Preceded by John Page Role Politician Name William Cabell | Profession Lawyer, judge Succeeded by John Tyler, Sr. | |
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Preceded by Henry St. George Tucker, Sr. Spouse(s) Elizabeth Cabell, Agnes S. B. Cabell Alma mater College of William and Mary Died January 12, 1853, Richmond, Virginia, United States Party Democratic-Republican Party Education College of William & Mary, Hampden–Sydney College | ||
Political party Democratic-Republican | ||
William Henry Cabell (December 16, 1772 – January 12, 1853) was a Virginia politician and judge aligned with the Democratic-Republican party. He served as Member of the Assembly, as Governor of Virginia, and as judge on what later became the Virginia Supreme Court. Cabell adopted his middle initial, which did not stand for anything, in 1795, to distinguish himself from other William Cabells, including his uncle William Cabell Sr. and first cousin William Cabell Jr.
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Early life and career
Cabell was born at “Boston Hill”, in Cumberland County in the Colony of Virginia on December 16, 1772. He was the son of Colonel Nicholas Cabell and Hannah Carrington Cabell. Young Cabell studied with private tutors and later attended and graduated from Hampden–Sydney College in 1789 and then the College of William and Mary, from which he graduated in July 1793. Young Cabell then moved to Richmond to read law and after completing those studies was admitted to the bar on June 13, 1794.
He began his legal career the following month and soon entered the political arena after adopting his distinguishing initial. William H. Cabell served in the Virginia House of Delegates and as a Presidential elector. He was the 14th Governor of Virginia from 1805 to 1808.
Judicial career
In December 1808, Cabell was elected a judge of the general court. Two years later, legislators selected him for a vacant seat on the Supreme Court of Appeals. He began serving on that court on March 21, 1811, and served continuously for more than four decades. During the court's reorganization in 1831, Cabell was again selected to the new court, where he became president on January 18, 1842. He remained in this position until 1850, but during the last year before his resignation had several absences due to ill health.
Death and legacy
William H. Cabell died on January 12, 1853 in Richmond, Virginia and was interred in Shockoe Hill Cemetery.
Cabell County, West Virginia was named in his honor, as is a residence hall at William & Mary.
Cabell built the Midway Mill in 1787, which later was listed on the National Register of Historic Places, but demolished in 1998.