William Preston Snyder
William Preston Snyder | |
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Pennsylvania Senate from the 19th district | |
In office 1893–1904 | |
Preceded by | Septimus Evans Nivin |
Member of the Pennsylvania House of Representatives from the Chester County district | |
In office 1891–1892 Serving with David H. Branson and Joseph G. West | |
Preceded by | Lewis H. Evans, John Hickman, William W. McConnell, D. Smith Talbot |
Succeeded by | D. Smith Talbot, John H. Marshall, Thomas J. Philips, Daniel Foulke Moore, Plummer E. Jefferis |
Personal details | |
Born | East Vincent Township, Chester County, Pennsylvania, U.S. | October 7, 1851
Died | June 18, 1920 Kimberton, Pennsylvania, U.S. | (aged 68)
Resting place | East Village Reformed Cemetery Spring City, Pennsylvania, U.S. |
Political party | Republican |
Spouse |
Elisabeth Friday (m. 1876) |
Children | 1 |
University of Pennsylvania School of Medicine | |
Occupation |
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Signature | |
William Preston Snyder (October 7, 1851 – June 18, 1920) was an American physician and politician who served as President Pro Tempore of the Pennsylvania Senate from 1899–1902 and Pennsylvania Auditor General from 1904–1907. He was a member of the Republican Party from Chester County. In 1908, Snyder was convicted in a graft scandal involving the furnishing of the Pennsylvania State Capitol and received a two-year prison sentence for conspiracy to defraud the state.[1][2]
Early life and education
Snyder was born in
Political career
In fall of 1890, Snyder was elected to the
Snyder was elected Pennsylvania Auditor General in November 1903, winning by a margin of 237,602 votes. He held the office from 1904 through 1907.[5] Scandal derailed his career when he, along with four other officials, faced charges of conspiracy to defraud the state in connection with the construction and furnishing of the state capitol. Although he maintained his innocence until his death, Snyder was convicted in December 1908, sentenced to two years in prison at the Eastern State Penitentiary, and ordered to pay a $500 fine.[1] The state supreme court upheld the conviction and sentence on appeal in March 1910.[6]
Snyder served as an elected delegate to the Pennsylvania Republican Conventions of 1878 and 1882 and chaired the Chester County Republican Committee in 1890, resigning when nominated for Senate.[2] He was a Freemason and Knight Templar.[1]
Personal life
Snyder married schoolteacher Elisabeth Friday[1] (or Elizabeth Fridy) on September 5, 1876. The couple had one son, Thomas B.[3][7]
He died on June 18, 1920, more than a year after suffering a paralytic stroke, in Kimberton, Pennsylvania.[7] He was interred at the East Village Reformed Cemetery in Spring City, Pennsylvania.[1]
References
- ^ a b c d e f g "William Preston Snyder Biography". The Official Website for the Pennsylvania General Assembly. Retrieved October 27, 2022.
- ^ a b c d Rodearmel, William (1895). Portraits and Sketches of Heads of State Departments and Members of the Legislature of Pennsylvania. Harrisburg Publishing Company. p. 17.
- ^
- ^ Colson, William Wyman; Shimmell, Lewis Slifer (1907). The State Capitol of Pennsylvania, Harrisburg, Nineteen Hundred and Six. Harrisburg, PA: Telegraph Printing Company. p. 107.
- ISSN 0362-4331. Retrieved October 27, 2022.
- ^ a b "Dr. Wm. Preston Snyder Dies, In His 69th Year". Lancaster Examiner and The Semi-Weekly New Era. June 22, 1920. p. 2. Retrieved October 27, 2022.
External links
- Media related to William Preston Snyder at Wikimedia Commons