Rufus King Polk (August 23, 1866 – March 5, 1902) was a Democratic 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, ...

from 1899 to 1902.

Life and career

Rufus K. Polk was born in

Columbia, Tennessee Columbia is a city in and the county seat of Maury County, Tennessee. The population was 41,690 as of the 2020 United States census. Columbia is included in the Nashville metropolitan area. The self-proclaimed "mule capital of the world," Colum ...

, the son of

Confederate States Army The Confederate States Army, also called the Confederate Army or the Southern Army, was the military land force of the Confederate States of America (commonly referred to as the Confederacy) during the American Civil War (1861–1865), fighting ...

Brigadier General Brigadier general or Brigade general is a military rank used in many countries. It is the lowest ranking general officer in some countries. The rank is usually above a colonel, and below a major general or divisional general. When appointed ...

Lucius E. Polk and great-nephew of

Leonidas Polk Lieutenant-General Leonidas Polk (April 10, 1806 – June 14, 1864) was a bishop of the Episcopal Diocese of Louisiana and founder of the Protestant Episcopal Church in the Confederate States of America, which separated from the Episcopal Chur ...

. He attended Webb's Academy in

Culleoka, Tennessee Culleoka is an unincorporated community in the southeastern corner of Maury County, Tennessee, United States. located southeast of Columbia. The population was 4,964 in 2010 and in 2016, the estimated population was 5,078. Culleoka was establish ...

, graduated from

Lehigh University Lehigh University (LU) is a private research university in Bethlehem, Pennsylvania in the Lehigh Valley region of eastern Pennsylvania. The university was established in 1865 by businessman Asa Packer and was originally affiliated with the Epis ...

South Bethlehem, Pennsylvania South Bethlehem is a borough in Armstrong County, Pennsylvania, United States. The population was 481 at the 2010 census. Geography South Bethlehem is located in northern Armstrong County in western Pennsylvania on the south side of Redbank C ...

, in 1887, and took a post-graduate course in mining engineering. He settled in

Danville, Pennsylvania Danville is a borough in and the county seat of Montour County, Pennsylvania, United States, along the North Branch of the Susquehanna River. The population was 4,221 at the census. Danville is part of the Bloomsburg-Berwick micropolitan area. ...

, and was employed as a

chemist A chemist (from Greek ''chēm(ía)'' alchemy; replacing ''chymist'' from Medieval Latin ''alchemist'') is a scientist trained in the study of chemistry. Chemists study the composition of matter and its properties. Chemists carefully describe th ...

. He held supervisory positions with several

steel Steel is an alloy made up of iron with added carbon to improve its strength and fracture resistance compared to other forms of iron. Many other elements may be present or added. Stainless steels that are corrosion- and oxidation-resistant ty ...

companies and ultimately became engaged in the manufacture of structural

iron Iron () is a chemical element with symbol Fe (from la, ferrum) and atomic number 26. It is a metal that belongs to the first transition series and group 8 of the periodic table. It is, by mass, the most common element on Earth, right in f ...

. He served as first lieutenant of Company F, Twelfth Regiment, Pennsylvania Volunteer Infantry, in the

Spanish–American War , partof = the Philippine Revolution, the decolonization of the Americas, and the Cuban War of Independence , image = Collage infobox for Spanish-American War.jpg , image_size = 300px , caption = (clock ...

. He was a delegate to the

1900 Democratic National Convention The 1900 Democratic National Convention was a United States presidential nominating convention that took place the week of July 4, 1900, at Convention Hall in Kansas City, Missouri. The convention nominated William Jennings Bryan for president an ...

. Polk was elected as a Democrat to the Fifty-sixth and Fifty-seventh Congresses and served until his death 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 is buried in Fairview Cemetery in

Sources

*
The Political Graveyard
* 1866 births 1902 deaths Lehigh University alumni People from Danville, Pennsylvania People from Columbia, Tennessee Democratic Party members of the United States House of Representatives from Pennsylvania Rufus K. 19th-century American politicians American military personnel of the Spanish–American War United States Army officers Military personnel from Pennsylvania {{Pennsylvania-Representative-stub

Life and career

See also

Sources