Thomas Updegraff

UPDEGRAFF, SMITH, ROTHROCK, OPDEN-GRAEFFE, PLATT, RAY, HAIGHT

Posted By: volunteer transcriber
Date: 6/15/2004 at 06:40:08

UPDEGRAFF, Thomas, representative, was born in Tioga county, Pa., April 3, 1834; son of William and Rachel (Smith) Updegraff; grandson of Thomas and Elizabeth (Rothrock) Updegraff and of Alexander and Rebecca Smith, and a descendant of Abram Updegraff (Opden-Graeffe), born at Crefeldt on the lower Rhine, who settled at Germantown, Pa., under the auspices of William Penn in 1683. He attended private schools; one term at University of Notre Dame, Ind., and one year with a private tutor, and at an academy at Binghamton, N.Y., and was clerk of the district court of Clayton county, Iowa, 1856-60. He was married, first, June 1, 1858, to Laura A., daughter of Levi and Abigail Platt of Huron county, Ohio, who died in January, 1865; secondly, Oct. 2, 1867, to Florence Eliza, daughter of Charles and Mary (Ray) Haight of Glens Falls, N.Y. He was admitted to the bar in September, 1860, and commenced practice in McGregor, Iowa. He was a member of the state legislature, 1878, serving as chairman of the judiciary committee, and was a Republican representative from the third Iowa district in the 46th and 47th, and from the fourth Iowa district in the 53d, 54th and 55th congresses, serving, 1879-83 and 1893-99. He was a member of the board of education of McGregor, for many years, and city solicitor for several terms, and a delegate to the Republican national convention at Chicago, Ill., 1888. In 1903 Mr. Updegraff was made chairman of the department of archæological, historical and statistical information, Iowa Louisiana Purchase exposition commission.

-source: Twentieth Century Biographical Dictionary of Notable Americans. Volumes I-X. Boston, MA: The Biographical Society, 1904, by Rossiter Johnson