William Henry Carpenter (1821–1885), was U.S. Consul to

Fuzhou Fuzhou (; , Fuzhounese: Hokchew, ''Hók-ciŭ''), alternately romanized as Foochow, is the capital and one of the largest cities in Fujian province, China. Along with the many counties of Ningde, those of Fuzhou are considered to constitute t ...

, China, during the American Civil War years. He was appointed by President Abraham Lincoln in March, 1861,Adelaide R. Hasse: ''Index to United States Documents Relating to Foreign Affairs, 1828-1861'', In Three Parts, Part II—R-Z, Washington, D.C.: The Carnegie Institution of Washington, 1921, http://babel.hathitrust.org/cgi/pt?id=uc1.32106019844791, p. 1716. and recalled by President

Andrew Johnson Andrew Johnson (December 29, 1808July 31, 1875) was the 17th president of the United States, serving from 1865 to 1869. He assumed the presidency as he was vice president at the time of the assassination of Abraham Lincoln. Johnson was a Dem ...

in December, 1865.''Journal of the Executive Proceedings of the Senate of the United States of America from December 5, 1864, to February 6, 1866, Inclusive'', Vol. XIV—In Two Parts, Part I, Washington, D.C.: Government Printing Office, 1887, http://memory.loc.gov/ll/llej/014/llej014.sgm, p. 309. Prior to his appointment to the consulship, Carpenter was proprietor of a

livery stable A livery is an identifying design, such as a uniform, ornament, symbol or insignia that designates ownership or affiliation, often found on an individual or vehicle. Livery will often have elements of the heraldry relating to the individual or ...

in his hometown of

Auburn Auburn may refer to: Places Australia * Auburn, New South Wales * City of Auburn, the local government area *Electoral district of Auburn *Auburn, Queensland, a locality in the Western Downs Region *Auburn, South Australia *Auburn, Tasmania *Aub ...

Cayuga Cayuga often refers to: * Cayuga people, a native tribe to North America, part of the Iroquois Confederacy * Cayuga language, the language of the Cayuga Cayuga may also refer to: Places Canada * Cayuga, Ontario United States * Cayuga, Illinois ...

New York New York most commonly refers to: * New York City, the most populous city in the United States, located in the state of New York * New York (state), a state in the northeastern United States New York may also refer to: Film and television * '' ...

and was active in local civic matters, serving as

postmaster A postmaster is the head of an individual post office, responsible for all postal activities in a specific post office. When a postmaster is responsible for an entire mail distribution organization (usually sponsored by a national government), ...

of Fleming village in the early 1850s,Elliot G. Storke & Jas. H. Smith: ''History of Cayuga County, New York, with illustrations and biographical sketches of some of its prominent men and pioneers'', D. Mason & Company, Syracuse, N.Y., Truair, Smith & Bruce, Printers, Journal Office, Syracuse, N.Y., 1879, http://www.ebooksread.com/authors-eng/elliot-g-storke/history-of-cayuga-county-new-york--with-illustrations-and-biographical-sketche-rot/page-88-history-of-cayuga-county-new-york--with-illustrations-and-biographical-sketche-rot.shtml, p. 380.

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 ...

for development of the

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s at Montezuma, New York from 1858, on the first

board of directors A board of directors (commonly referred simply as the board) is an executive committee that jointly supervises the activities of an organization, which can be either a for-profit or a nonprofit organization such as a business, nonprofit organiz ...

for the city waterworks company from 1859,Joel H. Monroe: ''Historical Records of a Hundred and Twenty Years, Auburn, N.Y.'', W. F. Humphrey, Printer, Geneva, N.Y., 1913, https://archive.org/details/historicalrecord00monro, p. 186. and as a founding member of the Cayuga County Historical Society in 1877.Cayuga County Historical Society: ''Collections'', Number 6, Jas. W. Burroughs, Book & Commercial Printer, Auburn, N.Y., 1889, https://archive.org/stream/collectionsofcay07cayu/collectionsofcay07cayu_djvu.txt, pp. 5-6. He was sometimes styled " Colonel", a rank-equivalent title from his service as a consul. Carpenter also was active in state politics, identifying with the

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in its formative years, and supporting New York Governor William H. Seward, 12th

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 ...

, United States Senator and United States Secretary of State under Lincoln and Johnson, who became a lifelong friend.''The'' ew York, N.Y.''Sun'', October 27, 1885, Vol. LIII, No. 57, http://chroniclingamerica.loc.gov/lccn/sn83030272/1885-10-27/ed-1/seq-1/, p. 1. After his service in China, Carpenter retired to Auburn, where he lived until his death at the age of 64, on Sunday, October 25, 1885.

Personal

Carpenter was a son of Erastus and Mary (née Taylor) Carpenter, born in 1821 at Auburn, Cayuga, New York, where his father was an early merchant.Storke & Smith, 1879, http://www.ebooksread.com/authors-eng/elliot-g-storke/history-of-cayuga-county-new-york--with-illustrations-and-biographical-sketche-rot/page-88-history-of-cayuga-county-new-york--with-illustrations-and-biographical-sketche-rot.shtml, p. 433.Mrs. Deborah Bronson: "Recollections of My Early Life In Auburn" in ''Collections of Cayuga County Historical Society'', Auburn, N.Y., Number Six, 1888, Jas. W. Burroughs, Book & Commercial Printer, Auburn, N.Y., https://archive.org/stream/collectionsofcay07cayu/collectionsofcay07cayu_djvu.txt, p. 81. He married Sevira Wethey in 1848, with whom he had two children before her untimely death in 1864.Erik Quist: ''The Quist Family'', http://wc.rootsweb.ancestry.com/cgi-bin/igm.cgi?op=GET&db=quedkr4&id=I2237, Updated: 2009-06-18.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Carpenter, William H. 1821 births 1885 deaths People from Auburn, New York People of New York (state) in the American Civil War United States Department of State officials American consuls New York (state) Republicans 19th-century American diplomats People from Fleming, New York