William Henry Wadsworth (July 4, 1821 - April 2, 1893) was a U.S. Representative

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 Kentucky

Kentucky

The Commonwealth of Kentucky is a state located in the East Central United States of America. As classified by the United States Census Bureau, Kentucky is a Southern state, more specifically in the East South Central region. Kentucky is one of four U.S. states constituted as a commonwealth...

.

Born in Maysville, Kentucky

Maysville, Kentucky

Maysville is a city in and the county seat of Mason County, Kentucky, United States. The population was 8,993 at the 2000 census, making it the fiftieth largest city in Kentucky by population. Maysville is on the Ohio River, northeast of Lexington. It is the principal city of the Maysville...

, Wadsworth attended town and county private schools.
He studied law and graduated from Augusta College, Bracken County, Kentucky

Bracken County, Kentucky

Bracken County is a county located in the U.S. state of Kentucky. It was formed in 1797. The population was 8,488 in the 2010 Census. Its county seat is Brooksville, Kentucky.-History:...

, in 1841.
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 1844 and commenced practice in Maysville, Kentucky

Maysville, Kentucky

Maysville is a city in and the county seat of Mason County, Kentucky, United States. The population was 8,993 at the 2000 census, making it the fiftieth largest city in Kentucky by population. Maysville is on the Ohio River, northeast of Lexington. It is the principal city of the Maysville...

.
He served as member of the State senate 1853-1856.
He served as presidential elector on the Constitutional Union ticket in 1860.

Wadsworth was elected as a Unionist to the Thirty-seventh

37th United States Congress

The Thirty-seventh United States Congress was a meeting of the legislative branch of the United States federal government, consisting of the United States Senate and the United States House of Representatives. It met in Washington, D.C. from March 4, 1861 to March 4, 1863, during the first two...

 and Thirty-eighth

38th United States Congress

-House of Representatives:Before this Congress, the 1860 United States Census and resulting reapportionment changed the size of the House to 241 members...

 Congresses (March 4, 1861-March 3, 1865).
He was not a candidate for renomination in 1864.
During the Civil War

American Civil War

The American Civil War was a civil war fought in the United States of America. In response to the election of Abraham Lincoln as President of the United States, 11 southern slave states declared their secession from the United States and formed the Confederate States of America ; the other 25...

 served as aide to General Nelson, with the rank of colonel, at the Battle of Ivy Mountain

Battle of Ivy Mountain

The Battle of Ivy Mountain, also known as Ivy Creek or Ivy Narrows, was an early battle of the American Civil War, fought in Floyd County, Kentucky, on November 8 and November 9, 1861....

.
He was appointed United States commissioner to Mexico

Mexico

The United Mexican States , commonly known as Mexico , is a federal constitutional republic in North America. It is bordered on the north by the United States; on the south and west by the Pacific Ocean; on the southeast by Guatemala, Belize, and the Caribbean Sea; and on the east by the Gulf of...

, under the treaty of Washington for the adjustment of claims, by President Grant

Ulysses S. Grant

Ulysses S. Grant was the 18th President of the United States as well as military commander during the Civil War and post-war Reconstruction periods. Under Grant's command, the Union Army defeated the Confederate military and ended the Confederate States of America...

 in 1869.

Wadsworth was elected as a Republican

Republican Party (United States)

The Republican Party is one of the two major contemporary political parties in the United States, along with the Democratic Party. Founded by anti-slavery expansion activists in 1854, it is often called the GOP . The party's platform generally reflects American conservatism in the U.S...

 to the Forty-ninth

49th United States Congress

The Forty-ninth United States Congress was a meeting of the legislative branch of the United States federal government, consisting of the United States Senate and the United States House of Representatives. It met in Washington, D.C. from March 4, 1885 to March 4, 1887, during the first two years...

 Congress (March 4, 1885-March 3, 1887).
He was not a candidate for renomination in 1886.
He resumed the practice of law.
He died in Maysville, Kentucky

Maysville, Kentucky

Maysville is a city in and the county seat of Mason County, Kentucky, United States. The population was 8,993 at the 2000 census, making it the fiftieth largest city in Kentucky by population. Maysville is on the Ohio River, northeast of Lexington. It is the principal city of the Maysville...

, April 2, 1893.
He was interred in Maysville Cemetery.