Background
Pillsbury was born in Sutton, New Hampshire in 1816 to John Pillsbury and Susan Pillsbury (née Wadleigh).
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George Pillsbury
Edit Profilemiller politician mayor of Minneapolis
Education
Pillsbury attended the local schools until the age of 18 when he moved to Boston, Massachusetts to work as a clerk in a store.
Career
He was also a Republican politician active in both New Hampshire and Minnesota. Both were the descendants of English settlers who had been active political and civic leaders in New England. In 1840, he moved to Warner, New Hampshire to work in a store under John H. Pearson.
After working there for about a year, he purchased the store outright to run on his own.
In 1841, Pillsbury married Margaret South. Carlton. Together they had three children: Charles A. Pillsbury, Mary Addie (1849-1850) and Frederick Carlton Pillsbury (1852-1892).
Except for a brief period working in Boston, Pillsbury remained in Warner until 1851. During his time there, he was elected to the town"s board of selectmen, served as postmaster and town treasurer, and also served in the New Hampshire General Court from 1850 to 1851.
In 1851 he moved the family to Concord, New Hampshire where he was appointed to oversee the construction of the county jail.
Later that year he began working with the Concord Railroad, a company he remained with for the next 24 years. While working with the railroad, Pillsbury was also active with several major banks in Concord as well as local politics. He was elected to the New Hampshire General Court for a second time from 1871 to 1872 and was also elected the mayor of Concord in 1876 and 1877.
In 1878, Pillsbury decided to relocate to and join them.
In 1885 he chaired the committee building the Chamber of Commerce (today known as the Grain Exchange). He also remained involved in politics, winning election to the Board of Education and as an alderman in 1881.
He was quickly named the president of the city council. In 1884 he ran for mayor, defeating incumbent A. A. Ames.
Facing pressure from the temperance movement as the city swelled with saloons, Pillsbury instituted a unique system of "liquor patrol limits" which limited bars to heavily trafficked streets near the city"s core which were more likely to be well-patrolled by police.
He ran for re-election in 1886 but was defeated by his predecessor A. A. Ames. Pillsbury also contributed to various charitable causes. He funded the Pillsbury Academy in Owatonna, Minnesota.
He also supported causes in his native state including the endowment of a library in Warner, a war memorial in Sutton and the Margaret Pillsbury Hospital in Concord.
Pillsbury died at his home in on July 17, 1898. He is buried in Lakewood Cemetery in
Mayoral Election, 1884
George A. Pillsbury 12,244
A. A. Ames 5,876
Charles Evans Holt 862
John South. Pillsbury 1
C. F. Pillsbury 1
Write-Insurance and Scattering 2
Mayoral Election, 1886
A. A. Ames 15,151
George A. Pillsbury 10,011
Wesley M. Lawrence 604
Write-Insurance and Scattering 6.
