Robert Fleming Rich (June 23, 1883 – April 28, 1968) was a Republican 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, ...

Early life and education

Robert F. Rich was born in Woolrich, Pennsylvania. He attended

Dickinson Seminary Lycoming College is a private liberal arts college in Williamsport, Pennsylvania. Founded in 1812, Lycoming College is affiliated with the United Methodist Church but operates as an independent institution. Through its history, it has been an ac ...

Williamsport, PA Williamsport is a city in, and the county seat of, Lycoming County, Pennsylvania, United States. It recorded a population of 27,754 at the 2020 Census. It is the principal city of the Williamsport Metropolitan Statistical Area, which has a popula ...

, and the Williamsport Commercial College. He graduated from the

Mercersburg Academy Mercersburg Academy (formerly Marshall College and Mercersburg College) is an independent selective college-preparatory boarding & day high school in Mercersburg, Pennsylvania in the United States. Founded in 1893, the school enrolls approximat ...

in 1902 and attended

Dickinson College , mottoeng = Freedom is made safe through character and learning , established = , type = Private liberal arts college , endowment = $645.5 million (2022) , president = J ...

Carlisle, PA Carlisle is a borough in and the county seat of Cumberland County, Pennsylvania, United States. Carlisle is located within the Cumberland Valley, a highly productive agricultural region. As of the 2020 census, the borough population was 20,118; ...

, from 1903 to 1906.

Commercial enterprises

Rich was engaged in the woolen-mills business in 1906. He was also engaged in

banking A bank is a financial institution that accepts deposits from the public and creates a demand deposit while simultaneously making loans. Lending activities can be directly performed by the bank or indirectly through capital markets. Because ...

and became financially interested in various business and manufacturing enterprises. He was a delegate to the

Republican National Conventions The Republican National Convention (RNC) is a series of presidential nominating conventions held every four years since 1856 by the United States Republican Party. They are administered by the Republican National Committee. The goal of the Repu ...

in 1924, 1952, and 1956. He was a member of the board of trustees of Dickinson College from 1912 to 1958, of the Lock Haven Teachers College from 1918 to 1928, and of the Lock Haven Hospital from 1920 to 1951. He was an important supporter of Lycoming College and a member of its board of trustees from 1931 to 1963.

United States House of Representatives

Rich was against allying the USA with the USSR, saying that it would akin to 'get in bed with a rattlesnake and a skunk'. Rich was elected as a Republican to the

71st Congress The 71st United States Congress was a meeting of the United States Congress, legislature of the United States federal government, consisting of the United States Senate and the United States House of Representatives. It met in Washington, D.C. f ...

to fill the vacancy caused by the death of

Edgar R. Kiess Edgar Raymond Kiess (August 26, 1875 – July 20, 1930) was a Republican member of the U.S. House of Representatives from Pennsylvania. Biography Kiess was born in Warrensville, Pennsylvania. He graduated from the Lycoming County Normal School i ...

. He was reelected to the

72nd Congress The 72nd United States Congress was a meeting of the legislative branch of the United States federal government, consisting of the United States Senate and the United States House of Representatives. It met in Washington, D.C. from March 4, 1931 ...

and to the five succeeding Congresses. He did not seek renomination in 1942. He was again elected to the Seventy-ninth, Eightieth, and Eighty-first Congresses. He was not a candidate for renomination in 1950. According to Christopher Manion, Rich:

Woolrich Woolen Mills

He served as general manager of the

Woolrich Woolen Mills Woolrich, Inc. ( ) is an American outdoor clothing company that originated in Woolrich, Pennsylvania in 1830. History Woolrich, Inc., founded in 1830 by John Rich and Daniel McCormick, is the oldest manufacturer of outdoor wear in the United ...

from 1930 to 1959, president from 1959 to 1964, and chairman of the board from 1964 until 1966 when he became honorary chairman. He died at

Jersey Shore, Pennsylvania Jersey Shore is a borough in Lycoming County, Pennsylvania, United States. It is on the West Branch Susquehanna River, west by south of Williamsport. It is part of the Williamsport, Pennsylvania Metropolitan Statistical Area. In the past, Jerse ...

,"Robert Rich, Industrialist"

Associated Press The Associated Press (AP) is an American non-profit news agency headquartered in New York City. Founded in 1846, it operates as a cooperative, unincorporated association. It produces news reports that are distributed to its members, U.S. newspa ...

in ''

Pittsburgh Post-Gazette The ''Pittsburgh Post-Gazette'', also known simply as the PG, is the largest newspaper serving metropolitan Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. Descended from the ''Pittsburgh Gazette'', established in 1786 as the first newspaper published west of the All ...

'', April 30, 1968. and is interred in Woolrich Cemetery.

References

Sources

The Political Graveyard

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Rich, Robert F. 1883 births 1968 deaths Politicians from Williamsport, Pennsylvania Republican Party members of the United States House of Representatives from Pennsylvania Old Right (United States) 20th-century American politicians