John Van Lear Findlay (December 21, 1839 – April 19, 1907) was a

U.S. Representative The United States House of Representatives is a chamber of the 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 Article One of th ...

from

Maryland Maryland ( ) is a U.S. state, state in the Mid-Atlantic (United States), Mid-Atlantic region of the United States. It borders the states of Virginia to its south, West Virginia to its west, Pennsylvania to its north, and Delaware to its east ...

Biography

Born at Mount Tammany, near

Williamsport, Maryland Williamsport is a town in Washington County, Maryland, United States. The population was 1,868 at the 2000 census and 2,137 as of 2010. Geography According to the United States Census Bureau, the town has a total area of , all land. William ...

, Findlay was privately tutored, pursued classical studies, and graduated from Princeton College in 1858. He served as member of the

Maryland House of Delegates The Maryland House of Delegates is the lower house of the Maryland General Assembly, legislature of the U.S. state of Maryland. It consists of 141 delegates elected from 47 districts. The House of Delegates Chamber is in the Maryland State House ...

in 1861 and 1862. He studied law, was

admitted to the bar An admission to practice law is acquired when a lawyer receives a license to practice law. In jurisdictions with two types of lawyer, as with barristers and solicitors, barristers must gain admission to the bar whereas for solicitors there are dist ...

, and commenced practice in

Baltimore, Maryland Baltimore is the List of municipalities in Maryland, most populous city in the U.S. state of Maryland. With a population of 585,708 at the 2020 United States census, 2020 census and estimated at 568,271 in 2024, it is the List of United States ...

, in 1869. He served as collector of internal revenue for the third district of Maryland at Baltimore in 1865 and 1866, and was appointed city solicitor for Baltimore in 1876 and served two years. He was orator for Maryland on "Maryland Day" at the United States

Centennial Exhibition The Centennial International Exhibition, officially the International Exhibition of Arts, Manufactures, and Products of the Soil and Mine, was held in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, from May 10 to November 10, 1876. It was the first official wo ...

of 1876. Findlay was elected as a

Democrat Democrat, Democrats, or Democratic may refer to: Politics *A proponent of democracy, or democratic government; a form of government involving rule by the people. *A member of a Democratic Party: **Democratic Party (Cyprus) (DCY) **Democratic Part ...

to the Forty-eighth and Forty-ninth Congresses (March 4, 1883 – March 3, 1887). He resumed the practice of law, and was appointed a member of the

Venezuela Venezuela, officially the Bolivarian Republic of Venezuela, is a country on the northern coast of South America, consisting of a continental landmass and many Federal Dependencies of Venezuela, islands and islets in the Caribbean Sea. It com ...

n Claims Commission in 1889, and nominated as arbitrator on the

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an Claims Commission in 1893, but the Senate rejected the nomination. He died in

, April 19, 1907, and was interred in Greenmount Cemetery.

Family

Findlay was a nephew of U.S. Senator William Findlay's son John King Findlay.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Findlay, John Van Lear 1839 births 1907 deaths Princeton University alumni Maryland lawyers Democratic Party members of the Maryland House of Delegates Democratic Party members of the United States House of Representatives from Maryland 19th-century members of the United States House of Representatives 19th-century members of the Maryland General Assembly