George R. Latham

This article is about the Virginia politician and lawyer. For the football player, see George Latham (footballer).

George Robert Latham (March 9, 1832 – December 16, 1917) was a nineteenth century politician and lawyer from Virginia and West Virginia and colonel of Company B of the 2nd West Virginia Volunteer Infantry during the Civil War.

Biography

Born near Haymarket, Virginia, Latham attended common schools as a child, studied law and was admitted to the bar in 1859, commencing practice in Grafton, Virginia (now West Virginia). He was a delegate to the Wheeling Convention in 1861 and during the Civil War served in the Union Army as captain of Company B of the 2nd West Virginia Volunteer Infantry Regiment.

Latham was later promoted to colonel before being elected an Unconditional Unionist to the United States House of Representatives in 1864, serving from 1865 to 1867. Afterwards, he was appointed consul at Melbourne, Australia in 1867, serving until 1870, was school superintendent of Upshur County, West Virginia from 1875 to 1877 and supervisor of census for the first census division of West Virginia. Latham engaged in agricultural pursuits until his death in Buckhannon, West Virginia on December 16, 1917. He was interred in Heavner Cemetery in Buckhannon.

References

• George R. Latham at the Biographical Directory of the United States Congress Retrieved on 2008-02-14
• "George R. Latham". Find a Grave. http://www.findagrave.com/cgi-bin/fg.cgi?page=gr&GRid=7782670. Retrieved 2008-02-14.