William Henry Sowden (June 6, 1840 – March 3, 1907) was a Democratic member of 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

Pennsylvania Pennsylvania (; ( Pennsylvania Dutch: )), officially the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, is a state spanning the Mid-Atlantic, Northeastern, Appalachian, and Great Lakes regions of the United States. It borders Delaware to its southeast, ...

Biography

William H. Sowden was born in

Liskeard Liskeard ( ; kw, Lyskerrys) is a small ancient stannary and market town in south-east Cornwall, South West England. It is situated approximately 20 miles (32 km) west of Plymouth, west of the Devon border, and 12 miles (20 km) eas ...

Cornwall Cornwall (; kw, Kernow ) is a historic county and ceremonial county in South West England. It is recognised as one of the Celtic nations, and is the homeland of the Cornish people. Cornwall is bordered to the north and west by the Atlantic ...

. He emigrated to the

United States The United States of America (U.S.A. or USA), commonly known as the United States (U.S. or US) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It consists of 50 states, a federal district, five major unincorporated territori ...

in 1846 with his father, who settled in

Philadelphia Philadelphia, often called Philly, is the List of municipalities in Pennsylvania#Municipalities, largest city in the Commonwealth (U.S. state), Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, the List of United States cities by population, sixth-largest city i ...

, and later went to live with friends in

Allentown Allentown may refer to several places in the United States and topics related to them: *Allentown, California, now called Toadtown, California *Allentown, Georgia, a town in Wilkinson County *Allentown, Illinois, an unincorporated community in Taze ...

, Pennsylvania. He attended the public schools and Allentown Academy. During the

American Civil War The American Civil War (April 12, 1861 – May 26, 1865; also known by other names) was a civil war in the United States. It was fought between the Union ("the North") and the Confederacy ("the South"), the latter formed by states ...

, he served as a corporal in Company D, One Hundred and Twenty-eighth Pennsylvania Volunteer Infantry, and served from August 13, 1862, to May 19, 1863. He studied law, was admitted to the bar in 1864, and after graduation from Harvard Law School in 1865 commenced practice in Allentown. He served as solicitor of Lehigh County, Pennsylvania, in 1868 and district attorney in 1872 through 1874. He was an unsuccessful candidate for Lieutenant Governor in 1874 and an unsuccessful candidate for election to Congress in 1876. He was a delegate to the

1884 Democratic National Convention The 1884 Democratic National Convention was held July 8–11, 1884 and chose Governor Grover Cleveland of New York their presidential nominee with the former Governor Thomas A. Hendricks of Indiana as the vice presidential nominee. World Book B ...

, and served as city solicitor of Allentown in 1886. Sowden was elected as a Democrat to the Forty-ninth and Fiftieth Congresses. He was not a candidate for reelection in 1888. He resumed the practice of law, and served as city solicitor of Allentown from 1900 to 1902. He was a delegate to the

1900 Democratic National Convention The 1900 Democratic National Convention was a United States presidential nominating convention that took place the week of July 4, 1900, at Convention Hall in Kansas City, Missouri. The convention nominated William Jennings Bryan for president ...

. He was an unsuccessful Republican candidate to the Fifty-ninth Congress in 1904. He was elected as solicitor of Lehigh County in 1906, and died in Allentown in 1907. Interment in Union Cemetery. In May 1888, his daughter married James L. Pugh, Jr, the son of U.S. senator from Alabama, James L. Pugh. Mrs James L. Pugh, Jr. was born in Allentown and studied at the Allentown Female College in 1884 and afterward attended the Luthervillw Female Seminary, near Baltimore.

References

Retrieved on 2008-02-14
The Political Graveyard
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External links

* 1840 births 1907 deaths Pennsylvania lawyers Union Army soldiers Politicians from Allentown, Pennsylvania English emigrants to the United States People from Liskeard Harvard Law School alumni Pennsylvania Republicans Democratic Party members of the United States House of Representatives from Pennsylvania 19th-century American politicians {{Pennsylvania-Representative-stub