William Fletcher Sapp (November 20, 1824 – November 22, 1890) was a

United States Attorney United States attorneys are officials of the U.S. Department of Justice who serve as the chief federal law enforcement officers in each of the 94 U.S. federal judicial districts. Each U.S. attorney serves as the United States' chief federal c ...

and later a Republican

U.S. Representative The United States House of Representatives, often referred to as the House of Representatives, the U.S. House, or simply the House, is the lower chamber of the United States Congress, with the Senate being the upper chamber. Together they c ...

from

Iowa's 8th congressional district Iowa's 8th congressional district existed from 1873 to 1963. The district was configured five times. Although the district encompassed four different areas of Iowa in its ninety-year existence, it was always predominantly rural, and elected a R ...

. He was a nephew of

William R. Sapp William Robinson Sapp (March 4, 1804 – January 3, 1875) was an American lawyer and politician who served two terms as a U.S. Representative from Ohio from 1853 to 1857. He is the uncle of U.S. Representative William F. Sapp of Iowa. Biogr ...

, who represented a U.S. House district in Ohio between 1853 and 1857. Born in

Danville, Ohio Danville is a village in Knox County, Ohio, United States. The population was 1,044 at the 2010 census. History Modern Danville had its start in 1923 by the merging of two neighboring villages called Buckeye City and Rosstown (Rossville). The or ...

, Sapp attended the public schools and Martinsburg Academy. After studying law, he was admitted to the bar in 1850 and commenced practice in

Mount Vernon, Ohio Mount Vernon is a city in Knox County, Ohio, United States. It is located northeast of Columbus. The population was 16,990 at the 2010 census. It is the county seat of Knox County. History The community was platted in 1805, and named after Mo ...

. He was an unsuccessful candidate for prosecuting attorney of

Knox County, Ohio Knox County is a county located in the U.S. state of Ohio. As of the 2020 census, the population was 62,721. Its county seat is Mount Vernon. The county is named for Henry Knox, an officer in the American Revolutionary War who was later the fir ...

in 1850, but was elected four years later (in 1854) and re-elected in 1856. Sapp moved to

Omaha, Nebraska Omaha ( ) is the largest city in the U.S. state of Nebraska and the county seat of Douglas County. Omaha is in the Midwestern United States on the Missouri River, about north of the mouth of the Platte River. The nation's 39th-largest cit ...

, in 1860. He was appointed adjutant general of Nebraska Territory in 1861 and also served as member of the Territorial legislative council. He entered the

Union Army During the American Civil War, the Union Army, also known as the Federal Army and the Northern Army, referring to the United States Army, was the land force that fought to preserve the Union (American Civil War), Union of the collective U.S. st ...

in 1862 as lieutenant colonel of the

2nd Nebraska Cavalry The 2nd Nebraska Cavalry Regiment was a cavalry regiment that served in the Union Army during the American Civil War. Service The 2nd Nebraska Cavalry Regiment was initially organized at Omaha, Nebraska, on October 23, 1862, as a nine-month regim ...

and served until mustered out. He then moved to

Council Bluffs, Iowa Council Bluffs is a city in and the county seat of Pottawattamie County, Iowa, Pottawattamie County, Iowa, United States. The city is the most populous in Southwest Iowa, and is the third largest and a primary city of the Omaha–Council Bluffs ...

, and resumed the practice of law. He began serving as member of the

Iowa House of Representatives The Iowa House of Representatives is the lower house of the Iowa General Assembly, the upper house being the Iowa Senate. There are 100 seats in the Iowa House of Representatives, representing 100 single-member districts across the state, formed ...

in 1865. Following the conclusion of his legislative service, he was the United States Attorney for the District of Iowa from 1869 to 1873. In 1876, Sapp was elected as a Republican to the U.S. House seat for Iowa's 8th congressional district. After serving in the

45th United States Congress The 45th United States Congress was a meeting of the legislative branch of the United States federal government, consisting of the United States Senate and the United States House of Representatives. It met in Washington, D.C. from March 4, 1877, ...

, he was re-elected and then served in the

46th United States Congress The 46th United States Congress was a meeting of the legislative branch of the United States federal government, consisting of the United States Senate and the United States House of Representatives. It met in Washington, D.C. from March 4, 1879 ...

. He was a candidate for renomination in 1880 but was defeated by another former lieutenant colonel of a cavalry during the Civil War,

William Peters Hepburn William Peters Hepburn (November 4, 1833 – February 7, 1916) was an American Civil War officer and an eleven-term Republican congressman from Iowa's now-obsolete 8th congressional district, serving from 1881 to 1887, and from 1893 to 1909. ...

, after 346 ballots.John Ely Briggs,
William Peters Hepburn
" p. 103 (State Hist. Soc. of Iowa 1919). In all, he served in Congress from March 4, 1877, to March 3, 1881. After leaving Congress, Sapp resumed the practice of law in Iowa. He died in Council Bluffs, on November 22, 1890. He was interred in Mound View Cemetery in

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Sapp, William Fletcher 1824 births 1890 deaths People from Danville, Ohio Union Army officers Republican Party members of the United States House of Representatives from Iowa 19th-century American politicians