George P. Friant’s illustrious career ultimately killed him.
The lifelong resident of Scranton was just 56 when he died of arsenic poisoning, according to a Jan. 26, 1916, obituary in The Scranton Times. Arsenic was widely used as a preservative in taxidermy, and Mr. Friant was one of the best-known taxidermists in Pennsylvania.
For years, Mr. Friant’s shop was on Lackawanna Avenue in Downtown Scranton. He moved the shop a few blocks away on West Lackawanna Avenue a few years before his untimely death.
Although he isn’t a household name in Scranton, Mr. Friant’s work can still be seen locally at the Everhart Museum. For years, animals he preserved were on display at Penn State’s main campus and Wyoming Seminary.
A good friend of Dr. Isaiah Fawkes Everhart, Mr. Friant mounted specimens for the noted naturalist and philanthropist for 25 years. In June 1912, Mr. Friant was named the museum’s taxidermist, according to a Times article.
Mr. Friant also did taxidermy work for Penn State, and played a not-so-small role in bringing a preserved mountain lion to Penn State.
The Original Nittany Lion, as it is called now, was a curious story. The mountain lion was shot in 1856 by Samuel Brush in Susquehanna County, according to Jackie R. Esposito’s “The Nittany Lion: An Illustrated Tale.” Even then, mountain lions were a rare sight.
The animal was stuffed and preserved by Latham Avery Smith Jr., a New Milford doctor. It spent more than two decades in the Brush home before Mr. Friant and state ornithologist B.H. Warren “persuaded Mr. Brush to give the specimen” a better home, according to the Ms. Esposito’s historical account.
“Mr. Friant’s account documents the lion’s arrival at Penn State in 1893 (and) states the specimen was cleaned and remounted in anticipation of another trip,” according to “The Nittany Lion.” The 7-foot, 9-inch long lion, which stood about 30 inches high at the shoulder was on display at the World Columbian Exposition, also called the World’s Fair, in Chicago later that year.
The Scranton taxidermist also received quite a bit of attention in Chicago that year. According to his obituary, he received the gold medal for his exhibition of birds of Pennsylvania at the World’s Fair.
Mr. Friant’s renown continued to grow. He was hired by the Pennsylvania Commission to prepare an exhibit of Pennsylvania birds and animals at the Cotton States Exposition in Atlanta in 1895, according to a Tribune article in August 1895. He received a gold medal for that display, too.
Longterm exposure to arsenic can lead to headaches, confusion, cramping muscles, hair loss and convulsions.
While it is not known whether Mr. Friant experienced these symptoms, his obituary reported that he suffered a stroke in 1915 that left him partially paralyzed. He recovered enough to continue his business, but soon suffered another stroke that confined him to his home and the hospital. He died on Jan. 25, 1916 at Hahnemann hospital “as the result of arsenic poisoning and paralysis,” according to his obituary.
ERIN L. NISSLEY is an assistant metro editor at The Times-Tribune and has lived in the area for nearly nine years.
Contact the writer:
localhistory@timesshamrock.com