William Edwin Phelps (1835–1914)William Edwin Phelps
at findagrave.com was an American politician from Peoria County, Illinois. During the Civil War, he served as Consulate General of Saint Petersburg, Russia. In 1868, he was elected to one term in the

Illinois House of Representatives The Illinois House of Representatives is the lower house of the Illinois General Assembly. The body was created by the first Illinois Constitution adopted in 1818. The House under the current constitution as amended in 1980 consists of 118 re ...

Biography

William E. Phelps was born on October 9, 1835, in what would become Elmwood, Illinois. His father,

William J. Phelps William Joshua Phelps (March 2, 1808 – February 20, 1883) was an American politician from Connecticut. Settling in Peoria County, Illinois, in 1834, Phelps became a prosperous miner was elected to the Illinois House of Representatives. Phelps' ...

, founded the settlement. The family descended from early American settler William Phelps. When Phelps was fourteen, he began to attend Farmington Academy in winters while working on the family farm in the summers. He graduated from Knox College when he was twenty-one and returned to the farm. More so than his father, Phelps was active in political affairs. When the

Republican Party Republican Party is a name used by many political parties around the world, though the term most commonly refers to the United States' Republican Party. Republican Party may also refer to: Africa *Republican Party (Liberia) * Republican Part ...

first fielded candidates in 1856, Phelps was a staunch supporter. He helped to organize a volunteer unit for the Civil War in Elmwood. In November 1863, Phelps was appointed Consulate General of Saint Petersburg, Russia, where he served for three years. While back in Illinois on May 17, 1864, during a leave of absence, he married Ellen A. Wiley. He learned about negotiations in Kronstadt regarding a sale of a steamboat to the Confederates for use as a

blockade runner A blockade runner is a merchant vessel used for evading a naval blockade of a port or strait. It is usually light and fast, using stealth and speed rather than confronting the blockaders in order to break the blockade. Blockade runners usuall ...

and provided information so that the Navy could intercept it before it saw use. He resigned in 1865 and returned to the family farm. In 1868, Phelps was elected as a Republican to the

. However, after serving one term there, he became burdened by his business interests and resigned from politics. Phelps died on February 8, 1914, in Seattle.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Phelps, William E. 1835 births 1914 deaths 19th-century American diplomats American consuls Knox College (Illinois) alumni Republican Party members of the Illinois House of Representatives People from Elmwood, Illinois Russian Empire–United States relations