Charles Kilbourne Williams (January 24, 1782March 9, 1853) was an American lawyer and politician. He served as Chief Justice of the

Vermont Supreme Court The Vermont Supreme Court is the highest judicial authority of the U.S. state of Vermont. Unlike most other states, the Vermont Supreme Court hears appeals directly from the trial courts, as Vermont has no intermediate appeals court. The Court ...

from 1834 to 1846 and as 20th

governor of Vermont The governor of Vermont is the head of government of Vermont. The officeholder is elected in even-numbered years by direct voting for a term of 2 years. Vermont and bordering New Hampshire are the only states to hold gubernatorial elections every ...

from 1850 to 1852.

Biography

Williams was born in

Cambridge, Massachusetts Cambridge ( ) is a city in Middlesex County, Massachusetts, United States. As part of the Boston metropolitan area, the cities population of the 2020 U.S. census was 118,403, making it the fourth most populous city in the state, behind Boston, ...

, Middlesex County to Samuel Williams and Jane Kilbourne Williams. He moved with his family to

Rutland, Vermont Rutland, Vermont may refer to: *Rutland (city), Vermont * Rutland (town), Vermont *Rutland County, Vermont *West Rutland, Vermont West Rutland is a town in Rutland County, Vermont, United States. The population was 2,214 at the 2020 census. The t ...

in 1790. He graduated from

Williams College Williams College is a Private college, private liberal arts colleges in the United States, liberal arts college in Williamstown, Massachusetts. It was established as a men's college in 1793 with funds from the estate of Ephraim Williams, a col ...

in 1800. In 1834, he received the

honorary degree An honorary degree is an academic degree for which a university (or other degree-awarding institution) has waived all of the usual requirements. It is also known by the Latin phrases ''honoris causa'' ("for the sake of the honour") or ''ad hono ...

LL.D. Legum Doctor (Latin: “teacher of the laws”) (LL.D.) or, in English, Doctor of Laws, is a doctorate-level academic degree in law or an honorary degree, depending on the jurisdiction. The double “L” in the abbreviation refers to the early ...

from Middlebury. Williams was elected to the

Vermont House of Representatives The Vermont House of Representatives is the lower house of the Vermont General Assembly, the state legislature of the U.S. state of Vermont. The House comprises 150 members, with each member representing around 4,100 citizens. Representatives ar ...

and served from 1809 to 1810, 1811 to 1812, 1814 to 1816, and 1820 to 1822. He served in the Vermont Militia as a major during the

War of 1812 The War of 1812 (18 June 1812 – 17 February 1815) was fought by the United States of America and its indigenous allies against the United Kingdom and its allies in British North America, with limited participation by Spain in Florida. It bega ...

. He was promoted to the rank of

brigadier general Brigadier general or Brigade general is a military rank used in many countries. It is the lowest ranking general officer in some countries. The rank is usually above a colonel, and below a major general or divisional general. When appointed ...

and became commander of a division. He was again elected to the

and served from 1814 to 1815, 1820 to 1821 and in 1849. He served as Rutland County State's Attorney from 1814 to 1815, and as a justice of the Vermont Supreme Court from 1822 to 1823, succeeding William Brayton. He was Vermont's US Collector of Customs from 1826 to 1829. In 1827 he was State Commissioner for common schools. He served as chief justice of the Vermont Supreme Court from 1834 to 1845. Williams was the author of a precedent setting opinion on the unconstitutionality of legislative acts passed to nullify judicial decisions. Williams ran unsuccessfully for Governor of Vermont in 1842 as an

abolitionist Abolitionism, or the abolitionist movement, is the movement to end slavery. In Western Europe and the Americas, abolitionism was a historic movement that sought to end the Atlantic slave trade and liberate the enslaved people. The British ...

candidate. He served as President of the Council of Censors in 1848. Elected as a Whig, Williams served as

Governor of Vermont The governor of Vermont is the head of government of Vermont. The officeholder is elected in even-numbered years by direct voting for a term of 2 years. Vermont and bordering New Hampshire are the only states to hold gubernatorial elections every ...

from 1850 to 1852. While in office, the ''

Habeas Corpus ''Habeas corpus'' (; from Medieval Latin, ) is a recourse in law through which a person can report an unlawful detention or imprisonment to a court and request that the court order the custodian of the person, usually a prison official, t ...

'' Act was passed, showing the strong anti-slavery sentiments in Vermont. He was reelected in 1851 and did not seek reelection to a third one-year term in 1853. He served as a Trustee of

Middlebury College Middlebury College is a private liberal arts college in Middlebury, Vermont. Founded in 1800 by Congregationalists, Middlebury was the first operating college or university in Vermont. The college currently enrolls 2,858 undergraduates from all ...

and as President of the

Alumni Association.

Family life

Williams married Lucy Green Langdon, and they had nine children together. Williams was the son in law of Congressman

Chauncey Langdon Chauncey Langdon (November 8, 1763July 23, 1830) was an American politician, lawyer and judge. He served as a United States Representative from Vermont. Early life Langdon was born to Ebenezer and Katherine (Green) Langdon in Farmington in the ...

Death

Williams died in Rutland on March 9, 1853, and is interred at Evergreen Cemetery in

References

External links

*
The Political GraveyardThe Official State Website of Vermont

{{DEFAULTSORT:Williams, Charles Kilbourne 1782 births 1853 deaths Governors of Vermont People from Rutland (town), Vermont Vermont Whigs Williams College alumni Members of the Vermont House of Representatives Vermont lawyers State's attorneys in Vermont American militiamen in the War of 1812 Justices of the Vermont Supreme Court Whig Party state governors of the United States 19th-century American politicians Burials at Evergreen Cemetery (Rutland, Vermont) 19th-century American judges 19th-century American lawyers