Myer Strouse

Myer Strouse (December 16, 1825 – February 11, 1878) was a Democratic member of the U.S. House of Representatives from Pennsylvania. He was born in Oberstrau, in the Kingdom of Bavaria, to a Jewish family. In 1832 he immigrated to the United States with his father, who settled in Pottsville, Pennsylvania, a growing center of the anthracite coal region. Raised in this immigrant community, Strouse attended private schools, laying the educational foundation for his later work in journalism, law, and politics.

As a young man, Strouse moved to Philadelphia, where he became involved in the world of publishing and agricultural journalism. From 1848 to 1852 he edited the North American Farmer, a periodical based in Philadelphia. His work as editor placed him at the intersection of public discourse, economic development, and policy debates of the mid-nineteenth century, and it helped establish his reputation as an articulate advocate and commentator.

After his editorial tenure, Strouse turned to the study of law. He read law and was admitted to the bar in 1855. Upon admission, he commenced the practice of law in Pottsville, Pennsylvania. His legal practice developed in a region shaped by industrial expansion, labor issues, and the complex social dynamics of the coal fields, experience that would later inform his public service and his role in notable labor-related legal matters.

Strouse entered national politics as a member of the Democratic Party representing Pennsylvania. He was elected as a Democrat to the Thirty-eighth Congress (March 4, 1863 – March 3, 1865) and was reelected to the Thirty-ninth Congress (March 4, 1865 – March 3, 1867). His two terms in office coincided with the American Civil War and the beginning of Reconstruction, a significant period in American history. During these years he participated in the legislative process, taking part in debates and votes that shaped wartime and postwar policy, and representing the interests of his Pennsylvania constituents in the House of Representatives. After serving these two consecutive terms, he was not a candidate for renomination in 1866.

Following his departure from Congress, Strouse resumed the practice of law in Pottsville. He became particularly noted for his work as attorney and solicitor for the “Molly Maguires,” a secretive organization associated with Irish coal miners in the anthracite regions of Pennsylvania. In 1876 and 1877 he represented their interests during a period of intense labor conflict and high-profile criminal prosecutions, placing him at the center of one of the most controversial labor and legal struggles of the era.

Myer Strouse died in Pottsville, Pennsylvania, on February 11, 1878. He was interred in Odd Fellows Cemetery in that city. His life reflected the trajectory of a nineteenth-century immigrant who rose from modest beginnings to become a lawyer, editor, and two-term member of the United States Congress, and he is remembered as part of the broader history of Jewish participation in American public life.