He studied medicine at the University of Maryland , and graduated in 1832 . He moved to Centerville , Pennsylvania , where he practiced medicine through 1856 . That year , he began in the real estate business , bought a paper mill in Newville , Pennsylvania , and served as a delegate to the 1856 Democratic National Convention in Cincinnati . He was elected to the United States House of Representatives in 1857 , leaving upon the completion of his first term . He then manufactured paper and operated an iron furnace in Sharpsburg , Maryland . He also served as the planner and the major builder of the Harrisburg and Potomac Railroad . He died in Newville in 1882 , and is buried in Big Spring Presbyterian Cemetery
1856 Democratic National Convention
1856 Democratic National Convention
John Alexander Ahl