Thomas Scott Williams
Encyclopedia
Thomas Scott Williams was a U.S. Representative
from Connecticut
.
He was a descendant of immigrant Robert Williams of Roxbury, a cordwainer of Great Yarmouth and Norwich, England, who arrived in Roxbury, Massachusetts with his wife and several children about 1635.
Born in Wethersfield, Connecticut
, Williams completed preparatory studies.
He was graduated from Yale College
in 1794.
He studied law.
He was admitted to the bar
in 1799 and commenced practice in Mansfield, Connecticut
.
He moved to Hartford, Connecticut
, in 1803.
He was appointed attorney of the board of managers of the school fund of Hartford 1809-1810.
He served in the State house of representatives in 1813, 1815, and 1816.
He served as clerk of the house in 1815 and 1816.
Williams was elected as a Federalist
to the Fifteenth
Congress (March 4, 1817-March 3, 1819).
He was again a member of the State house of representatives in 1819, 1825, and 1827-1829.
He was appointed in 1829 an associate judge of the supreme court of errors and of the superior court, and in May 1834 appointed chief justice, holding the position until his resignation in May 1847.
He served as mayor of Hartford 1831-1835.
He resigned from public office.
He served as president of the American Tract Society of New York from May 1848 until his death.
He died in Hartford, Connecticut
, December 15, 1861.
Williams married in 1812 Delia Ellsworth, daughter of Founding Father Oliver Ellsworth
of Windsor, Connecticut. Williams was interred in Old North Cemetery near his brother-in-law William W. Ellsworth
.
United States House of Representatives
The United States House of Representatives is one of the two Houses of the United States Congress, the bicameral legislature which also includes the Senate.The composition and powers of the House are established in Article One of the Constitution...
from Connecticut
Connecticut
Connecticut is a state in the New England region of the northeastern United States. It is bordered by Rhode Island to the east, Massachusetts to the north, and the state of New York to the west and the south .Connecticut is named for the Connecticut River, the major U.S. river that approximately...
.
He was a descendant of immigrant Robert Williams of Roxbury, a cordwainer of Great Yarmouth and Norwich, England, who arrived in Roxbury, Massachusetts with his wife and several children about 1635.
Born in Wethersfield, Connecticut
Wethersfield, Connecticut
Wethersfield is a town in Hartford County, Connecticut, United States. Many records from colonial times spell the name Weathersfield, while Native Americans called it Pyquag...
, Williams completed preparatory studies.
He was graduated from Yale College
Yale College
Yale College was the official name of Yale University from 1718 to 1887. The name now refers to the undergraduate part of the university. Each undergraduate student is assigned to one of 12 residential colleges.-Residential colleges:...
in 1794.
He studied law.
He was admitted to the bar
Admission to the bar in the United States
In the United States, admission to the bar is the granting of permission by a particular court system to a lawyer to practice law in that system. Each U.S. state and similar jurisdiction has its own court system and sets its own rules for bar admission , which can lead to different admission...
in 1799 and commenced practice in Mansfield, Connecticut
Mansfield, Connecticut
Mansfield is a town in Tolland County, Connecticut, United States. The population was 20,720 at the 2000 census.Mansfield was incorporated in October 1702 from the Town of Windham, in Hartford County. When Windham County was formed on 12 May 1726, Mansfield then became part of that county...
.
He moved to Hartford, Connecticut
Hartford, Connecticut
Hartford is the capital of the U.S. state of Connecticut. The seat of Hartford County until Connecticut disbanded county government in 1960, it is the second most populous city on New England's largest river, the Connecticut River. As of the 2010 Census, Hartford's population was 124,775, making...
, in 1803.
He was appointed attorney of the board of managers of the school fund of Hartford 1809-1810.
He served in the State house of representatives in 1813, 1815, and 1816.
He served as clerk of the house in 1815 and 1816.
Williams was elected as a Federalist
Federalist Party (United States)
The Federalist Party was the first American political party, from the early 1790s to 1816, the era of the First Party System, with remnants lasting into the 1820s. The Federalists controlled the federal government until 1801...
to the Fifteenth
15th United States Congress
-Leadership:- Senate :* President: Daniel D. Tompkins * President pro tempore:** John Gaillard , elected March 4, 1817** James Barbour , elected February 15, 1819- House of Representatives :*Speaker: Henry Clay -Members:...
Congress (March 4, 1817-March 3, 1819).
He was again a member of the State house of representatives in 1819, 1825, and 1827-1829.
He was appointed in 1829 an associate judge of the supreme court of errors and of the superior court, and in May 1834 appointed chief justice, holding the position until his resignation in May 1847.
He served as mayor of Hartford 1831-1835.
He resigned from public office.
He served as president of the American Tract Society of New York from May 1848 until his death.
He died in Hartford, Connecticut
Hartford, Connecticut
Hartford is the capital of the U.S. state of Connecticut. The seat of Hartford County until Connecticut disbanded county government in 1960, it is the second most populous city on New England's largest river, the Connecticut River. As of the 2010 Census, Hartford's population was 124,775, making...
, December 15, 1861.
Williams married in 1812 Delia Ellsworth, daughter of Founding Father Oliver Ellsworth
Oliver Ellsworth
Oliver Ellsworth was an American lawyer and politician, a revolutionary against British rule, a drafter of the United States Constitution, and the third Chief Justice of the United States. While at the Federal Convention, Ellsworth moved to strike the word National from the motion made by Edmund...
of Windsor, Connecticut. Williams was interred in Old North Cemetery near his brother-in-law William W. Ellsworth
William W. Ellsworth
William Wolcott Ellsworth was a Yale-educated attorney who served as the 30th Governor of Connecticut, a three-term United States Congressman, a Justice on the State Supreme Court, and who twice turned down nomination to the state's United States Senate seat...
.