Biography

05/28/1804 - 09/23/1901

Frederick Fraley (Whig1) Philadelphia City and Philadelphia County 1837-1840

Early Life:

Frederick Fraley, born May 28, 1804, Philadelphia, Philadelphia County, Pennsylvania; son of John Urban and Ann Elizabeth Lasky Fraley; engaged, commercial and investment world; by age 16, engaged wholesale hardware business, 1820; age 18, volunteer fireman, 1822; Saint John's College, Fourth and Race Street, Philadelphia; studied law but never applied for the bar; married, Jane Chapman Cresson,  1831, son, Joseph Cresson Fraley; member, Philadelphia City Council, 1834-1837; elected, Whig, Pennsylvania State Senate, 1837-1839; University of Pennsylvania, honorary degree of LL.D., 1880; died, September 23, 1901, Philadelphia, Philadelphia County, Pennsylvania; interment, Woodlands Cemetery, Philadelphia, Philadelphia County, Pennsylvania.

Early Career:

Employed, Thomas Cooper’s hardware store, Philadelphia, 1821-1826; founder, treasurer, Franklin Institute, 1824; partner Reeves, Buck and Company, Philadelphia, wholesale hardware firm, 1826-1840; president, Philadelphia Board of Trade, 1833, director, Philadelphia Board of Trade, 1833-1838, secretary, Philadelphia Board of Trade, 1838-1866, executive council, Philadelphia Board of Trade, 1866-1867, vice president, Philadelphia Board of Trade, 1867-1887, president, board directors, Philadelphia Board of Trade, 1887-1901; secretary, American Fire Insurance Company, 1840-1847; member, American Philosophical Society, 1842; directors, Girard College, 1847; president, Schuykill Navigation Company, 1847-1888; trustee, director, University of Pennsylvania, 1853; manager, Western Saving Fund Society, 1858-1878; founding member, Union Club, 1862; organizer, National Board of Trade (Boston) 1868, president, National Board of Trade, 1868-1901; treasurer, Centennial Board of Finance, 1873-1893; promoter, organizer, Philadelphia Centennial Exposition of 1876; president, Western Saving Fund Society, 1878-1901; president, American Philosophical Society, 1880-1901.

Pennsylvania Politics:

Member, Philadelphia City Council, 1834-1837.

Elected, Whig, Pennsylvania State Senate, 1st district, Philadelphia City and Philadelphia County, 1837-1840; chairman, Investigation of the Buckshot War Committee; William B. Reed replaced Frederick Fraley, who resigned prior to the beginning of the session, 1841. 

Delegate, Whig National Convention, Harrisburg, Pennsylvania, William Henry Harrison, December 1839.

Cited:

Cox, Harold. "Senate Members F". Wilkes University Election Statistics Project Wilkes University.

Chamberlain, Joshua Lawrence (1901). University of Philadelphia: Its History, Influence, Equipment and Characteristics. Boston: R. Herndon Company. page 330.

"Frederick Fraley Dead". The New York Times. Philadelphia. September 24, 1901. page 7.

Frederick Fraley (1804-1901) - Find a Grave Memorial