George Bryan Porter (February 9, 1791 – July 6, 1834) was an American

statesman A statesman or stateswoman typically is a politician who has had a long and respected political career at the national or international level. Statesman or Statesmen may also refer to: Newspapers United States * ''The Statesman'' (Oregon), a n ...

in Pennsylvania and Territorial governor of Michigan from August 6, 1831, until his death on July 6, 1834.

Early life

Born in

Norristown, Pennsylvania Norristown is a municipality with home rule status and the county seat of Montgomery County, Pennsylvania Montgomery County is a county in the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania. It is the third-most populous county in Pennsylvania and the 7 ...

, Porter attended the Norristown Academy. While he and his two brothers were preparing to enter college, there was a student "rebellion" at Princeton University and many school buildings had been burned. As a result, Porter and his brothers continued their studies in their father's library rather than at Princeton.

Career

Porter was a

major Major (commandant in certain jurisdictions) is a military rank of commissioned officer status, with corresponding ranks existing in many military forces throughout the world. When used unhyphenated and in conjunction with no other indicators ...

in the United States Army during the War of 1812. He attended

Litchfield Law School The Litchfield Law School of Litchfield, Connecticut, was the first independent law school established in America for reading law. Founded and led by lawyer Tapping Reeve, the proprietary school was unaffiliated with any college or university. (Whi ...

in Litchfield, Connecticut, and was admitted to the bar in Lancaster County, Pennsylvania, in 1813. He served as Prothonotary (Chief Court Clerk) in Lancaster County, Pennsylvania, in 1818. A lawyer in Lancaster,

Lancaster County, Pennsylvania Lancaster County (; Pennsylvania Dutch: Lengeschder Kaundi), sometimes nicknamed the Garden Spot of America or Pennsylvania Dutch Country, is a county in the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania. It is located in the south central part of Pennsylvania. ...

, Porter eventually entered state politics. He served as Adjutant General from 1824 to 1829; became a

Democratic party Democratic Party most often refers to: *Democratic Party (United States) Democratic Party and similar terms may also refer to: Active parties Africa *Botswana Democratic Party *Democratic Party of Equatorial Guinea *Gabonese Democratic Party *Demo ...

member of the

Pennsylvania House of Representatives The Pennsylvania House of Representatives is the lower house of the bicameral Pennsylvania General Assembly, the legislature of the U.S. state of Pennsylvania. There are 203 members, elected for two-year terms from single member districts. It ...

in 1827. Porter was United States Marshall for the Eastern District of Pennsylvania in 1831. Appointed by President Andrew Jackson in 1831, Porter served as the Territorial Governor of Michigan from 1832 until his death in 1834. In this role he accompanied

Oneida Oneida may refer to: Native American/First Nations * Oneida people, a Native American/First Nations people and one of the five founding nations of the Iroquois Confederacy * Oneida language * Oneida Indian Nation, based in New York * Oneida Na ...

chief

Daniel Bread Daniel Bread (March 27, 1800July 23, 1873) was an Oneida political and cultural leader who helped the Oneida preserve their culture while adapting to new realities during their transplantation from New York to Wisconsin (known then as Michigan ...

to the White House to ask President Jackson for alternative land arrangements for the Oneida in response to the 1831

Treaty of Washington The Treaty of Washington may refer to: * Treaty of Washington (1805), between the U.S. and the Creek National Council ( Muscogee (Creek)) * Treaty of Washington (1824), two Indian nation treaties, between the U.S. and the Sac (Sauk) and Meskwaki ...

, which along with the 192
Treaty of Butte Morts
had reduced Oneida lands by 90%. The trip was successful in that the president agreed to exchange Oneida lands for "better, more fertile" lands.

Death

Porter died while in office on July 6, 1834, during a

cholera Cholera is an infection of the small intestine by some strains of the bacterium ''Vibrio cholerae''. Symptoms may range from none, to mild, to severe. The classic symptom is large amounts of watery diarrhea that lasts a few days. Vomiting and ...

epidemic in Detroit, Michigan. He is

interred Burial, also known as interment or inhumation, is a method of final disposition whereby a dead body is placed into the ground, sometimes with objects. This is usually accomplished by excavating a pit or trench, placing the deceased and objec ...

at Elmwood Cemetery in Detroit. A portrait of Porter was unveiled in November 2015 and hangs on the second floor of the

Michigan State Capitol The Michigan State Capitol is the building that houses the legislative branch of the government of the U.S. state of Michigan. It is in the portion of the state capital of Lansing which lies in Ingham County. The present structure, at the interse ...

in Lansing.

Family life

Porter married Sarah Humes of Pennsylvania on October 31, 1816, and had at least four children, one of whom was General Andrew Porter, one of the generals at the First Battle of Bull Run, who married Margarite Biddle of the famous

Biddle family The Biddle family of Philadelphia, Pennsylvania is an Old Philadelphian family descended from English immigrants William Biddle (1630–1712) and Sarah Kempe (1634–1709), who arrived in the Province of New Jersey in 1681. Quakers, they had emig ...

. Porter was the son of Andrew Porter who served in the

U.S. Revolutionary War The American Revolutionary War (April 19, 1775 – September 3, 1783), also known as the Revolutionary War or American War of Independence, was a major war of the American Revolution. Widely considered as the war that secured the independence of t ...

, and Elizabeth Parker Porter. He was also the brother of David Rittenhouse Porter, Pennsylvania Governor 1839–1845, and James Madison Porter, Secretary of War 1843–1844, and the uncle of Horace Porter,

U.S. Ambassador to France The United States ambassador to France is the official representative of the president of the United States to the president of France. The United States has maintained diplomatic relations with France since the American Revolution. Relations we ...

1897–1905.

References

External links

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{{DEFAULTSORT:Porter, George Bryan 1791 births 1834 deaths People from Norristown, Pennsylvania Politicians from Detroit Deaths from cholera Governors of Michigan Territory Democratic Party members of the Pennsylvania House of Representatives Burials at Elmwood Cemetery (Detroit) Infectious disease deaths in Michigan Porter family 19th-century American politicians United States Army personnel of the War of 1812 United States Army officers