George Scott Graham (September 13, 1850 – July 4, 1931) 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, ...
.
Graham was born in
Philadelphia, Pennsylvania
Philadelphia, often called Philly, is the largest city in the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, the sixth-largest city in the U.S., the second-largest city in both the Northeast megalopolis and Mid-Atlantic regions after New York City. Sinc ...
. He graduated from the law department of the
University of Pennsylvania
The University of Pennsylvania (also known as Penn or UPenn) is a private research university in Philadelphia. It is the fourth-oldest institution of higher education in the United States and is ranked among the highest-regarded universitie ...
at Philadelphia in 1870, and practiced law in Philadelphia. He was member of the select council of Philadelphia from 1877 to 1880, and an unsuccessful candidate for
District Attorney of Philadelphia
The office of the District Attorney of Philadelphia is the largest prosecutor's office in the state of Pennsylvania and oversees a jurisdiction that includes more than 1.5 million citizens of both the city and county of Philadelphia. The current ...
in 1877. He was elected district attorney of Philadelphia in 1880 and served until 1899. He later resumed the practice of law in Philadelphia and
New York City
New York, often called New York City or NYC, is the most populous city in the United States. With a 2020 population of 8,804,190 distributed over , New York City is also the most densely populated major city in the Un ...
. He was a professor of criminal law and procedure in the University of Pennsylvania from 1887 to 1898. He was a
delegate
Delegate or delegates may refer to:
* Delegate, New South Wales, a town in Australia
* Delegate (CLI), a computer programming technique
* Delegate (American politics), a representative in any of various political organizations
* Delegate (Unit ...
to the
Republican National Conventions in
1892
Events
January–March
* January 1 – Ellis Island begins accommodating immigrants to the United States.
* February 1 - The historic Enterprise Bar and Grill was established in Rico, Colorado.
* February 27 – Rudolf Diesel applies fo ...
and
1924
Events
January
* January 12 – Gopinath Saha shoots Ernest Day, whom he has mistaken for Sir Charles Tegart, the police commissioner of Calcutta, and is arrested soon after.
* January 20– 30 – Kuomintang in China holds ...
.
He was elected to Congress as a Republican in
1912, and served until his death at his summer home in
Islip, NY
Islip ( ) is a town in Suffolk County, New York, United States, on the south shore of Long Island. The population was 335,543 at the 2010 census, making it the fourth most populous city or town in the state.
The Town of Islip also contains a ...
.
Notable Criminals Brought to Trial
While serving as Philadelphia District Attorney, Graham tried several notable cases. In 1887, Graham prosecuted
Hannah Mary Tabbs and George H. Wilson for the murder and dismemberment of Wakefield Gains. In his opening statement, he declared, "We will show by scientific testimony that Wakefield Gains was dismembered while there was yet life in the body." Wilson was convicted of first degree murder, but was granted a new trial. Judge Hare accepted a plea of second degree murder and sentenced Wilson to twelve years in
Eastern Penitentiary
The Eastern State Penitentiary (ESP) is a former American prison in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. It is located at 2027 Fairmount Avenue between Corinthian Avenue and North 22nd Street in the Fairmount section of the city, and was operational from ...
. For
Hannah Mary Tabbs part in the murder, the judge sentenced her to two years in prison.
In 1895, District Attorney Graham prosecuted notorious criminal
Jimmy Logue's stepson, Alphonso Cutaiar, for the murder of Logue's wife, Johanna, whose body was found in their old home underneath the kitchen floor.
Philadelphia Police
The Philadelphia Police Department (PPD or Philly PD) is the police agency responsible for law enforcement and investigations within the City of Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. The PPD is one of the oldest municipal police agencies, fourth largest ...
Detective
Frank Geyer originally thought Jimmy committed the murder but after Jimmy's story checked out and all evidence pointed to his stepson, who eventually confessed to her murder, Cutaiar was arrested and convicted of first degree murder.
By far the most famous case he prosecuted as district attorney was
H. H. Holmes, one of America's first serial killers. Although Holmes confessed to killing twenty-seven men, women, and children, he was only tried for killing his business partner, Benjamin Pitezel. Graham worked closely with Detective
Frank Geyer and requested he search for Pitezel's missing three children, whom Holmes took temporary custody of after Benjamin's death. Geyer went on a cross-country, international search for the children, which led him to discover their remains in two locations, Irvington and Canada. However, Graham made it clear, Holmes was to be tried only for Benjamin Pitezel and if found not guilty, he would consider extraditing Holmes to
Indianapolis or
Toronto, Canada
Toronto ( ; or ) is the capital city of the Canadian province of Ontario. With a recorded population of 2,794,356 in 2021, it is the most populous city in Canada and the fourth most populous city in North America. The city is the ancho ...
for the murders of the children. Holmes was found guilty and was hung May 7, 1896.
See also
*
List of United States Congress members who died in office (1900–49)
Sources
References
External links
*
{{DEFAULTSORT:Graham, George S.
Philadelphia City Council members
District Attorneys of Philadelphia
Pennsylvania lawyers
1850 births
1931 deaths
University of Pennsylvania Law School alumni
Politicians from Philadelphia
Republican Party members of the United States House of Representatives from Pennsylvania