Preceded by Samuel C. Crafts Profession Politician, Lawyer Succeeded by Samuel S. Phelps Name William Upham | Political party Whig Role Politician Spouse(s) Sarah Keyes (m. 1814) Rank First lieutenant | |
 | ||
Born August 5, 1792
Leicester, Massachusetts, U.S. ( 1792-08-05 ) Children William Keyes Upham (b. 1817),
Charles Carroll Upham (b. 1818),
Sarah Sumner Upham (b. ca1820),
Mary Annette Upham (b. 1825) Died July 2, 1924, Marshfield, Wisconsin, United States Education United States Military Academy Battles and wars American Civil War, Battle of Blackburn's Ford, First Battle of Bull Run Service/branch United States Army, Union Army Allegiance United States of America, Union | ||
William Upham (August 5, 1792 – January 14, 1853) was a United States Senator from Vermont.
Contents
- Early life
- Early career
- United States Senator
- Death and burial
- Quotations
- Family
- Rice family and relations
- References
Early life
William Upham was born in Leicester, Massachusetts to Samuel Upham and Martha (Livermore) Upham. He moved with his father to Montpelier, Vermont in 1802. He attended the district schools and the Montpelier Academy, and was privately tutored. He attended the University of Vermont and then studied law with Samuel Prentiss.
Early career
Upham was admitted to the bar in 1811 and commenced practice in Montpelier. In addition to maintaining a successful practice, Upham also guided the efforts of several prospective lawyers who studied in his office, including Peter T. Washburn.
Upham was a member of the Vermont House of Representatives from 1827 to 1828 and was State's attorney for Washington County in 1829. In 1830 he again served in the Vermont House of Representatives.
United States Senator
In 1842 Samuel Prentiss resigned his seat in the U.S. Senate in order to accept appointment as United States District Court for the District of Vermont. Crafts was appointed to fill the vacancy, and served until the end of the term to which Prentiss had been elected, April 23, 1842 to March 3, 1843.
Crafts was not a candidate for a full term, and Upham was the successful Whig candidate for the seat. He was reelected in 1848 and served from March 4, 1843 until his death.
While in the Senate, he was chairman of the Committee on Agriculture (28th Congress) and the Committee on Pensions (29th Congress).
Death and burial
Upham died of smallpox in Washington, D.C.; because he was believed to be contagious, his funeral was held quickly, and his remains were not returned to Vermont. He was buried at Congressional Cemetery.
Quotations
Family
Upham was the son of Samuel Upham and Patty Livermore Upham. In 1814, he married Sarah Keyes; they were the parents of five children, four of whom lived to adulthood: William Keyes Upham, Charles Carrol Upham, Sarah Sumner Upham and Mary Annette Upham.
Rice family and relations
Upham was a descendant of Edmund Rice, an English immigrant to Massachusetts Bay Colony, as follows: