James Francis Burke (October 21, 1867 – August 8, 1932) was Republican member of the U.S. House of Representatives for Pennsylvania. Early life James Burke was born in Petroleum Center, Pennsylvania to Irish immigrants. He studied law at the University of Michigan at Ann Arbor where he graduated 1892. While at Michigan he organized the American Republican College League, the predecessor to the College Republicans. Petitioning then president, Republican William McKinley Burke won approval for the organization and hosted an inaugural banquet attended by McKinley along with 1,500 college students The organization quickly spread to almost every college in the country. In 1888, at age 21, Burke was made secretary of the committee in charge of the dedication of the then-new Allegheny County Court House, at which President Rutherford B. Hayes made the dedicating address. Legal career After graduating from the University of Michigan, he was admitted to the Allegheny County bar the same year. Subsequently, he was admitted to the Superior and Supreme courts of Pennsylvania, and later to the United States Supreme Court, and commenced practice in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. He was the secretary of the Republican National Committee in 1892, resigning during the same year to devote his entire time to his duties as president of the American Republican College League. Political career Burke ran for Congress in 1904 and was elected by a wide majority. He subsequently served five consecutive terms. He was chairman of the congressional committee which inaugurated William Howard Taft as the president of the United States. During his time in congress, Burke served on a number of committees, including: Committee on Education – Chairman Military Affairs Committee Committee on Banking and Currency He had a hand in a number of important pieces of legislation, including taking an active role in framing the Federal Reserve Act which created the Federal Reserve Bank, America's central bank. He was appointed a delegate to the Parliamentary Peace Conference at Brussels in 1905. He was appointed by President Benjamin Harrison to codify the navigation laws of the United States. He was officer of, or a delegate to, the Republican National Conventions from 1892 to 1924, with the exception of the year 1912. Post-Congress career He was not a candidate for renomination in 1914. In December, 1917, he became United States Government Director of War Savings during the First World War. Following his political career, Burke resumed the practice