William Connell (Pennsylvania politician)

William Connell (September 10, 1827 – March 21, 1909) was a Republican member of the U.S. House of Representatives from Pennsylvania.

William Connell
Member of the U.S. House of Representatives from Pennsylvania
In office February 10, 1904 – March 3, 1905
Preceded by	George Howell
Succeeded by	Thomas Henry Dale
Constituency	10th district
In office March 4, 1897 – March 3, 1903
Preceded by	Joseph A. Scranton
Succeeded by	Henry Wilbur Palmer
Constituency	11th district
Personal details
Born	(1827-09-10)September 10, 1827 Sydney, Nova Scotia colony, British Canada
Died	March 21, 1909(1909-03-21) (aged 81) Scranton, Pennsylvania, U.S.
Political party	Republican
Signature

Early life

Mrs William Connell

Connell was born in Sydney in the Nova Scotia colony of British Canada, and moved with his parents to Hazleton, Pennsylvania, in 1844. He worked in the coal mines, and in 1856 he was appointed superintendent of the mines of the Susquehanna & Wyoming Valley Railroad & Coal Company, with offices in Scranton, Pennsylvania.

Career

Upon the expiration of that company's charter in 1870 he purchased its property and became one of the largest independent coal operators in the Wyoming Valley region. He was one of the founders of the Third National Bank of Scranton in 1872, and in 1879 he was chosen its president. He was also identified with many other industries and commercial enterprises of Scranton, including the Scranton Button Company, one of the largest manufacturers of buttons in the United States, which branched out into the manufacture of telephone parts and phonograph records. He was a delegate to the 1896 Republican National Convention, and a member of the Pennsylvania Republican committee.

Connell was elected as a Republican to the Fifty-fifth, Fifty-sixth, and Fifty-seventh Congresses. He successfully contested the election of George Howell to the Fifty-eighth Congress. The father of Charles Robert Connell, Connell died in Scranton in 1909.

Legacy

His summer estate, Lacawac, was listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1979.

Sources

• United States Congress. "William Connell (id: C000687)". Biographical Directory of the United States Congress.
• The Political Graveyard
• Kashuba, Cheryl A. (September 14, 2008). "At one time, Scranton had button industry sewn up". The Times-Tribune. Scranton, Pa. Retrieved March 31, 2009.