William C. Hughes was a prominent lawyer in

Oklahoma Oklahoma (; Choctaw language, Choctaw: ; chr, ᎣᎧᎳᎰᎹ, ''Okalahoma'' ) is a U.S. state, state in the South Central United States, South Central region of the United States, bordered by Texas on the south and west, Kansas on the nor ...

Biography

He was born October 24, 1869, in

Georgetown, Missouri Georgetown is an unincorporated community or populated place (Class Code U6) located in Pettis County, Missouri, United States. The community is located on Missouri Route H approximately one mile west of US Route 65 and three miles north of Sed ...

, later moving to Sedalia and

Kansas City, Missouri Kansas City (abbreviated KC or KCMO) is the largest city in Missouri by population and area. As of the 2020 census, the city had a population of 508,090 in 2020, making it the 36th most-populous city in the United States. It is the central ...

. In March 1901, Hughes moved from Kansas City to Oklahoma City, and became known statewide as a lawyer. In 1906, Hughes was elected to the

Oklahoma Constitutional Convention The Constitution of the State of Oklahoma is the governing document of the U.S. State of Oklahoma. Adopted in 1907, Oklahoma ratified the United States Constitution on November 16, 1907, as the 46th U.S. state. At its ratification, the Oklahom ...

, where he served as Chairman of the Municipal Corporation Committee, using this position to write provisions of the Oklahoma Constitution that dealt with municipal governments in Oklahoma. He also wrote the provisions of the constitution prohibiting child labor and establishing the offices of

state commissioner A commissioner (commonly abbreviated as Comm'r) is, in principle, a member of a Regulatory agency, commission or an individual who has been given a Wiktionary: commission, commission (official charge or authority to do something). In practice, th ...

and the commissioner of charities and corrections.

Legacy

Hughes County, Oklahoma, is named after him. Hughes later returned to Missouri, moving to

St. Joseph Joseph (; el, Ἰωσήφ, translit=Ioséph) was a 1st-century Jewish man of Nazareth who, according to the canonical Gospels, was married to Mary, the mother of Jesus, and was the legal father of Jesus. The Gospels also name some brothers ...

References

1869 births Hughes County, Oklahoma Members of the Oklahoma Constitutional Convention People from Pettis County, Missouri Year of death missing {{oklahoma-politician-stub