A Representative from Pennsylvania, he was born in Mount Pleasant, Westmoreland County, Pennsylvania, November 24, 1839. He attended the public schools and Mount Pleasant Academy and was graduated from Lewisburg University (now Bucknell University), Lewisburg, Pennsylvania, in 1862;
He engaged in mercantile pursuits and during the Civil War enlisted in the Union Army in 1862 in the One Hundred and Fortieth Regiment, Pennsylvania Volunteer Infantry, and soon afterward was appointed adjutant of the regiment. He was mustered out of the service in October 1864 and again engaged in mercantile pursuits in Rochester, Pennsylvania. He served as the chairman of the Beaver County Republican committee in 1872 and 1874 and was elected as a Republican to the Forty-fifth, Forty-sixth, and Forty-seventh Congresses (March 4, 1877-March 3, 1883). In the House, he serves as chairman, Committee on Public Buildings and Grounds (Forty-seventh Congress). He was subsequently appointed by President William McKinley as Second Assistant Postmaster General and served from 1897 to 1907. He died in Washington, D.C., April 15, 1914, and was buried in Arlington National Cemetery (Section 3, Grave 1322)
Michael Robert Patterson was born in Arlington and is the son of a former officer of the US Army. So it was no wonder that sooner or later his interests drew him to American history and especially to American military history. Many of his articles can be found on renowned portals like the New York Times, Washingtonpost or Wikipedia.
Reviewed by: Michael Howard