Thomas Wharton PHILLIPS, Congress, PA (1835-1912)
PHILLIPS, Thomas Wharton, (father of Thomas Wharton Phillips, Jr.), a Representative from Pennsylvania; born near Mount Jackson in that section of Beaver County now included in Lawrence County, Pa., February 23, 1835; attended the common schools and was also privately instructed; engaged in the production of oil; president of the Producersâ Protective Association 1887-1890; president of the Citizensâ National Bank of New Castle; member of the board of trustees of Bethany College, West Virginia, and of Hiram College, Ohio; elected as a Republican to the Fifty-third and Fifty-fourth Congresses (March 4, 1893-March 3, 1897); chairman, Committee on Labor (Fifty-fourth Congress); did not seek renomination in 1896; resumed his former pursuits; appointed a member of the United States Industrial Commission by President McKinley and served until its dissolution; delegate to the Republican National Convention in 1908; died in New Castle, Pa., July 21, 1912; interment in Oak Park Cemetery, New Castle, Pa.
Source: Biographical Directory of the United States Congress, 1771-Present
