William W. Wilshire
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William W. Wilshire | |
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Member of the U.S. House of Representatives from Arkansas's 3rd district | |
In office March 3, 1873 – June 16, 1874 | |
Preceded by | Thomas Boles |
Succeeded by | Thomas M. Gunter |
In office March 4, 1875 – March 3, 1877 | |
Preceded by | Thomas M. Gunter |
Succeeded by | Jordan E. Cravens |
Chief Justice of the Arkansas Supreme Court | |
In office 1868 – February 1871 | |
Personal details | |
Born | William Wallace Wilshire September 8, 1830 Shawneetown, Illinois, U.S. |
Died | August 19, 1888 Washington, D.C., U.S. | (aged 57)
Resting place | Mount Holly Cemetery, Little Rock, Arkansas, U.S. 34°44′15.3″N 92°16′42.5″W / 34.737583°N 92.278472°W |
Political party | Democratic |
Other political affiliations | Republican (before 1874) |
Military service | |
Allegiance | ![]() |
Branch/service | ![]() |
Years of service | 1862–1864 |
Rank | ![]() |
Unit | 126th Illinois Infantry |
Battles/wars | Civil War |
William W. Wilshire (born William Wallace Wilshire; September 8, 1830 – August 19, 1888) was an American politician who served as the U.S. Representative for Arkansas's 3rd congressional district (1873–74 and 1875–77).
Biography
Born in Shawneetown, Illinois, Wilshire was educated in the country schools. He spent three years in California engaged in gold mining, from 1852 to 1855, when he returned to his home in Port Byron and engaged in the coal mining and mercantile business. He studied law and was admitted to the bar in 1859.
Wilshire entered the Union Army as major in the One Hundred and Twenty-sixth Regiment, Illinois Volunteer Infantry, and served from July 16, 1862. Following the Siege of Vicksburg, his regiment was sent to Arkansas and on the Little Rock Campaign under Major General Frederick Steele's force.[1] He resigned July 16, 1864 because of health reasons.
After the war, he relocated to the capital city of Little Rock, Arkansas, and commenced the practice of law. He was appointed solicitor general of the state in 1867. From 1868 to 1871, he was chief justice of the Arkansas Supreme Court. He left the position to resume his law practice. Wilshire presented credentials as a Republican member-elect to the Forty-third Congress and served from March 4, 1873, to June 16, 1874, when he was succeeded by Thomas M. Gunter, who had contested Wilshire's election in 1872.
Wilshire was elected as a Democrat to the Forty-fourth Congress (March 4, 1875 – March 3, 1877). He was not a candidate for renomination in 1876. He engaged in the practice of law in Washington, D.C., where he died August 19, 1888.
He was interred at Mount Holly Cemetery in Little Rock.
Notes
This article incorporates public domain material from the Biographical Directory of the United States Congress
References
- United States Congress. "William W. Wilshire (id: W000567)". Biographical Directory of the United States Congress.
- 1830 births
- 1888 deaths
- People from Shawneetown, Illinois
- Republican Party members of the United States House of Representatives from Arkansas
- Democratic Party members of the United States House of Representatives from Arkansas
- 19th-century American politicians
- Chief Justices of the Arkansas Supreme Court
- People of Illinois in the American Civil War
- Union Army officers
- Burials at Mount Holly Cemetery
- 19th-century American judges