Harmar Denny | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Member of theU.S. House of Representatives from 's22nd district | |
| In office December 15, 1829 – March 3, 1837 | |
| Preceded by | William Wilkins |
| Succeeded by | Richard Biddle |
| Constituency | 16th district (1829–1833) 22nd district (1833–1837) |
| Member of thePennsylvania House of Representatives | |
| In office 1824-1829 | |
| Personal details | |
| Born | (1794-05-13)May 13, 1794 Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, U.S. |
| Died | January 29, 1852(1852-01-29) (aged 57) Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, U.S. |
| Political party | Anti-Masonic |
| Parent | Ebenezer Denny |
Harmar Denny (May 13, 1794 – January 29, 1852) was an American businessman andAnti-Masonic member of theU.S. House of Representatives fromPennsylvania.
Harmar Denny was born inPittsburgh, the son ofEbenezer Denny and Nancy Wilkins.[1] His father had served as adjutant to General Harmar during wars on the western frontier.
Graduating fromDickinson College inCarlisle in 1813, Harmar Denny was admitted to the bar in Pennsylvania in 1816 and became a law partner withHenry Baldwin and practiced law in Pittsburgh.
He married Elizabeth F. O'Hara on November 25, 1817 and they had 11 children. Elizabeth was the daughter of General James O'Hara and Mary Carson O'Hara.
Denny served as a member of thePennsylvania State House of Representatives from 1824 to 1829. In 1829 he became a ruling elder of the First Presbyterian Church of Pittsburgh.[2]
Denny was elected as an Anti-Masonic candidate to theTwenty-first Congress to fill the vacancy caused by the resignation ofWilliam Wilkins. He was reelected to theTwenty-second throughTwenty-fourth Congresses and served from December 15, 1829, to March 3, 1837. After his term, he resumed the practice of law in Pittsburgh, and became a delegate to the Pennsylvania State Constitutional Convention in 1837. He was a presidential elector on theWhig ticket in1840. As commissioner under act of incorporation of thePennsylvania Railroad, April 13, 1846, he incorporated the Ohio and Pennsylvania Railroad Company, 1848. He was admitted to theAmerican Philosophical Society in 1848. In 1849 he was elected president of the common council of Pittsburgh.[2] He declined the nomination to be a candidate for Congress in 1850. He served as president of thePittsburgh and Steubenville Railroad in 1851 and 1852. He was a trustee of theWestern University of Pennsylvania, now theUniversity of Pittsburgh, and director of thePittsburgh Theological Seminary.[1]
He was buried atAllegheny Cemetery in Pittsburgh'sLawrenceville neighborhood.
New York State SenatorHenry E. H. Brereton (1865–1957) was his grandson; CongressmanHarmar D. Denny, Jr. (1886–1966) was his great-grandson.
The town of Harmarville, twelve miles up the Allegheny River, was named for him.
| U.S. House of Representatives | ||
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| Preceded by | Member of the U.S. House of Representatives fromPennsylvania's 16th congressional district 1829–1833 | Succeeded by |
| New district | Member of the U.S. House of Representatives fromPennsylvania's 22nd congressional district 1833–1837 | Succeeded by |
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| National | |
| People | |
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