George Pickering Bemis (March 15, 1838 – December 11, 1916) worked for nearly two decades as private secretary to his wealthy cousin,

George Francis Train George Francis Train (March 24, 1829 – January 18, 1904) was an American entrepreneur who organized the clipper ship line that sailed around Cape Horn to San Francisco; he also organized the Union Pacific Railroad and the Credit Mobilier in th ...

. He also acted as a real estate, loan and collection agent, and was later elected to one term as mayor of Omaha, Nebraska, USA.

Biography

Bemis was born in Boston, Massachusetts, to a prominent Massachusetts family. When he was 13 he moved to New York City, New York, spending nearly twenty-five years there. He spent seventeen years as his cousin

's private secretary and traveled around the world with him. Bemis traveled extensively, accompanying Train in many tours over and around the world. He came to Omaha in April 1868 as secretary and manager of one of Train's companies,

Credit Foncier of America Credit Foncier of America was a late 19th-century financing and real estate company in Omaha, Nebraska. The company existed primarily to promote the townsites along the Union Pacific Railroad, and was incorporated by a special act of the Nebraska ...

. He quit that job when Train was indicted in

New York New York most commonly refers to: * New York City, the most populous city in the United States, located in the state of New York * New York (state), a state in the northeastern United States New York may also refer to: Film and television * '' ...

. in the Credit Mobilier scandal."Douglas County"
''Andreas' History of Nebraska''. Retrieved April 10, 2008. On returning to Omaha, Bemis worked as a real estate agent throughout the city, selling lots in the Credit Foncier Addition and focusing on his own subdivision. It has been designated the Bemis Park Landmark Heritage District. As the mayor of Omaha from 1892 to 1896, Bemis did a great deal to promote

parks A park is an area of natural, semi-natural or planted space set aside for human enjoyment and recreation or for the protection of wildlife or natural habitats. Urban parks are urban green space, green spaces set aside for recreation inside t ...

throughout the city. He supported women's rights and funded a newspaper in the cause in the late 1870s. Bemis' wife, Julia Browne, was a lifelong suffragist who had worked on Susan B. Anthony's paper, ''

The Revolution A revolution is a drastic political change that usually occurs relatively quickly. For revolutions which affect society, culture, and technology more than political systems, see social revolution. Revolution may also refer to: Aviation *Warner ...

''. Train was the initial funder of this paper. In the early twentieth century, Bemis offered to send $100,000 to the federal government in order to keep the activist

Emmeline Pankhurst Emmeline Pankhurst ('' née'' Goulden; 15 July 1858 – 14 June 1928) was an English political activist who organised the UK suffragette movement and helped women win the right to vote. In 1999, ''Time'' named her as one of the 100 Most Impo ...

from being deported in 1913.(1913
"Offers to furnish bond"
''New York Times.'' October 19, 1913. Retrieved April 10, 2008.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Bemis, George P. 1838 births 1916 deaths Mayors of Omaha, Nebraska American real estate businesspeople Politicians from Boston Politicians from New York City American women's rights activists Nebraska Republicans Male feminists 19th-century American politicians 19th-century American businesspeople

Biography

See also

References