Daniel Johnson Morrell (August 8, 1821 – August 20, 1885) was a

Republican Republican can refer to: Political ideology * An advocate of a republic, a type of government that is not a monarchy or dictatorship, and is usually associated with the rule of law. ** Republicanism, the ideology in support of republics or agains ...

member of the

U.S. House of Representatives The United States House of Representatives, often referred to as the House of Representatives, the U.S. House, or simply the House, is the lower chamber of the United States Congress, with the Senate being the upper chamber. Together they ...

from

Pennsylvania Pennsylvania (; ( Pennsylvania Dutch: )), officially the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, is a state spanning the Mid-Atlantic, Northeastern, Appalachian, and Great Lakes regions of the United States. It borders Delaware to its southeast, ...

Early life

Morrell was born in North Berwick, York County, Maine. He attended public schools and moved to Philadelphia, Pennsylvania in 1836, and entered a counting room as clerk. He later engaged in mercantile pursuits.

Career

In 1855 he moved to

Johnstown, Pennsylvania Johnstown is a city in Cambria County, Pennsylvania, United States. The population was 18,411 as of the 2020 United States Census, 2020 census. Located east of Pittsburgh, Johnstown is the principal city of the Johnstown, Pennsylvania, Metropol ...

, and became general manager of the

Cambria Iron Company The Cambria Iron Company of Johnstown, Pennsylvania was a major 19th-century industrial producer of iron and steel. Founded in 1852, it had the nation's largest steel foundry in the 1870s, and was renamed the Cambria Steel Company in 1898. The co ...

, which was the greatest manufacturer of iron and steel in the United States until the

Johnstown Flood The Johnstown Flood (locally, the Great Flood of 1889) occurred on Friday, May 31, 1889, after the catastrophic failure of the South Fork Dam, located on the south fork of the Little Conemaugh River, upstream of the town of Johnstown, Pennsylv ...

. Morrell also served as president of the local gas and water company from 1860 to 1884 and as president of the First National Bank of Johnstown from 1863 to 1884. He was president of the city council for many years. Morrell was elected as a Republican to the Fortieth and Forty-first Congresses. He served as chairman of the

United States House Committee on Manufactures United States House Committee on Manufactures was a standing committee of the U.S. House from 1819 to 1911. On December 8, 1819, an amendment was accepted in the House to separate the Committee on Commerce and Manufactures into the Committee on C ...

during the Fortieth and Forty-first Congresses. He was an unsuccessful candidate for reelection in

1870 Events January–March * January 1 ** The first edition of ''The Northern Echo'' newspaper is published in Priestgate, Darlington, England. ** Plans for the Brooklyn Bridge are completed. * January 3 – Construction of the Broo ...

. He was a commissioner to the Paris Exposition of 1878.

Johnstown Flood

Morrell became a member of the

South Fork Fishing and Hunting Club The South Fork Fishing and Hunting Club was a Pennsylvania corporation which operated an exclusive and secretive retreat at a mountain lake near South Fork, Pennsylvania, for more than fifty extremely wealthy men and their families. The club was ...

, site of the

South Fork Dam The South Fork Dam was an earthenwork dam forming Lake Conemaugh (formerly Western Reservoir, also known as the Old Reservoir and Three Mile Dam, a misnomer), an artificial body of water near South Fork, Pennsylvania, United States. On May 31, 1 ...

, which formed

Lake Conemaugh The South Fork Dam was an earthenwork dam forming Lake Conemaugh (formerly Western Reservoir, also known as the Old Reservoir and Three Mile Dam, a misnomer), an artificial body of water near South Fork, Pennsylvania, United States. On May 31, 1 ...

, in order to keep a watchful eye on the dam under its stewardship, and campaigned to club officials, especially to its founder,

Benjamin Franklin Ruff Benjamin ( he, ''Bīnyāmīn''; "Son of (the) right") blue letter bible: https://www.blueletterbible.org/lexicon/h3225/kjv/wlc/0-1/ H3225 - yāmîn - Strong's Hebrew Lexicon (kjv) was the last of the two sons of Jacob and Rachel (Jacob's thir ...

, regarding the safety of the dam. Morrell sent multiple letters to Ruff, expressing his concerns about the dam. The failure of that dam eventually caused the great

of May 31, 1889, which killed more than 2,200 people, and was then the largest disaster in U.S. history. Morrell insisted on inspections of the dam's breastwork both by his own engineers and those of the Pennsylvania Railroad. Morrell's warnings went unheeded, and his offer to effect repairs, partially at his own expense, was rejected by club president, Benjamin F. Ruff (who died two years prior to the flood). Morrell died four years before the Johnstown Flood; his membership was then bought by his colleague, Cyrus Elder, who was legal counsel for the Cambria Iron and Steel Company.

Death and legacy

Morrell was again engaged in banking and died on August 20, 1885, in Johnstown, Cambria County, Pennsylvania. He is the namesake of the ill-fated .

References

External links

The Political Graveyard
*
Great Lakes Vessel Online Index: DANIEL J. MORRELL

Lakeland Boating: The Morrell Survey

{{DEFAULTSORT:Morrell, Daniel J. Politicians from Johnstown, Pennsylvania 1821 births 1885 deaths People from North Berwick, Maine Pennsylvania city council members Republican Party members of the United States House of Representatives from Pennsylvania 19th-century American politicians