Alexander Hamilton Coffroth (May 18, 1828 – September 2, 1906) was a Democratic member of the U.S. House of Representatives 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, ...

Life and career

Alexander H. Coffroth was born in

Somerset, Pennsylvania Somerset is a borough in and the county seat of Somerset County, Pennsylvania, United States. The population was 6,046 at the 2020 census. The borough is surrounded by Somerset Township. Somerset is just off Exit 110 of the Pennsylvania Turnpi ...

. He attended the public schools and Somerset Academy. He published a Democratic paper in Somerset for five years. He studied law in the law office of Hon.

Jeremiah S. Black Jeremiah Sullivan Black (January 10, 1810 – August 19, 1883) was an American statesman and lawyer. He served as a justice on the Supreme Court of Pennsylvania (1851–1857) and as the Court's Chief Justice (1851–1854). He also served in the ...

, and was admitted to the bar in February 1851 at Somerset, where he practiced his profession. He was a delegate to several Democratic State conventions, as well as a delegate to the

1860 Democratic National Convention The 1860 Democratic National Conventions were a series of presidential nominating conventions held to nominate the Democratic Party's candidates for president and vice president in the 1860 election. The first convention, held from April 23 to ...

s which assembled in

Charleston, South Carolina Charleston is the largest city in the U.S. state of South Carolina, the county seat of Charleston County, and the principal city in the Charleston–North Charleston metropolitan area. The city lies just south of the geographical midpoint o ...

, and

Baltimore, Maryland Baltimore ( , locally: or ) is the most populous city in the U.S. state of Maryland, fourth most populous city in the Mid-Atlantic, and the 30th most populous city in the United States with a population of 585,708 in 2020. Baltimore wa ...

. He served as an assessor of internal revenue in 1867, and was a delegate to the

1872 Democratic National Convention The 1872 Democratic National Convention was a presidential nominating convention held at Ford's Grand Opera House on East Fayette Street, between North Howard and North Eutaw Streets, in Baltimore, Maryland on July 9 and 10, 1872. It resulted in ...

. Coffroth was elected as a Democrat to the Thirty-eighth Congress. During his term, he supported the passage of the Thirteenth Amendment, along with some other Democrats, such as Archibald McAllister. He claimed reelection to the Thirty-ninth Congress, was seated on February 19, 1866, and served until July 18, 1866, when he was succeeded by William H. Koontz, who contested the election. He was again elected to the Forty-sixth Congress. He served as chairman of the

United States House Committee on Invalid Pensions The United States House Committee on Invalid Pensions is a former committee of the United States House of Representatives from 1831 to 1946. The committee was created on January 10, 1831, with jurisdiction over matters relating to pensions for disa ...

during the Forty-sixth Congress. He was not a candidate for renomination in 1880. He resumed the practice of law in Somerset and died in

Markleton, Pennsylvania Markleton is an unincorporated community in Somerset County, Pennsylvania, United States. The community is located along the Casselman River, east-northeast of Confluence. History Philson's Forge The area was initially known as Philson's Fo ...

, in 1906. He was interred in Union Cemetery in Somerset. Coffroth was the last surviving pallbearer who had served at the funeral of President

Abraham Lincoln Abraham Lincoln ( ; February 12, 1809 – April 15, 1865) was an American lawyer, politician, and statesman who served as the 16th president of the United States from 1861 until his assassination in 1865. Lincoln led the nation throu ...

. During Coffroth's tenure as its Representative, Pennsylvania's 16th district took in Adams County, which includes Gettysburg, site in 1863 of the

Battle of Gettysburg The Battle of Gettysburg () was fought July 1–3, 1863, in and around the town of Gettysburg, Pennsylvania, by Union and Confederate forces during the American Civil War. In the battle, Union Major General George Meade's Army of the ...

and the

Gettysburg Address The Gettysburg Address is a speech that U.S. President Abraham Lincoln delivered during the American Civil War at the dedication of the Soldiers' National Cemetery, now known as Gettysburg National Cemetery, in Gettysburg, Pennsylvania on the ...

Fictional portrayals

In the 2012 film ''

Lincoln Lincoln most commonly refers to: * Abraham Lincoln (1809–1865), the sixteenth president of the United States * Lincoln, England, cathedral city and county town of Lincolnshire, England * Lincoln, Nebraska, the capital of Nebraska, U.S. * Lincol ...

'', Coffroth is portrayed by

Boris McGiver Boris McGiver (born January 23, 1962) is an American actor. He is known for his roles in projects such as '' Lincoln'', '' House of Cards'', ''The Wire'', '' Killing Kennedy'', and ''Person of Interest''. Personal life Of Irish and Ukraini ...

Notes

Sources

The Political Graveyard
1828 births 1906 deaths Pennsylvania lawyers Democratic Party members of the United States House of Representatives from Pennsylvania 19th-century American politicians {{Pennsylvania-Representative-stub