Orson Sherman Head (October 9, 1817February 19, 1875) was an

American American(s) may refer to: * American, something of, from, or related to the United States of America, commonly known as the "United States" or "America" ** Americans, citizens and nationals of the United States of America ** American ancestry, pe ...

lawyer A lawyer is a person who practices law. The role of a lawyer varies greatly across different legal jurisdictions. A lawyer can be classified as an advocate, attorney, barrister, canon lawyer, civil law notary, counsel, counselor, solic ...

and

Wisconsin Wisconsin () is a state in the upper Midwestern United States. Wisconsin is the 25th-largest state by total area and the 20th-most populous. It is bordered by Minnesota to the west, Iowa to the southwest, Illinois to the south, Lake M ...

pioneer. He practiced law in

Kenosha, Wisconsin Kenosha () is a city in the U.S. state of Wisconsin and the seat of Kenosha County. Per the 2020 census, the population was 99,986 which made it the fourth-largest city in Wisconsin. Situated on the southwestern shore of Lake Michigan, Kenos ...

, represented

Kenosha County Kenosha County is located in the southeastern corner of the U.S. state of Wisconsin. The population was 169,151 as of the 2020 census, making it the eighth most populous county in Wisconsin. The county shares the same name as the city of Kenosh ...

for one year in the

Wisconsin State Senate The Wisconsin Senate is the upper house of the Wisconsin State Legislature. Together with the larger Wisconsin State Assembly they constitute the legislative branch of the state of Wisconsin. The powers of the Wisconsin Senate are modeled after t ...

(1851), and was

district attorney In the United States, a district attorney (DA), county attorney, state's attorney, prosecuting attorney, commonwealth's attorney, or state attorney is the chief prosecutor and/or chief law enforcement officer representing a U.S. state in a l ...

from 1859 through 1861. His name was often abbreviated in historical texts as O. S. Head. He was a great-grandfather and namesake of the American screenwriter and filmmaker

Orson Welles George Orson Welles (May 6, 1915 – October 10, 1985) was an American actor, director, producer, and screenwriter, known for his innovative work in film, radio and theatre. He is considered to be among the greatest and most influential f ...

Biography

Orson S. Head was born on October 9, 1817, in

Paris, New York Paris is a town in Oneida County, New York, United States. The town is in the southeast part of the county and is south of Utica. The population was 4,411 at the 2010 census. The town was named after an early benefactor, Colonel Isaac Paris. Hist ...

. He was raised on his father's farm and worked there throughout his youth along with his five brothers. He went on to study law in

Utica, New York Utica () is a Administrative divisions of New York, city in the Mohawk Valley and the county seat of Oneida County, New York, United States. The List of cities in New York, tenth-most-populous city in New York State, its population was 65,283 ...

, under

Horatio Seymour Horatio Seymour (May 31, 1810February 12, 1886) was an American politician. He served as Governor of New York from 1853 to 1854 and from 1863 to 1864. He was the Democratic Party nominee for president in the 1868 United States presidential elec ...

, who would later become

Governor of New York The governor of New York is the head of government of the U.S. state of New York. The governor is the head of the executive branch of New York's state government and the commander-in-chief of the state's military forces. The governor has ...

. Higham, Charles, ''Orson Welles: The Rise and Fall of an American Genius''. New York: St. Martin's Press, 1985.
pp. 23–27
/ref> In 1841, he moved to the

Wisconsin Territory The Territory of Wisconsin was an organized incorporated territory of the United States that existed from July 3, 1836, until May 29, 1848, when an eastern portion of the territory was admitted to the Union as the State of Wisconsin. Belmont was ...

, where he was admitted to the bar. Head settled in

, and practiced law. Known for his flaming red hair and beard, sturdy physique, and forceful personality, Head was elected prosecutor for Kenosha County three times. In 1851 he won a special election to serve one year in the

, filling a vacancy caused by the sudden resignation of

Elijah Steele Elijah Steele (November 13, 1817June 27, 1883) was an American attorney, jurist, Indian agent, and pioneer of Wisconsin and Northern California. He served as a delegate to Wisconsin's first constitutional convention, and was a member of the Wisco ...

. Head died of

pneumonia Pneumonia is an inflammatory condition of the lung primarily affecting the small air sacs known as alveoli. Symptoms typically include some combination of productive or dry cough, chest pain, fever, and difficulty breathing. The severity ...

February 19, 1875, at his home in Kenosha, Wisconsin.

Personal life and family

Orson S. Head was a descendant of

John Alden John Alden (c. 1598 - September 12, 1687) was a crew member on the historic 1620 voyage of the ''Mayflower'' which brought the English settlers commonly known as Pilgrims to Plymouth Colony in present-day Massachusetts, US. He was hired in Sou ...

, a crewmember of the ''

Mayflower ''Mayflower'' was an English ship that transported a group of English families, known today as the Pilgrims, from England to the New World in 1620. After a grueling 10 weeks at sea, ''Mayflower'', with 102 passengers and a crew of about 30, r ...

'', and settler at

Plymouth Colony Plymouth Colony (sometimes Plimouth) was, from 1620 to 1691, the British America, first permanent English colony in New England and the second permanent English colony in North America, after the Jamestown Colony. It was first settled by the pa ...

. Orson was the sixth of seven children born to Jonathan E. Head and Hephzibah Livermore Head. Orson S. Head was married to Mary Jane Treadwell in 1846, and they had seven children. After his wife's death in 1863, he remarried with Mary S. Raymond, but had no additional children. At the time of his death, in 1875, he was survived by five children and his second wife. His eldest surviving daughter, Mary Blanche, married Richard Jones Wells; their son, Richard Hodgdon Head Welles, was the father of

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Head, Orson S. 1817 births 1875 deaths Deaths from pneumonia in Wisconsin People from Paris, New York Politicians from Kenosha, Wisconsin New York (state) lawyers Wisconsin lawyers Wisconsin state senators American people of English descent 19th-century American politicians 19th-century American lawyers