William Cotter Maybury (November 20, 1848 – May 6, 1909) was an American politician from the

U.S. state In the United States, a state is a constituent political entity, of which there are 50. Bound together in a political union, each state holds governmental jurisdiction over a separate and defined geographic territory where it shares its sove ...

Michigan Michigan () is a U.S. state, state in the Great Lakes region, Great Lakes region of the Upper Midwest, upper Midwestern United States. With a population of nearly 10.12 million and an area of nearly , Michigan is the List of U.S. states and ...

Early life

Maybury was born in

Detroit, Michigan Detroit ( , ; , ) is the largest city in the U.S. state of Michigan. It is also the largest U.S. city on the United States–Canada border, and the seat of government of Wayne County. The City of Detroit had a population of 639,111 at ...

, on November 20, 1848, the son of Thomas Maybury. He attended public schools in Detroit, graduating in 1866. He went on to attend the

University of Michigan , mottoeng = "Arts, Knowledge, Truth" , former_names = Catholepistemiad, or University of Michigania (1817–1821) , budget = $10.3 billion (2021) , endowment = $17 billion (2021)As o ...

at Ann Arbor, graduating from the academic department with a

Bachelor of Arts Bachelor of arts (BA or AB; from the Latin ', ', or ') is a bachelor's degree awarded for an undergraduate program in the arts, or, in some cases, other disciplines. A Bachelor of Arts degree course is generally completed in three or four year ...

in 1870 and from the law department with a

Bachelor of Laws Bachelor of Laws ( la, Legum Baccalaureus; LL.B.) is an undergraduate law degree in the United Kingdom and most common law jurisdictions. Bachelor of Laws is also the name of the law degree awarded by universities in the People's Republic of Ch ...

in 1871. He was admitted to the bar in the latter year and commenced practice in Detroit, entering into a partnership with Edward F. Conely. He was city attorney of Detroit from 1876 to 1880 and lecturer on medical jurisprudence in the Michigan College of Medicine at Detroit in 1881 and 1882.

Politics

In 1880, Maybury ran 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 ...

for a seat in the

U.S. House of Representatives 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

Michigan's 1st congressional district Michigan's 1st congressional district is a United States congressional district containing the entire Upper Peninsula of Michigan and 16 counties of Northern Michigan in the Lower Peninsula. The district is currently represented by Republican J ...

, losing in the general election to

Republican Republican can refer to: Political ideology * An advocate of a republic, a type of government that is not a monarchy or dictatorship, and is usually associated with the rule of law. ** Republicanism, the ideology in support of republics or agains ...

Henry W. Lord Henry William Lord (March 8, 1821 – January 25, 1891) was a merchant, diplomat and politician from the U.S. state of Michigan. He served as the United States consul to Manchester, England and as a U.S. Representative from the state of Michigan ...

. Maybury was elected in 1882 to the 48th and again in 1884 to the 49th congresses, serving from March 4, 1883, to March 3, 1887. He was not a candidate for re-election in 1886. After returning from

Washington, D.C. ) , image_skyline = , image_caption = Clockwise from top left: the Washington Monument and Lincoln Memorial on the National Mall, United States Capitol, Logan Circle, Jefferson Memorial, White House, Adams Morgan, ...

, Maybury resumed the practice of law in Detroit. He was elected

Mayor of Detroit This is a list of mayors of Detroit, Michigan. See History of Detroit, Michigan, for more information about the history of the incorporation of the city. The current mayor is Mike Duggan, who was sworn into office on January 1, 2014. History ...

in 1897, serving out the remainder of Hazen S. Pingree's term after the latter had resigned to become Governor of Michigan. He was re-elected twice more, serving as mayor until 1904. While mayor, he organized a

time capsule A time capsule is a historic cache of goods or information, usually intended as a deliberate method of communication with future people, and to help future archaeologists, anthropologists, or historians. The preservation of holy relics dates ...

, the

Detroit Century Box The Detroit Century Box is a time capsule that was created in the U.S. city of Detroit, Michigan on December 31, 1900. Mayor William C. Maybury organized the capsule which consists of a copper box filled with photos and letters containing the t ...

, which contained the letters of 56 prominent citizens and was sealed on December 31, 1900. It was opened 100 years later, on December 31, 2000. Maybury was an unsuccessful candidate for Governor of Michigan in 1900, being defeated by Republican candidate

Aaron T. Bliss Aaron Thomas Bliss (May 22, 1837 – September 16, 1906) was an American politician who served as a U.S. Representative and the 25th governor of Michigan, and was from Saginaw. Bliss Township was named after him. Early life in New York Bliss ...

Later life and death

After Edward F. Conley's death in 1888, Maybury formed a law partnership with John D. Conely and Alfred Lucking, calling themselves Conely, Maybury, and Lucking. Conely retired in 1892 and the firm changed to Maybury & Lucking; it was later known as Maybury, Lucking, Emmons, & Helfman. Maybury also worked as counsel to the Standard Life & Accident Insurance Company. Maybury remained a bachelor until the end of his life. Maybury died in 1909 in Detroit and was interred in Elmwood Cemetery. There is a statue of Maybury in Grand Circus Park in downtown Detroit, which was completed by

Adolph Alexander Weinman Adolph Alexander Weinman (December 11, 1870 – August 8, 1952) was a Germany-born American sculptor and architectural sculptor. Early life and education Adolph Alexander Weinman was born December 11, 1870 at Durmersheim, near Karlsruhe, Germ ...

for $22,000 and unveiled to the public in 1912.

References

External links

Letter of William C. Maybury, Mayor to the future mayor of Detroit in "Century Box"
''

Christian Science Sentinel The ''Christian Science Sentinel'' (originally the ''Christian Science Weekly'') is a magazine published by the Christian Science Publishing Society based in Boston, Massachusetts. The magazine was launched by Mary Baker Eddy in 1898. It include ...

'' (January 17, 1901). Also contains letter written to

Annie M. Knott Annie MacMillan Knott (1 September, 1850 – December 20, 1941) was a practitioner and teacher in The First Church of Christ, Scientist. She was a student of Mary Baker Eddy, the founder of the religion, and served the church in various capacitie ...

, one of the people invited to write letters for the time capsule * {{DEFAULTSORT:Maybury, William C. 1848 births 1909 deaths Burials at Elmwood Cemetery (Detroit) Mayors of Detroit University of Michigan Law School alumni Democratic Party members of the United States House of Representatives from Michigan 19th-century American politicians 20th-century American politicians

Early life

Politics

Later life and death

See also

References

External links