William Morrison Oliver (October 15, 1792 – July 21, 1863) was an American politician, attorney, and jurist who served as 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 ...

for the state of New York and acting

Lieutenant Governor of New York The lieutenant governor of New York is a constitutional office in the executive branch of the Government of the State of New York. It is the second highest-ranking official in state government. The lieutenant governor is elected on a ticket wit ...

Early life and education

Born in Londonderry, Rockingham County, New Hampshire, Oliver received limited schooling. Oliver and his identical twin brother, Andrew, were the sons of Andrew and Elizabeth Ormiston Oliver. He studied law in Springfield, under the direction of Judge Morse in Cherry Valley, Otsego County.

Career

He was admitted to the bar about 1812 and began practice in Penn Yan. Oliver was First Judge of the Yates County Court from 1823 to 1828, and from 1838 to 1844. He was a member of the

New York State Senate The New York State Senate is the upper house of the New York State Legislature; the New York State Assembly is its lower house. Its members are elected to two-year terms; there are no term limits. There are 63 seats in the Senate. Partisan com ...

(7th D.) from 1827 to 1830, sitting in the 50th, 51st, 52nd and

53rd New York State Legislature The 53rd New York State Legislature, consisting of the New York State Senate and the New York State Assembly, met from January 5 to April 20, 1830, during the second year of Enos T. Throop's governorship, in Albany. Background Under the provis ...

s. In 1830, he was elected President pro tempore of the State Senate and was Acting Lieutenant Governor until the end of the year. Elected as a

Democrat Democrat, Democrats, or Democratic may refer to: Politics *A proponent of democracy, or democratic government; a form of government involving rule by the people. *A member of a Democratic Party: **Democratic Party (United States) (D) **Democratic ...

to the

27th United States Congress The 27th 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. between March 4, 1 ...

, Oliver was United States Representative holding office from March 4, 1841, to March 3, 1843. Afterwards he became clerk of the

New York Supreme Court The Supreme Court of the State of New York is the trial-level court of general jurisdiction in the New York State Unified Court System. (Its Appellate Division is also the highest intermediate appellate court.) It is vested with unlimited civ ...

, and was President of the Yates County Bank from the issuance of its charter until 1857.

Personal life

Oliver married Eleanor Young in 1811. They had three children; Andrew, James, and John Morrison. Eleanor died in 1834 and he remarried to Harriet Maria Seelye. That couple had four children; James Morse, William Seelye, Harriet, and Henry. Oliver died in

Penn Yan Penn Yan is an incorporated village and the county seat of Yates County, New York, United States. The population was 5,159 at the 2010 census. It lies at the north end of the east branch of Keuka Lake, one of the Finger Lakes. Penn Yan, New York ...

Yates County, New York Yates County is a county in the U.S. state of New York. As of the 2020 Census, the population was 24,774, making it the third-least populous county in New York. The county seat is Penn Yan. The name is in honor of Joseph C. Yates, who as Gover ...

, on July 21, 1863 (age 70 years, 279 days). He is

interred Burial, also known as interment or inhumation, is a method of final disposition whereby a dead body is placed into the ground, sometimes with objects. This is usually accomplished by excavating a pit or trench, placing the deceased and objec ...

at Lake View Cemetery, Penn Yan, New York.

References

External links

Political Graveyard *
Google Books
''The New York Civil List'' compiled by Franklin Benjamin Hough (pages 32 and 366; Weed, Parsons and Co., 1858)
{{DEFAULTSORT:Oliver, William M 1792 births 1863 deaths People from Londonderry, New Hampshire Lieutenant Governors of New York (state) Democratic Party New York (state) state senators New York (state) state court judges People from Penn Yan, New York American bankers Democratic Party members of the United States House of Representatives from New York (state) Burials at Lake View Cemetery (Penn Yan, New York) 19th-century American politicians 19th-century American judges 19th-century American businesspeople