George C. Northrop

George Chester Northrop (April 1, 1819 – July 13, 1874) was an American lawyer, banker, and Wisconsin pioneer. He was an early mayor of Racine, Wisconsin, and established the first bank in Racine. He also represented the city in the Wisconsin State Assembly in 1864. His last name is sometimes spelled Northrup.

Biography George C. Northrop was born April 1, 1819, in Galway, New York. He received a liberal academic education and then went on to study law at Ballston Spa. He was admitted to the bar and opened a law office in Medina, New York. After a period of poor health, he moved west to Racine, Wisconsin, in 1849, and was admitted to the Wisconsin bar.

In 1853, he formed a partnership with Horatio B. Munroe, Reuben M. Norton, and Henry S. Durand to organize the Racine County Bank, the first bank in Racine. Northrop worked for several years as the first cashier and manager of the bank, which was later converted to the First National Bank of Racine. During these years, he also became one of the founding shareholders and directors of the Racine Gas-Light Company.

Personal life and family George C. Northrop was the fourth of six children born to Dr. Booth Northrop and his wife Huldah ( Shepard). His younger brother, Byron Booth Northrop, also came to Racine and was a prominent citizen in the early years of the city. His older brother, Henry H. Northrop, was a Presbyterian minister in Michigan and served as a chaplain with the 13th Michigan Infantry Regiment in the Civil War. The Northrops were descendants of Joseph Northrop and his wife Mary ( Norton), English colonists who settled in New Haven, Connecticut Colony, in 1638. Stiles Northrop, who also served in the Wisconsin State Assembly in the 1860s, was a distant cousin.

George C. Northrop married twice. His first wife was Sarah Wortser; they had three children who all died in infancy, before her death in 1854. He then married Mary Wortser, the sister of his first wife. They had another son who died in infancy, then had a daughter, Sarah, who survived them. Sarah married William Rochester Banks of Lamar, Missouri, and had at least two children.