William Jervis Hough (March 20, 1795 – October 4, 1869) was a

United States 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 ...

from Cazenovia,

Madison County, New York Madison County is a county located in the U.S. state of New York. As of the 2020 census, the population was 68,016. Its county seat is Wampsville. The county is named after James Madison, the fourth president of the United States, and was fir ...

. He served one term in

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from 1845 to 1847.

Life

William Jervis Hough was born in Paris Hill, Oneida County, New York, as recorded in the

New York State New York, officially the State of New York, is a state in the Northeastern United States. It is often called New York State to distinguish it from its largest city, New York City. With a total area of , New York is the 27th-largest U.S. stat ...

Census for 1795. His parents were Benjamin Hough and Mercy Jervis. They moved to Pompey Hill, Onondaga County and William attended school at the "Academy" in Pompey Hill. William Jervis Hough completed preparatory studies for jurisprudence in Cazenovia and passed the bar as a lawyer. He read law in the office of Childs & Stebbins and was admitted about 1820. ( History of Chenango and Madison Counties - Chapter 51)

Family

Hough married Clarinda Carpenter in Cazenovia in 1821. They moved to Lyons, Ontario (now Wayne County), NY. Their son, William Jerome Hough, was born there in 1821. Mr. W.J. Hough opened his

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in Lyons and stayed until 1828 when he returned to Cazenovia. (Records in the First Presbyterian Church of Cazenovia.) He practiced law in Cazenovia, Madison County, NY until 1855 when the Hough family moved to Syracuse, Onondaga County, NY, ( US Census for 1855, Syracuse 4th Ward, Syracuse, NY) William and Clarinda Hough had two daughters in addition to their son. William Jerome Hough married Margaret Seymour in Cazenovia. Helen Clarinda Hough was born 28 May 1837 and married Charles E. Stevens, an attorney in Syracuse, NY. Frances Jervis Hough was born the 6th of December 1826 and married Matthew Joseph Myers. M. J Myers became a banker and telephone business entrepreneur in Syracuse. The telephone company run by M. J. Myers and Son was called the American District Telegraph Company. They already managed the telegraph company when they had the opportunity to sublet the Syracuse license from H.C Brower & Son. (1880 US Census, Syracuse, NY)

State legislature and Congress

While living in Cazenovia, Hough was elected and served as a member of the Assembly in 1835 and 1836. (New York State Records for Madison County Proceedings). Elected as a Democrat, he served as Representative of the 23rd district for Cazenovia in the Twenty-ninth

United States Congress The United States Congress is the legislature of the federal government of the United States. It is bicameral, composed of a lower body, the House of Representatives, and an upper body, the Senate. It meets in the U.S. Capitol in Washing ...

from 1845 to 1847. (Biography for US Congressmen). While working on a bill concerning the creation of

the Smithsonian Institution The Smithsonian Institution ( ), or simply the Smithsonian, is a group of museums and education and research centers, the largest such complex in the world, created by the U.S. government "for the increase and diffusion of knowledge". Founded ...

, he became an acting Regent and assisted in the plans for the first administrative building, called the Castle. His portrait and a family portrait are still displayed in the Castle East Wing with the other Regents. (Smithsonian Archives) While living in Cazenovia, Hough participated in the New York State militia, serving with the 8th Cavalry Regiment and becoming a General.

Smithsonian

While serving in the US Congress, he was a member of the committee that managed the construction of a building for the new Smithsonian Institution, and he served as a member of the Institution's Board of Regents. Hough was secretary for the first meetings of the regents and also a member of the Smithsonian Building Committee. He attended the first meeting of the Board of Regents in the fall of 1846. Quoting from archives: "These papers consist of Hough's correspondence with David Dale Owen concerning the selection of stones for the Smithsonian Building and an original proposal for the Smithsonian Building from the architect, James Renwick, Jr. They also contain notes regarding the 1846 founding of the Smithsonian Institution; a report by the Smithsonian Building Committee; notes from contractors; and an 1863

newspaper article An article or piece is a written work published in a print or electronic medium. It may be for the purpose of propagating news, research results, academic analysis, or debate. News articles A news article discusses current or recent news of eit ...

about the Smithsonian Building. (

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, January 29, 1863)

Later career

In Syracuse, Hough served as Vice-President for the old Syracuse City Bank. His law partner in Syracuse, NY was Samuel H. Edwards of Buffalo, NY (May 10, 1868, Journal) He was also president of the Board of Education for two terms. (Syracuse

Board of Education A board of education, school committee or school board is the board of directors or board of trustees of a school, local school district or an equivalent institution. The elected council determines the educational policy in a small regional are ...

Records.) He took great interest in the incorporating and laying out of

Oakwood Cemetery (Syracuse, New York) Oakwood Cemetery is a historic cemetery located in Syracuse, New York. It was designed by Howard Daniels and built in 1859. Oakwood Cemetery was created during a time period in the nineteenth century when the rural cemetery was becoming a dist ...

, and was among its 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 ...

. ("Honoring the Founders of the Cemetery" by Fred S. Hills, 1894)

Death and burial

William Jervis Hough died October 4, 1869, in Syracuse, New York and was buried in the Oakwood Cemetery.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Hough, William J 1795 births 1869 deaths Politicians from Syracuse, New York Burials at Oakwood Cemetery (Syracuse, New York) Democratic Party members of the United States House of Representatives from New York (state) 19th-century American politicians Smithsonian Institution people People from Cazenovia, New York People from Oneida County, New York Lawyers from Syracuse, New York 19th-century American lawyers