[p. 390] soldier, lawyer, statesman and incorruptible citizen, was born in Mercer County, Pennsvlvania, August 15, 1820, and died at Sandy Lake, Pennsylvania, September 22, 1907, in his eighty-seventh year. He was a son of Malcolm and Jane (Summerville) McComb.
The father of Colonel McComb was in Delaware, in 1792, and in 1806 he accompanied his parents to Mercer County, Pennsylvania, and died on his farm in Lackawanna Township, in 1849. Of his six children the late Robert B. was the second son.
In early manhood, Colonel McComb worked as a cabinetmaker, and from 1839 until 1843, resided at Cincinnati. In 1851 he entered upon the study of law, his opportunities never having been such as to permit him to follow his natural inclinations until thirty years of age. He was admitted to the bar in 1853 and to practice the Superior Courts of the United States in 1861. He was an intimate friend of the Hon. Edwin M. Stanton, Secretary of War in Lincoln's administration, and it was he who introduced Colonel McComb into the U. S. courts at Washington, D. C. Ill health finally compelled him to give up professional life. He was much interested in public affairs and early embraced the principles of the Republican party. In 1853 he was first elected to the State Legislature, was re-elected in 1855 and again in 1856. The record of his work while serving as the representative of the people's interests makes a long story and one full of interest. As chairman of the committee on Ways and Means, he had occasion to look into the subject of taxation, and his trained legal mind soon discovered the injustice of many of the statutes, and he henceforth made it his care to bring before the legislative body bills to correct many of the existing evils. It was Robert B. McComb who was the father of the Sunday liquor law.
During the early part of the Civil War, Colonel McComb was a strong supporter of the administration, and in 1862 he entered the Union army, first as colonel of the Fourteenth Regiment, Pennsylvania Volunteer Infantry, and later was commissioned colonel of the Fifty-fifth Regiment. He served with distinction and always took pride in his military record. He was a personal friend of Governor Pollock and served on his staff. In local affairs he was particularly interested in the public schools and served on educational boards. Following his death, the Bar Association of New Castle, of which he was the Nestor, met and passed resolutions and made speeches in eulogy of their honored comrade.
The marriage of Colonel McComb was to Anna L. (Guerard) McGuffin, who was the widow of John N. McGuffin. She was a native of Savannah, Georgia. Colonel McComb is survived by one daughter, Harriet G. She was married January 7, 1891, to Lewis B. Hamilton, who is a son of the late David B. Hamilton, a native of Connecticut. Mr. Hamilton is a civil engineer and prominent in his profession. Mr. and Mrs. Hamilton have three sons. They reside in a very pleasant home at No. 151 East Falls street, New Castle.
20th Century History of New Castle and Lawrence County Pennsylvania and Representative Citizens Hon. Aaron L. Hazen Richmond-Arnold Publishing Company, Chicago, Ill., 1908
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