William Clarke Whitford (May 5, 1828 – May 20, 1902) was an American educator, legislator, and pastor of the

Seventh Day Baptist Seventh Day Baptists are Baptists who observe the Sabbath as the seventh day of the week, Saturday, as a holy day to God. They adopt a covenant Baptist theology, based on the concept of regenerated society, conscious baptism of believers by immers ...

Church from

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 ...

Biography

Born in

Edmeston, New York Edmeston is a town located in Otsego County, New York, United States. As of the 2010 census, the town had a total population of 1,826. The Town of Edmeston is at the western county line. Edmeston is also the name of the largest hamlet in the town ...

, Whitford received his degrees from

Union College Union College is a private liberal arts college in Schenectady, New York. Founded in 1795, it was the first institution of higher learning chartered by the New York State Board of Regents, and second in the state of New York, after Columbia Co ...

and Union Theological Seminary. He moved to what is now

Milton, Wisconsin Milton is a city in Rock County, Wisconsin, United States. The population was 5,716 at the 2020 census. History The city was formed as a result of the 1967 merger of the villages of Milton and Milton Junction. In November of that year, ballot ...

, where he served as President of

Milton College Milton College was a private college located in Milton, Wisconsin. Founded in 1844 as the Milton Academy, it closed in 1982. Its campus is now part of the Milton Historic District. History The college was founded as the Milton Academy (high scho ...

and as pastor of the Seventh Day Baptist Church in Milton. He served in the

Wisconsin State Assembly The Wisconsin State Assembly is the lower house of the Wisconsin Legislature. Together with the smaller Wisconsin Senate, the two constitute the legislative branch of the U.S. state of Wisconsin. Representatives are elected for two-year terms, ...

in 1868, sponsoring a bill for

woman's suffrage Women's suffrage is the right of women to vote in elections. Beginning in the start of the 18th century, some people sought to change voting laws to allow women to vote. Liberal political parties would go on to grant women the right to vot ...

; and was the

Superintendent of Public Instruction of Wisconsin The Superintendent of Public Instruction, sometimes referred to as the State Superintendent of Schools, is a constitutional officer within the executive branch of the Wisconsin state government, and acts as the executive head of the Department of ...

1878–1882. He served on the Wisconsin Board of Regents for Wisconsin normal schools. Whitford also wrote various article about education. He died in

on May 20, 1902.

Notes

External links

William Clarke Whitford
People from Edmeston, New York People from Milton, Wisconsin Members of the Wisconsin State Assembly Union College (New York) alumni Union Theological Seminary (New York City) alumni Milton College faculty Seventh Day Baptists Writers from New York (state) Writers from Wisconsin Educators from Wisconsin 1828 births 1902 deaths Superintendents of Public Instruction of Wisconsin 19th-century American legislators {{Wisconsin-WIAssembly-stub