William Woodbridge (August
20, 1780 – October 20, 1861) was a U.S.
statesman in the states of Ohio
and Michigan
and in the
Michigan Territory prior to
statehood. He served as Governor and as
U.S. Senator from
Michigan.
Early life in Connecticut and politics in Ohio
Woodbridge
was born in Norwich,
Connecticut
, and as a child moved with his family to Marietta, Ohio
in about 1790. He began the study of law in
Marietta and developed a close friendship with
Lewis Cass.
He returned to Connecticut
to complete his law studies and, after returning to
Ohio, was admitted to the Ohio bar
in 1806 where he began a practice in Marietta, Ohio. In June 1806, he married Juliana Trumbull,
the daughter of
John
Trumbull.
He was a member of the
Ohio House of Representatives
in 1807, and was elected to the
Ohio
Senate in 1808, serving from 1809 to 1814.
He was also the
prosecuting attorney for New London (now Washington
County, Ohio
) from 1808 to 1814.
Politics in Michigan Territory
In 1814, Woodbridge's old friend Lewis Cass, who had become
Governor of the
Michigan
Territory, encouraged him to accept appointments as Secretary
of the Territory and as the collector of customs at the Port of
Detroit.
On October 15, 1814, Woodbridge reluctantly
accepted the appointments from President James Madison and moved to Detroit,
Michigan
.
During the frequent absences of Cass, Woodbridge served as acting
Governor.
In 1817 became a trustee of the University of
Michigan
.
Under the rules of Territorial government, the Territory did not
have representation in the U.S. Congress. Woodbridge influenced
Congress to pass legislation authorizing the selection of a
non-voting Delegate to Congress. Woodward became Michigan
Territory's first Delegate, serving in the
16th Congress from March 4,
1819, to his resignation on August 9, 1820 due to illness in his
family.
Solomon Sibley succeeded
Woodbridge as Delegate. As a Delegate, Woodbridge worked for the
passage of legislation that recognized old French land titles in
the Territory according to the terms of the previously signed
treaties.
He also secured approval for the construction
of government roads from the Great Miami River
to Detroit, and from Detroit to Chicago. He
was also a strong advocate for Michigan's claim to the
Toledo Strip, which was disputed with the state
of Ohio.
In 1828, he was appointed one of three Territorial Supreme Court
judges by President
John Quincy
Adams, succeeding
James
Witherell and serving in this capacity until 1832 when his term
expired and President
Andrew Jackson
chose a replacement who was not from the
Whig party as Woodbridge was.
Politics and Governorship in the State of Michigan
Woodbridge was a delegate to the State constitutional convention in
1835 and a member of the
Michigan
State Senate, 1838–1839. He was elected as the second
Governor of Michigan in 1840, leading
the
Whig party to
sweeping statewide victories under the slogan "Woodbridge and
reform" (along with
William Henry
Harrison's national campaign). He resigned as Governor on
February 23, 1841 to take a seat in the
United States Senate and was succeeded
by his
Lieutenant
Governor,
J. Wright Gordon.
In 1840, Woodbridge was elected as a Whig to the Senate and served
from March 4, 1841, to March 3, 1847. He served as chairman of the
Committee
on Public Lands in the
28th Congress, 1843–1844, and of
the
Committee
on Patents and the Patent Office in the
29th Congress, 1845–1846. He did
not seek reelection.
Retirement and death
After leaving the Senate, he retired from public life and devoted
his time to horticulture.
He died in Detroit and is interred there in
Elmwood Cemetery
.
Woodbridge
Township, Michigan
in Hillsdale County, Michigan
is named for him. The Woodbridge
Historic District
and Woodbridge Avenue in Detroit are also named for
him.
References
Wikis
Map
Search