Alvin Evans

Alvin Evans
Born	Template:Birth date Ebensburg, Pennsylvania, U.S.
Died	June 19, 1906(1906-06-19) (aged 60) Ebensburg, Pennsylvania, U.S.
Occupation(s)	Attorney, politician, banker
Years active	1873–1906
Known for	U.S. Representative from Pennsylvania

Alvin Evans (October 4, 1845 – June 19, 1906) was a prominent American attorney and a Republican representative serving in the U.S. House of Representatives from Pennsylvania.

Early life and education

Alvin was born in Ebensburg, Pennsylvania to parents David J. and Jane Ann (Jones) Evans. His grandfather, John Evans, originally hailed from Cardiganshire, Wales and worked as a carpenter. He received his education through local public schools and later attended Iron City Business College located in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. Following the collapse of his father’s enterprise during the financial panic of 1857, Evans began working in the lumber sector at sixteen years old.

American Civil War

In 1862, amid the American Civil War, Evans joined a volunteer regiment tasked with defending Pennsylvania against the threat of Confederate forces.

Legal and political career

Evans pursued legal studies under George M. Reade of Ebensburg starting in 1870 and gained admission to the bar three years later in 1873. He then launched his law practice in Ebensburg, representing clients before Pennsylvania’s Superior and Supreme Courts as well as federal courts. His public service included a term as burgess of Ebensburg and serving as solicitor for the Pennsylvania Railroad within Cambria County. Additionally, he contributed to local governance through roles on the school board and city council. A key figure in founding the First National Bank of Ebensburg, he eventually assumed the role of president of its board of directors.

Evans was elected to the Fifty-seventh and Fifty-eighth Congresses as a Republican but opted not to run for reelection in 1904, choosing instead to resume his legal career.

His community involvement extended to being a trustee at the First Congregational Church of Ebensburg and active membership in both the Grand Army of the Republic’s Captain John M. Jones Post and the Free and Accepted Masons’ Summit Lodge No. 312.

Personal life

On November 17, 1875, Evans married Kate Shryock (1846–1886) in Wilmore, Pennsylvania; together they had three children. He passed away in Ebensburg and was laid to rest at Lloyd Cemetery.