William Maxwell (February 11, 1794 – November 22, 1856) was an American

business executive A business executive is a person responsible for running an organization, although the exact nature of the role varies depending on the organization. Executives run companies or government agencies. They create plans to help their organizations g ...

and politician, president of

Erie Railroad The Erie Railroad was a railroad that operated in the northeastern United States, originally connecting New York City — more specifically Jersey City, New Jersey, where Erie's Pavonia Terminal, long demolished, used to stand — with Lake Erie ...

from 1842 to 1843.

Biography

Early years and education

Guy Maxwell was the father and founder of the Maxwell family. He managed banks, dug canals, and was adopted as a chief into a tribe of the

Seneca Indians The Seneca () ( see, Onödowáʼga:, "Great Hill People") are a group of Indigenous Iroquoian-speaking people who historically lived south of Lake Ontario, one of the five Great Lakes in North America. Their nation was the farthest to the west w ...

.Edward Harold Mott
Between the Ocean and the Lakes: The Story of Erie
'' Collins, 1899. p. 461-62 William Maxwell, Guy Maxwell's third son, was born at Tioga Point, now

Athens, Pennsylvania Athens is a borough in Bradford County, Pennsylvania, United States. It is part of Northeastern Pennsylvania and is located south of the New York (state), New York state line on the Susquehanna River, Susquehanna and Chemung River, Chemung river ...

, February 11, 1794. His parents moved that year to Newtown Point, now Elmira. He was educated in local schools, and studied law in the office of Fletcher Mathews, a distinguished member of the bar at that time. Chemung Canal Bank Building Oct 09

District Attorney of Tioga County

In 1822 he was the District Attorney of Tioga County, of which Chemung County was then a part; in 1829 he was the surrogate of the county, and was a member of the Assembly in 1828 and in 1847. He was a delegate from the county to the State Constitutional Convention of 1846. He was always prominent in the public affairs of the town and county, and was connected with the formation of the Chemung Canal Bank, one of the earliest enterprises of the kind in the

Southern Tier The Southern Tier is a geographic subregion of the broader Upstate New York region of New York State, consisting of counties west of the Catskill Mountains in Delaware County and geographically situated along or very near the northern border ...

. At one time most of the land in the Third and Seventh Wards of the city of Elmira, and reaching beyond for two or three miles toward Horseheads, stood in his name. He was a power in the Democratic party in those times in that region, and what he said became the order of things. It was largely through his push and influence that the Chemung Canal was constructed, and his enterprise and money helped on most of the railroad enterprises in Elmira.

New York and Erie Railroad

He early became interested in the project of the New York and Erie Railroad, and was an influential delegate to several of the conventions held to adopt measures looking to the furthering of the prospects of that undertaking. Map of New York & Erie Rail Road, 1844

It was the part he took at a convention held at Owego in the spring of 1842 that brought him into the prominence in Erie affairs that resulted in his being made president in the fall of that year.

Family

He married Zerwiah Baldwin, September 15, 1814, a daughter of William and Azubah Baldwin, pioneers of the Chemung Valley. One son was born to Mr. Maxwell, but died in infancy. They adopted as their daughter a niece of Mrs. Maxwell, Azubah McQuhae. Mr. Maxwell died at Maxwell Park, Elmira, November 22, 1856. An old-timer at Elmira Ausburn Towner, of Washington, D. C, to whom Edward Harold Mott declared himself indebted for his sketch pays this tribute to William Maxwell:

I remember him ever since I can remember anything. He lived in one of the most beautiful spots in the valley, a big brick house, with a great lawn, and lots of trees, that must have belonged to the original forest there. He was very fond of children, and I have played for hours in and about his house. He was fitted by intellect and education to fill any position in the country, from President down.

References

This article incorporates public domain material from Edward Harold Mott
Between the Ocean and the Lakes: The Story of Erie
'' Collins, 1899. p. 461-62; ''; and other public domain material from books and websites. {{DEFAULTSORT:Maxwell, William 1794 births 1856 deaths 19th-century American railroad executives Erie Railroad People from Bradford County, Pennsylvania Politicians from Elmira, New York People from Martinsburg, New York