Samuel Alfred Craig was a Civil War

American Civil War

The American Civil War was a civil war fought in the United States of America. In response to the election of Abraham Lincoln as President of the United States, 11 southern slave states declared their secession from the United States and formed the Confederate States of America ; the other 25...

 soldier, attorney, and a Republican

Republican Party (United States)

The Republican Party is one of the two major contemporary political parties in the United States, along with the Democratic Party. Founded by anti-slavery expansion activists in 1854, it is often called the GOP . The party's platform generally reflects American conservatism in the U.S...

 member of the U.S. House of Representatives from Pennsylvania

Pennsylvania

The Commonwealth of Pennsylvania is a U.S. state that is located in the Northeastern and Mid-Atlantic regions of the United States. The state borders Delaware and Maryland to the south, West Virginia to the southwest, Ohio to the west, New York and Ontario, Canada, to the north, and New Jersey to...

.

Biography

Craig was born in Brookville, Pennsylvania

Brookville, Pennsylvania

Brookville is a borough in Jefferson County in the U.S. state of Pennsylvania, 100 miles northeast of Pittsburgh. 2,472 people lived in Brookville in 1900, and 3,003 people lived there in 1910. The population was 4,230 at the 2000 census...

. He attended the common schools of his native town and Jefferson College

Washington & Jefferson College

Washington & Jefferson College, also known as W & J College or W&J, is a private liberal arts college in Washington, Pennsylvania, in the United States, which is south of Pittsburgh...

 in Canonsburg, Pennsylvania

Canonsburg, Pennsylvania

Canonsburg is a borough in Washington County, Pennsylvania, southwest of Pittsburgh. Canonsburg was laid out by Colonel John Canon in 1789 and incorporated in 1802....

. He learned the printer

Printer (publisher)

In publishing, printers are both companies providing printing services and individuals who directly operate printing presses. With the invention of the moveable type printing press by Johannes Gutenberg around 1450, printing—and printers—proliferated throughout Europe.Today, printers are found...

's trade and taught school.

He enlisted in the Union Army

Union Army

The Union Army was the land force that fought for the Union during the American Civil War. It was also known as the Federal Army, the U.S. Army, the Northern Army and the National Army...

 as a private April 19, 1861. He was promoted successively to second lieutenant, first lieutenant, and captain of Company B, One Hundred and Fifth Regiment, Pennsylvania Volunteer Infantry. He was commissioned captain in the Veteran Reserve Corps

Veteran Reserve Corps

The Veteran Reserve Corps was a military reserve organization created within the Union Army during the American Civil War to allow partially disabled or otherwised infirmed soldiers to perform light duty, freeing able-bodied soldiers to serve on the front lines.-The Invalid Corps:The corps was...

, United States Army

United States Army

The United States Army is the main branch of the United States Armed Forces responsible for land-based military operations. It is the largest and oldest established branch of the U.S. military, and is one of seven U.S. uniformed services...

, and served continuously four years and three months.

Following the war, Craig studied law, was admitted to the bar in 1876 and commenced practice in Brookville. He was elected district attorney of Jefferson County, Pennsylvania

Jefferson County, Pennsylvania

Jefferson County is a county located in the U.S. state of Pennsylvania. In 2010, its population was 45,200. It was established on March 26, 1804, from part of Lycoming County and named for then-President Thomas Jefferson. Its county seat is Brookville...

, in 1878.

Craig was elected as a Republican to the Fifty-first

51st United States Congress

The Fifty-first United States Congress, referred to by some critics as the Billion Dollar Congress, was a meeting of the legislative branch of the United States federal government, consisting of the United States Senate and the United States House of Representatives. It met in Washington, D.C...

 Congress. He was an unsuccessful candidate for renomination in 1890

United States House election, 1890

The U.S. House election, 1890 was an election for the United States House of Representatives in 1890 which occurred in the middle of President Benjamin Harrison's term....

.

He resumed the practice of law in Brookville, where he died in 1920, aged 80. He was interred in Brookville Cemetery.