Robert Fleming Rich was a Republican

Republican Party (United States)

The Republican Party is one of the two major contemporary political parties in the United States, along with the Democratic Party. Founded by anti-slavery expansion activists in 1854, it is often called the GOP . The party's platform generally reflects American conservatism in the U.S...

 member of the U.S. House of Representatives from Pennsylvania

Pennsylvania

The Commonwealth of Pennsylvania is a U.S. state that is located in the Northeastern and Mid-Atlantic regions of the United States. The state borders Delaware and Maryland to the south, West Virginia to the southwest, Ohio to the west, New York and Ontario, Canada, to the north, and New Jersey to...

.

Early life and education

Robert F. Rich was born in Woolrich, PA. He attended Dickinson Seminary in Williamsport, PA

Williamsport, Pennsylvania

Williamsport is a city in and the county seat of Lycoming County, Pennsylvania in the United States. In 2009, the population was estimated at 29,304...

, and the Williamsport Commercial College. He graduated from the Mercersburg Academy

Mercersburg Academy

Mercersburg Academy is an independent, coeducational boarding school for grades 9-12 located in Mercersburg, Pennsylvania, United States. The school's mission is:...

 in 1902 and attended Dickinson College

Dickinson College

Dickinson College is a private, residential liberal arts college in Carlisle, Pennsylvania. Originally established as a Grammar School in 1773, Dickinson was chartered September 9, 1783, five days after the signing of the Treaty of Paris, making it the first college to be founded in the newly...

 in Carlisle, PA, from 1903 to 1906.

Commercial Enterprises

Rich was engaged in the woolen-mills business in 1906. He was also engaged in banking and became financially interested in various business and manufacturing enterprises. He was a delegate to the Republican National Conventions in 1924, 1952, and 1956. He was a member of the board of trustees of Dickinson College from 1912 to 1958, of the Lock Haven Teachers College

Lock Haven University of Pennsylvania

Lock Haven University of Pennsylvania, commonly abbreviated LHU, is a state university in Lock Haven, in central Pennsylvania located along the Susquehanna River, and is roughly from the major towns of Williamsport and State College. Lock Haven University is one of the fourteen members of the...

 from 1918 to 1928, of the Lock Haven Hospital from 1920 to 1951, and of the Lycoming College

Lycoming College

Founded in 1812, Lycoming College is located in Williamsport, Pennsylvania. One of the 50 oldest colleges in America, Lycoming enrolls 1400 undergraduate students from over 28 states and 12 foreign countries. Eighty percent of the college's students live on campus...

 from 1931 to 1963.

United States House of Representatives

Rich was elected as a Republican to the 71st Congress to fill the vacancy caused by the death of Edgar R. Kiess. He was reelected to the 72nd Congress and to the five succeeding Congresses. He did not seek renomination in 1942. He was again elected to the Seventy-ninth, Eightieth, and Eighty-first Congresses. He was not a candidate for renomination in 1950.

Woolrich Woolen Mills

He served as general manager of the Woolrich Woolen Mills from 1930 to 1959, president from 1959 to 1964, and chairman of the board from 1964 until 1966 when he became honorary chairman. He died at Jersey Shore, Pennsylvania

Jersey Shore, Pennsylvania

Jersey Shore is a borough in Lycoming County, Pennsylvania, United States. It is on the West Branch Susquehanna River, west by south of Williamsport. It is part of the Williamsport, Pennsylvania Metropolitan Statistical Area. In the past, Jersey Shore held farms, railroad shops, cigar factories, a...

, and is interred in Woolrich Cemetery.

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