William Jervis Hough - was a United States 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 Cazenovia, Madison County, New York

Madison County, New York

Madison County is a county located in the U.S. state of New York. As of the 2010 census, the population was 73,442. It is named after James Madison, fourth President of the United States of America...

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Early life

William Jervis Hough was born in Paris Hill, Oneida County

Oneida County, New York

Oneida County is a county located in the U.S. state of New York. As of the 2010 census, the population was 234,878. The county seat is Utica. The name is in honor of the Oneida, an Iroquoian tribe that formerly occupied the region....

, New York, as recorded in the New York State

New York

New York is a state in the Northeastern region of the United States. It is the nation's third most populous state. New York is bordered by New Jersey and Pennsylvania to the south, and by Connecticut, Massachusetts and Vermont to the east...

 Census for 1795. His parents were Benjamin Hough and Mercy Jervis. They moved to Pompey Hill, Onondaga County and William attended school at the "Academy" in Pompey Hill.

Education

William Jervis Hough completed preparatory studies for jurisprudence in Cazenovia, and passed the bar as a lawyer. He read law in the office of Childs & Stebbins, and was admitted about 1820. ( History of Chenango and Madison Counties - Chapter 51)

Personal life

Mr. Hough married Clarinda Hough in Cazenovia in 1821. They moved to Lyons, Ontario (now Wayne County), NY. Their son, William Jerome Hough, was born there in 1821. Mr. W J Hough opened his law practice  in Lyons and stayed until 1828 when he returned to Cazenovia. (Records in the First Presbyterian Church

First Presbyterian Church

First Presbyterian Church may refer to:-Alabama:...

 of Cazenovia.) He practiced law in Cazenovia, Madison County, NY until 1955 when the Hough family moved to Syracuse, Onondaga County, NY, (US Census

United States Census

The United States Census is a decennial census mandated by the United States Constitution. The population is enumerated every 10 years and the results are used to allocate Congressional seats , electoral votes, and government program funding. The United States Census Bureau The United States Census...

 for 1855, Syracuse 4th Ward, Syracuse, NY

Syracuse, New York

Syracuse is a city in and the county seat of Onondaga County, New York, United States, the largest U.S. city with the name "Syracuse", and the fifth most populous city in the state. At the 2010 census, the city population was 145,170, and its metropolitan area had a population of 742,603...

)

William and Clarinda (Carpenter) Hough had two daughters in addition to their son. William Jerome Hough married Margaret Seymour in Cazenovia. Helen Clarinda Hough was born 28 May 1837 and married Charles E. Stevens, an attorney in Syracuse, NY. Frances Jervis Hough was born the 6th of December 1826 and married Matthew Joseph Myers. M. J Myers became a banker and telephone business entrepreneur in Syracuse. The telephone company run by M. J. Myers and Son was called the American District Telegraph Company. They already managed the telegraph company when they had the opportunity to sublet the Syracuse license from H.C Brower & Son. (1880 US Census, Syracuse, NY)

Congress

While living in Cazenovia, Hough was elected and served as a member of the Assembly in 1835 and 1836. (New York State Records for Madison County Proceedings). Elected as a Democrat, he served as Representative of the 23rd district for Cazenovia in the Twenty-ninth United States Congress

United States Congress

The United States Congress is the bicameral legislature of the federal government of the United States, consisting of the Senate and the House of Representatives. The Congress meets in the United States Capitol in Washington, D.C....

  from 1845 to 1847. (Biography for US Congressmen). While working on a bill concerning the creation of the Smithsonian Institution

Smithsonian Institution

The Smithsonian Institution is an educational and research institute and associated museum complex, administered and funded by the government of the United States and by funds from its endowment, contributions, and profits from its retail operations, concessions, licensing activities, and magazines...

, he became an acting Regent and assisted in the plans for the first administrative building, called the Castle. His portrait and a family portrait are still displayed in the Castle East Wing with the other Regents. (Smithsonian Archives)

Military

While living in Cazenovia, Hough participated in the New York State militia, serving with the 8th Cavalry Regiment and becoming a General.

Smithsonian Committee

While serving in the US Congress, he was a member of the committee that managed the construction of a building for the new Smithsonian Institution, and he served as a member of the Institution's Board of Regents

Board of Regents

In the United States, a board often governs public institutions of higher education, which include both state universities and community colleges. In each US state, such boards may govern either the state university system, individual colleges and universities, or both. In general they operate as...

. HOUGH was secretary for the first meetings of the regents and also a member of the Smithsonian Building Committee. He attended the first meeting of the Board of Regents in the fall of 1846.

Quoting from archives: " These papers consist of Hough's correspondence with David Dale Owen

David Dale Owen

David Dale Owen was a prominent American geologist. He conducted the first geological surveys of Indiana, Kentucky, and Arkansas.David Dale was the third son of Robert Owen, a Welsh reformer who moved to the United States and established a social experiment at New Harmony, Indiana, where David...

 concerning the selection of stones for the Smithsonian Building and an original proposal for the Smithsonian Building from the architect, James Renwick, Jr. They also contain notes regarding the 1846 founding of the Smithsonian Institution; a report by the Smithsonian Building Committee; notes from contractors; and an 1863 newspaper article about the Smithsonian Building . ( The New York Observer, January 29, 1863)

Career

In Syracuse, Hough served as Vice-President for the old Syracuse City Bank.
His law partner in Syracuse, NY was Samuel H Edwards of Buffalo, NY

Buffalo, New York

Buffalo is the second most populous city in the state of New York, after New York City. Located in Western New York on the eastern shores of Lake Erie and at the head of the Niagara River across from Fort Erie, Ontario, Buffalo is the seat of Erie County and the principal city of the...

 (May 10, 1868 Journal) He was also president of the Board of Education for two terms. (Syracuse Board of Education

Board of education

A board of education or a school board or school committee is the title of the board of directors or board of trustees of a school, local school district or higher administrative level....

 Records.) He took great interest in the incorporating and laying out of Oakwood Cemetery (Syracuse, New York), and was among its first Board of Directors

Board of directors

A board of directors is a body of elected or appointed members who jointly oversee the activities of a company or organization. Other names include board of governors, board of managers, board of regents, board of trustees, and board of visitors...

.( "Honoring the Founders of the Cemetery" by Fred S Hills,1894)

Death

William Jervis Hough died October 4, 1869 in Syracuse, New York and was buried in the Oakwood Cemetery. (Find A Grave Memorial website contains a biography, and photos of William Jervis Hough and the monument for the Hough family.)