Thomas Alexander Scott

b. December 28, 1823, Fort Loudon, PA
d. May 21, 1881, Dabry, PA

by Roger Marsh

Tom Scott may best be remembered as president of the Pennsylvania Railroad - one of the largest companies on the planet in his day. Or should we recall his deep interest in building the southern transcontinental railroad route that deeply involved him in politics, and caused him to take a leading role in crafting the Compromise of 1877 - a deal that settled the disputed 1876 presidential election that put Rutherford B. Hayes into the White House? Or maybe it's the fact that President Lincoln appointed Scott as the first Assistant Secretary of War during the Civil War due to his efficiency in manuevering troops by rail?

But according to author Ted Nace in his book The Gangs of America, the now obscure Scott - Andrew Carnegie's mentor - should be remembered for an invention that seems to top all other 19th century ideas - including the light bulb and the cotton gin. Scott, he writes, is responsible for reinventing an institution that has dominated the world since the 1880s - the corporation.

Read the very fascinating chapter six - The Genius - from Nace's The Gangs of America - that details Scott's role.

You can also read the entire The Gangs of America from your computer, or download the whole book here.

Scottdale's earliest history is sketchy prior to the Revolutionary War, but we know a large number of Scotch and Irish immigrants moved in about the 1770s - and 80 years later - the 1850s - the location housed a distillary and flour mill known as Fountain Mills. The Pennsylvania Railroad, with Scott as president, included a Fountain Mills stop in 1873. The following year, 1874, the town incorporated, and forever became known as Scottdale - probably to reward the man who kept a low profile (he destroyed most of his own written work and speeches) who helped bring business to town.

By the early 1900s, 30,000 coke ovens were formed in this region, and hundreds surrounded Scottdale - where the railroad here moved coal and coke to other parts of the country.

Once asked if he might run for president, Scott said, "No, gentlemen, I cannot afford it; time is altogether too short. If I could have a ninety-nine years' lease, I might think of it."

In the fall of 1878, Scott suffered a paralytic stroke and never fully recovered. He spent the following year attempting to recover in Europe. He resigned as president of the Pennsylvania Railroad May 1, 1880.

He died May 21, 1881 at his home - named Woodburn - near Darby, PA, survived by his second wife - Anna Dike Riddle - and four children - two from his second wife, and two from his first wife, Anna Margaret Mullison.

He is buried in Woodlands Cemetery, (or view grave site here), Philadelphia.

Carved into his tombstone are the words: 'Until the Day Break."