Biography

12/12/1805 - 04/04/1861

Joseph Konigmacher (W7) Lancaster and Lebanon Counties 1849-1851

Early Life:

Joseph Konigmacher, born December 12, 1805, Lancaster County, Pennsylvania; son of Benjamin and Margretta Fahnestock Konigmacher; apprenticed, father, tannery; built Mountain Springs Hotel of Ephrata, 1846; elected, Pennsylvania State House of Representatives, 1838-1840; delegate, Constitutional Convention, 1838; elected, Whig, Pennsylvania State Senate, 1849-1851; president, Reading and Columbia Railroad, 1861; married, Hanna Cecelia Slaymaker; died, April 4, 1861, (aged 55), Lancaster County, Pennsylvania after catching a cold, returning from Philadelphia; interment, Ephrata Cloister Cemetery, Ephrata, Lancaster County, Pennsylvania.

Early Career:

Converted, home at the tannery site into the Mountain Springs Hotel of Ephrata, 1846

Pennsylvania Politics: 

Elected, Whig, Pennsylvania State House of Representatives, 1838-1840.

Delegate, Constitutional Convention, 1838. 

Elected, Whig, Pennsylvania State Senate, 7th district, Lancaster and Lebanon Counties, 1849-1851; recognized as the first legislator that pushed for the creation of the Harrisburg State Hospital, first state-supported hospital for the aid of people with mental disabilities; persuaded the Reading and Columbia Railroad to pass through Ephrata.   

Pennsylvania House of Representatives Biography:

Official Website - PA House Archives Official Website (state.pa.us)

Cited:

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

Konigmacher.pdf (ephratacloister.org)

Joseph Konigmacher (1805-1861) - Find a Grave Memorial