William McWillie

Governor William McWillie
Portrait of Governor William McWillie
22nd Governor of Mississippi
In office
November 16, 1857 – November 21, 1859
Preceded byJohn J. McRae
Succeeded byJohn J. Pettus
Member of the U.S. House of Representatives
from Mississippi's 3rd district
In office
December 3, 1849 – March 3, 1851
Preceded byPatrick W. Tompkins
Succeeded byJohn D. Freeman
South Carolina State Senate
South Carolina House of Representatives
In office
1854–1892
Personal details
Born(1795-11-17)November 17, 1795
Camden, South Carolina, United States
DiedMarch 3, 1869(1869-03-03) (aged 73)
Madison County, Mississippi, United States
Resting placeKirkwood Cemetery, Camden, Mississippi
Spouse(s)Nancy Cunningham
Catherine Anderson
Children23
Alma materUniversity of South Carolina
Military service
Allegiance United States of America (1812-1815)
Branch/serviceSouth Carolina Militia
Battles/warsWar of 1812

William McWillie (November 17, 1795 – March 3, 1869) was the twenty-second governor of Mississippi from 1857 to 1859. He was a Democrat.

Biography

He was born near Liberty Hill, South Carolina, on November 17, 1795. His father Colonel Adam McWillie was a Scottish immigrant who commanded the 2nd Regiment of the South Carolina militia during the War of 1812, and William served as an adjutant in his father's regiment in the war.[1][2]

McWillie graduated from South Carolina College (now the University of South Carolina) in 1817. He then began the study of law and was admitted to the bar in 1818.[3]

Between 1836 and 1840, he served in both the South Carolina House of Representatives and the South Carolina Senate.[2] In 1845 he moved to Madison County, Mississippi, and was elected to serve his new state as a US Representative in 1849, serving in Congress from December 3, 1849 to March 3, 1851.[2] In the 1857 Mississippi gubernatorial election he ran as the Democratic candidate, winning two-thirds of the popular vote.[2] McWillie served one term as governor, during the 1859 election the Democrats chose to nominate the more extreme "fire-eater" John J. Pettus rather than the moderate McWillie.

Governor McWillie was married twice, first to Nancy Cunningham and then after her death, to Catherine Anderson. One of his sons, Adam, was killed while serving in the Confederate Army.[2] Former Governor McWillie died in Kirkwood, Madison County, Mississippi, on March 3, 1869. He is buried in Kirkwood Cemetery, near Camden, Mississippi, the town he founded and named for his hometown of Camden, South Carolina.[4][5]

References

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  1. ↑ "William McWillie". National Governors Association. 10 January 2012. Retrieved 2021-02-21.
  2. 1 2 3 4 5 Rowland, Dunbar. (1908). The Official and Statistical Register of the State of Mississippi, Volume 2. Mississippi Department of Archives and History. pp. 149-.
  3. ↑ "Governor William McWillie". bioguide.congress.gov. Retrieved November 15, 2013.
  4. ↑ "Biographical Directory of the U.S. Congress - Retro Member details". bioguideretro.congress.gov. Retrieved 2021-02-21.
  5. ↑ r2WPadmin. "McWillie, William". Mississippi Encyclopedia. Retrieved 2021-02-21.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: numeric names: authors list (link)
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