George Thomas COBB, Congress, NJ (1813-1870)

COBB, George Thomas, a Representative from New Jersey; born in Morristown, N.J., October 13, 1813; became an orphan when six years of age and received very little schooling; employed at an early age as a clerk in a store at Denville, N.J., and later employed at the iron works at Powerville and Boonton, N.J.; transferred to a store in New York City; engaged in foreign trade; retired from active business pursuits after having amassed a fortune; returned to New Jersey; elected as a Democrat to the Thirty-seventh Congress (March 4, 1861-March 3, 1863); declined to be a candidate for renomination in 1862; affiliated with the Republican Party in 1863 and as such was elected a member of the State senate in 1865 and again in 1868; mayor of Morristown 1865-1869; became a trustee of Drew Theological Seminary in 1868 and served until his death; unsuccessful candidate for election to the United States Senate in 1869; president of the Sabbath School Association of Morris County; was killed in an accident on the Chesapeake & Ohio Railroad at Jerrys Run, near White Sulphur Springs, Va., August 12, 1870; interment in Evergreen Cemetery, Morristown, N.J.

Source: Biographical Directory of the United States Congress, 1771-Present