George Winthrop Fairchild (May 6, 1854 – December 31, 1924), was a six-term Republican

U.S. 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 c ...

from

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 * '' ...

. Prior to joining congress, he was a businessman and investor, best known as the chairman from 1915 to 1924 of the

Computing-Tabulating-Recording Company The Computing-Tabulating-Recording Company (CTR) was a holding company of manufacturers of record-keeping and measuring systems subsequently known as IBM. In 1911, financier and noted trust organizer, "Father of Trusts", Charles R. Flint amal ...

which later became IBM.

Biography

He was born in Oneonta,

, to Jesse and Belle Fairchild. His father was a poor farmer. George and his siblings had to help their father on the farm and had little opportunity to study. He attended the local school until he was 14 years old, when he apprenticed to a printer. Primarily self-educated, he rose to prominence through his own effort and enterprise. In 1890, he became the sole proprietor of the Oneonta ''Herald'', a weekly newspaper. He was a pioneer in the time recording industry. In 1896, in association with his friend Harlow N. Bundy, he joined the

Bundy Manufacturing Company The Bundy Manufacturing Company was a 19th-century American manufacturer of timekeeping devices that went through a series of mergers, eventually becoming part of International Business Machines and Simplex Time Recorder Company. It was the fir ...

, a time clock manufacturer, as both an investor and director. In 1900 Fairchild formed the

International Time Recording Company The Computing-Tabulating-Recording Company (CTR) was a holding company of manufacturers of record-keeping and measuring systems subsequently known as IBM. In 1911, financier and noted trust organizer, "Father of Trusts", Charles R. Flint amal ...

as the selling agency of the

, Willard and Frick Manufacturing Company, and Standard Time Stamp Company, which also manufactured a card recorder. In 1911, when the Computing-Tabulating-Recording Company was formed through the efforts of Charles R. Flint, Fairchild became president of the new company. He later became chairman of the company and continued in this role when, in February 1924, CTR was renamed as IBM. He was chairman of IBM until his death on December 31, 1924.

Congressional career

Apart from manufacturing and journalism, Fairchild was a seasoned politician. He was elected as 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 ...

to the Sixtieth and to the five succeeding Congresses (March 4, 1907 – March 3, 1919) while elected delegate to Republican National Convention from New York, 1912 and 1916. Fairchild was elected vice president of the International Peace Conference. He was appointed by President Taft on August 10, 1910, as special commissioner to the First Centenary of Mexico at Mexico City, with the rank of Minister.

Marriage and family

He married Josephine Mills Sherman, daughter of William Sherman, of Davenport, Delaware County, New York, on March 18, 1891. They had a son, Sherman Mills Fairchild, who was born on April 7, 1896. His home in Oneonta, known as the

Fairchild Mansion Fairchild Mansion is a historic home located at Oneonta in Otsego County, New York. It is a three-story brick building with a turret, gables, a pedimented entrance porch and a porte cochere in the Queen Anne style. The original house was built ...

, was listed on the

National Register of Historic Places The National Register of Historic Places (NRHP) is the United States federal government's official list of districts, sites, buildings, structures and objects deemed worthy of preservation for their historical significance or "great artistic v ...

in 1974.

References

* Early age
biography at thedailystar
{{DEFAULTSORT:Fairchild, George Winthrop 1854 births 1924 deaths American manufacturing businesspeople IBM employees Republican Party members of the United States House of Representatives from New York (state) People from Oneonta, New York