from 1889 to 1893. He was a member of the Harrison family of Virginia—a grandson of the ninth president, William Henry Harrison, and a ...

United States Attorney United States attorneys are officials of the U.S. Department of Justice who serve as the chief federal law enforcement officers in each of the 94 U.S. federal judicial districts. Each U.S. attorney serves as the United States' chief federal ...

for the district of West Virginia in 1889 and served four years. He was the first president of the State board of trade and of the State association for the promotion of good roads. In 1906, Sturgiss was elected as a Republican to the Sixtieth and then to the Sixty-first Congress (March 4, 1907 – March 3, 1911). His candidacy for re-election in 1910 to the Sixty-second Congress was unsuccessful. He then became a trustee of

American University The American University (AU or American) is a Private university, private University charter#Federal, federally chartered research university in Washington, D.C., United States. Its main campus spans 90-acres (36 ha) on Ward Circle, in the Spri ...

Washington, D.C. Washington, D.C., formally the District of Columbia and commonly known as Washington or D.C., is the capital city and federal district of the United States. The city is on the Potomac River, across from Virginia, and shares land borders with ...

He was instrumental in the construction of the Morgantown & Kingwood Railroad. He served on the bench as a judge of the

circuit court Circuit courts are court systems in several common law jurisdictions. It may refer to: * Courts that literally sit 'on circuit', i.e., judges move around a region or country to different towns or cities where they will hear cases; * Courts that s ...

from 1912 to 1920. In 1919, while he was serving on the Circuit Court of Monongalia County,

impeachment Impeachment is a process by which a legislative body or other legally constituted tribunal initiates charges against a public official for misconduct. It may be understood as a unique process involving both political and legal elements. In Eur ...

proceedings were initiated against Sturgiss. The Judiciary Committee of the

found that he was guilty of

corruption Corruption is a form of dishonesty or a criminal offense that is undertaken by a person or an organization that is entrusted in a position of authority to acquire illicit benefits or abuse power for one's gain. Corruption may involve activities ...

, but the full West Virginia House of Delegates voted against impeachment, with the question of impeachment being voted on 28–55. Sturgiss practiced law at Morgantown until his death on February 26, 1925, and was buried at Oak Grove Cemetery.

Sources

References

External links

West Virginia & Regional History Center The West Virginia & Regional History Center (WVRHC), is the largest archival collection housing documents and manuscripts involving West Virginia and the surrounding central Appalachian region. Because of name changes over the years, it is someti ...

West Virginia University West Virginia University (WVU) is a public university, public Land-grant university, land-grant research university with its main campus in Morgantown, West Virginia, United States. Its other campuses are those of the West Virginia University Ins ...

George Cookman Sturgiss, Papers
* 1842 births 1925 deaths 19th-century American educators 19th-century American lawyers 20th-century American lawyers School superintendents in West Virginia County prosecuting attorneys in West Virginia Lawyers from Morgantown, West Virginia Republican Party members of the West Virginia House of Delegates People from Poland, Ohio People of West Virginia in the American Civil War Politicians from Morgantown, West Virginia Republican Party members of the United States House of Representatives from West Virginia Schoolteachers from West Virginia Trustees of educational establishments United States attorneys for the District of West Virginia West Virginia circuit court judges West Virginia lawyers Burials at Oak Grove Cemetery (Morgantown, West Virginia) 19th-century members of the West Virginia Legislature 20th-century members of the United States House of Representatives {{WestVirginia-politician-stub

Biography

See also

Sources

References

External links