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

lawyer A lawyer is a person who practices law. The role of a lawyer varies greatly across different legal jurisdictions. A lawyer can be classified as an advocate, attorney, barrister, canon lawyer, civil law notary, counsel, counselor, solic ...

and

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 ...

politician who served as

United States Representative 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 ...

for

West Virginia's 2nd congressional district West Virginia's 2nd congressional district currently stretches from the Ohio River border with Ohio to the Potomac River border with Maryland and the border with Virginia. It includes the capital city of Charleston and the rapidly growing resi ...

. 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, DC from March 4, 1909, to ...

es.

Biography

Sturgiss was born in

Poland, Ohio Poland is a village in eastern Mahoning County, Ohio, United States. A suburb about southeast of Youngstown, the population was 2,463 at the 2020 census. It is a part of the Youngstown–Warren metropolitan area. History In 1796, Poland To ...

Mahoning County Mahoning County is a county in the U.S. state of Ohio. As of the 2020 census, the population was 228,614. Its county seat and largest city is Youngstown. The county is named for a Lenape word meaning "at the licks" or "there is a lick", refer ...

and attended country schools. In 1859, he moved to

Morgantown, Virginia Morgantown is a city in and the county seat of Monongalia County, West Virginia, United States, situated along the Monongahela River. The largest city in North-Central West Virginia, Morgantown is best known as the home of West Virginia Universit ...

(now

West Virginia West Virginia is a state in the Appalachian, Mid-Atlantic and Southeastern regions of the United States.The Census Bureau and the Association of American Geographers classify West Virginia as part of the Southern United States while the Bur ...

). 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 or intrastate war is a war between organized groups within the same 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 ...

he served as a clerk under Maj. James V. Boughner, paymaster of United States Volunteers. After the war, he became

superintendent Superintendent may refer to: *Superintendent (police), Superintendent of Police (SP), or Senior Superintendent of Police (SSP), a police rank *Prison warden or Superintendent, a prison administrator *Superintendent (ecclesiastical), a church exec ...

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. Only three states—Maryland, Virginia and West Virginia—refer to their lower house as the House of Delegates. Organization Regular sessions begin with ...

. He then served as

prosecuting attorney A prosecutor is a legal representative of the prosecution in states with either the common law adversarial system or the civil law inquisitorial system. The prosecution is the legal party responsible for presenting the case in a criminal tria ...

from 1872 to 1880. He became Republican nominee for

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

1880 Events January–March * January 22 – Toowong State School is founded in Queensland, Australia. * January – The international White slave trade affair scandal in Brussels is exposed and attracts international infamy. * February � ...

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

Benjamin Harrison Benjamin Harrison (August 20, 1833March 13, 1901) was an American lawyer and politician who served as the 23rd president of the United States from 1889 to 1893. He was a member of the Harrison family of Virginia–a grandson of the ninth pr ...

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 c ...

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 The 62nd 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, DC from March 4, 1911, to M ...

was unsuccessful. He then became a trustee of

American University The American University (AU or American) is a private federally chartered research university in Washington, D.C. Its main campus spans 90 acres (36 ha) on Ward Circle, mostly in the Spring Valley neighborhood of Northwest D.C. AU was charte ...

Washington, D.C. ) , image_skyline = , image_caption = Clockwise from top left: the Washington Monument and Lincoln Memorial on the National Mall, United States Capitol, Logan Circle, Jefferson Memorial, White House, Adams Morgan, ...

He was instrumental in the construction of the Morgantown & Kingwood Railroad. He served on the bench as a judge of the circuit court from 1912 to 1920. In 1919, while he was serving on the Circuit Court of Monongalia County,

impeachment Impeachment is the 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 ...

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 which is undertaken by a person or an organization which is entrusted in a position of authority, in order to acquire illicit benefits or abuse power for one's personal gain. Corruption m ...

, 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.

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* 1842 births 1925 deaths 19th-century American educators 19th-century American lawyers 20th-century American lawyers 20th-century American politicians 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) {{WestVirginia-politician-stub

Biography

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