Guy Ray Pelton (August 3, 1824 – July 24, 1890) was a

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 ...

to the thirty-fourth Congress 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 * '' ...

. Born in

Great Barrington, Massachusetts Great Barrington is a town in Berkshire County, Massachusetts, United States. It is part of the Pittsfield, Massachusetts, Metropolitan Statistical Area. The population was 7,172 at the 2020 census. Both a summer resort and home to Ski Butternut, ...

, he was the second son of Joseph Kneeland Pelton and his wife Harriet Ray. He attended the public schools and Sedgwick Institution in Great Barrington, Mass., the Connecticut Literary Institute in

Suffield, Connecticut Suffield is a town in Hartford County, Connecticut, Hartford County, Connecticut, United States. It was once within the boundaries of Massachusetts. The town is located in the Connecticut River Valley with the town of Enfield, Connecticut, Enfiel ...

, and

Oberlin College Oberlin College is a Private university, private Liberal arts colleges in the United States, liberal arts college and conservatory of music in Oberlin, Ohio. It is the oldest Mixed-sex education, coeducational liberal arts college in the United S ...

. He studied law at Kinderhook, N.Y. He was

admitted to the bar An admission to practice law is acquired when a lawyer receives a license to practice law. In jurisdictions with two types of lawyer, as with barristers and solicitors, barristers must gain admission to the bar whereas for solicitors there are dist ...

and commenced practice in New York City in 1851 with his older brother, Timothy Dwight Pelton, in the law firm of G.R. & T.D. Pelton, at 167 Broadway. He was a member of the

Union League Club The Union League Club is a private social club in New York City that was founded in 1863 in affiliation with the Union League. Its fourth and current clubhouse is located at 38 East 37th Street on the corner of Park Avenue, in the Murray Hill ...

. A Whig, Pelton was elected as an

Opposition Party Parliamentary opposition is a form of political opposition to a designated government, particularly in a Westminster-based parliamentary system. This article uses the term ''government'' as it is used in Parliamentary systems, i.e. meaning ''th ...

candidate to the Thirty-fourth Congress (March 4, 1855 – March 3, 1857) from New York City. During that time he served on the Committee of Commerce. He declined a second nomination for reelection in 1856 to the Thirty-fifth Congress. On July 24, 1890, on his way home to Massachusetts from Alaska with his second wife, Angelina Scoville Pelton, Pelton died in

Yellowstone National Park Yellowstone National Park is an American national park located in the western United States, largely in the northwest corner of Wyoming and extending into Montana and Idaho. It was established by the 42nd U.S. Congress with the Yellowston ...

, Wyoming, while climbing Mary Mountain. He was interred in Mahaiwe Cemetery,

References

* Pelton, Jeremiah M. Genealogy of the Pelton Family in America {{DEFAULTSORT:Pelton, Guy Ray 1824 births 1890 deaths People from Great Barrington, Massachusetts Opposition Party members of the United States House of Representatives from New York (state) Accidental deaths in Wyoming Mountaineering deaths 19th-century American politicians