James Irvin

Who was James Irvin?

James Irvin was an American politician. Irvin was a prominent agriculturalist and ironmaster in Centre County, Pennsylvania. Irvin represented Pennsylvania's 14th congressional district in the 27th and 28th Congresses. Irvin unsuccessfully ran for governor of Pennsylvania in 1847, losing to incumbent governor Francis Rawn Shunk.

In 1855, the General Assembly of the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania chartered the Farmer's High School. The school's trustees decided to build the school on 200 acres of Centre County land donated by Irvin. That Farmer's High School is now The Pennsylvania State University. Irvin Hall, one of Penn State's oldest residential halls, named in his honor.

Irvin died in Hecla, Centre County, Pennsylvania, on November 28, 1862. He is buried in Union Cemetery in Bellefonte, Pennsylvania.

The Oak Hall Historic District, associated with his dwelling in College Township, Pennsylvania, was added to the National Register of Historic Places in 1979. Also on the Register is the Monroe Furnace, which he established in 1847.