Representative Henry Clay McCormick

Henry Clay McCormick (June 30, 1844 – May 26, 1902) was a Republican member of the U.S. House of Representatives from Pennsylvania who served two terms in Congress from 1887 to 1891. Over the course of his public career he held a series of important legal, legislative, and executive positions at both the state and national levels, contributing to the legislative process during a significant period in American history.

McCormick was born on June 30, 1844, in Washington Township, Lycoming County, Pennsylvania. He was educated in the common schools of the area and later attended Dickinson Seminary in Williamsport, Pennsylvania, an institution that provided him with a classical and preparatory education. Following his studies there, he read law, pursuing the traditional legal apprenticeship of the period.

In 1866 McCormick was admitted to the bar and commenced the practice of law in Williamsport, Pennsylvania. His legal work in Lycoming County established his professional reputation and provided the foundation for his subsequent political career. As an attorney, he became a recognized figure in the community, which facilitated his entry into Republican Party politics at a time when the party was dominant in Pennsylvania state and local affairs.

McCormick was elected as a Republican to the Fiftieth and Fifty-first Congresses, serving in the U.S. House of Representatives from Pennsylvania from March 4, 1887, to March 3, 1891. During his two terms in office, he represented the interests of his constituents and participated actively in the legislative process. In the Fifty-first Congress he served as chairman of the United States House Committee on Railways and Canals, a position that placed him at the center of debates over transportation infrastructure and economic development during a period of rapid industrial expansion in the United States.

After leaving Congress in 1891, McCormick remained influential in Republican politics and in the business affairs of his region. He was a delegate to the 1892 Republican National Convention, reflecting his continued standing within the party. That same year he was elected president of the Williamsport & North Branch Railroad, a role that drew on his congressional experience with railways and canals and linked his legal and political background to the growing railroad industry in Pennsylvania.

McCormick’s most prominent state office came when he was appointed and served as Attorney General of Pennsylvania from 1895 to 1899. In that capacity he acted as the chief legal officer of the Commonwealth, overseeing litigation involving the state and advising state officials on legal matters during a period marked by ongoing industrial growth and related regulatory issues. Following the completion of his term as attorney general, he resumed the practice of law, returning to his profession in Williamsport while maintaining his stature as a senior figure in Pennsylvania public life.

Henry Clay McCormick died in Williamsport, Pennsylvania, on May 26, 1902. He was interred at Wildwood Cemetery in Williamsport. His career, spanning local legal practice, national legislative service, party leadership, railroad administration, and statewide executive office, reflected the broad range of responsibilities undertaken by Republican leaders in Pennsylvania in the late nineteenth century.