Benjamin C. Sawyer

Benjamin C. Sawyer (October 18, 1822 – March 13, 1908), was the Mayor of Pittsburgh from 1862 to 1864.

His family was in the soap making business. While he was mayor the American Civil War's single worst civilian accident occurred when, on September 17, 1862, the Allegheny Arsenal exploded and claimed the lives of seventy-eight people. Most of the fatalities were young women.

After his political career, the Panic of 1873 descimated Sawyer's assets, forcing him to move to Colorado. He would later prosper there from investments in the mining. He died in California.

ources

* [http://www.spdconline.org/history/Facts/PghMayors.html South Pittsburgh Development Corporation]
* [http://politicalgraveyard.com/bio/sawyer.html Political Graveyard]