William Poindexter Thomasson (October 8, 1797 – December 29, 1882) was a

U.S. 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 c ...

from

Kentucky Kentucky ( , ), officially the Commonwealth of Kentucky, is a state in the Southeastern region of the United States and one of the states of the Upper South. It borders Illinois, Indiana, and Ohio to the north; West Virginia and Virginia ...

Early life

William Poindexter Thommasson was born on October 8, 1797, in

New Castle, Kentucky New Castle is a home rule-class city in Henry County, Kentucky, in the United States. It is the seat of its county. As of the 2010 census the population was 912. History New Castle was incorporated in 1817. Geography New Castle is located s ...

. Thomasson completed preparatory studies. He served in Captain Duncan's company in the War of 1812. Thomasson studied law. He was

admitted to the bar An admission to practice law is acquired when a lawyer receives a license to practice law. In jurisdictions with two types of lawyer, as with barristers and solicitors, barristers must gain admission to the bar whereas for solicitors there are dist ...

and commenced practice in

Corydon, Indiana Corydon is a town in Harrison Township, Harrison County, Indiana. Located north of the Ohio River in the extreme southern part of the U.S. state of Indiana, it is the seat of government for Harrison County. Corydon was founded in 1808 and served ...

, before he was twenty-one years of age.

Career

Thomasson served as member of the Indiana House of Representatives in 1818–1820. He served as prosecuting attorney of Corydon in 1818. He moved to

Louisville, Kentucky Louisville ( , , ) is the largest city in the Commonwealth of Kentucky and the 28th most-populous city in the United States. Louisville is the historical seat and, since 2003, the nominal seat of Jefferson County, on the Indiana border ...

, in 1841. After moving to Louisville, he became city attorney and county attorney. Thomasson was elected as a Whig to the Twenty-eighth and Twenty-ninth Congresses (March 4, 1843 – March 3, 1847). He declined to be a candidate for renomination. He moved to

Chicago, Illinois (''City in a Garden''); I Will , image_map = , map_caption = Interactive Map of Chicago , coordinates = , coordinates_footnotes = , subdivision_type = Country , subdivision_name ...

, and resumed the practice of law. During the

Civil War A civil war or intrastate war is a war between organized groups within the same state (or country). The aim of one side may be to take control of the country or a region, to achieve independence for a region, or to change government policies ...

, Thomasson served in the

Union Army During the American Civil War, the Union Army, also known as the Federal Army and the Northern Army, referring to the United States Army, was the land force that fought to preserve the Union of the collective states. It proved essential to th ...

in the Seventy-first Regiment, New York Volunteer Infantry.

Personal life

Thomasson married Charlotte Leonard of

Floyd County, Indiana Floyd County is a county located in the U.S. state of Indiana. Its county seat is New Albany. Floyd County has the second-smallest land area in the entire state. It was formed in the year 1819 from neighboring Clark, and Harrison counties. F ...

in 1825. They had four children: Nelson, John J., Saran and Laura. Thomasson died near

La Grange, Kentucky La Grange is a home rule-class city in Oldham County, Kentucky, in the United States. The population was 8,082 at the time of the 2010 U.S. census. It is the seat of its county. An unusual feature of La Grange is the CSX Transportation street-r ...

on December 29, 1882. He was interred in

Cave Hill Cemetery Cave Hill Cemetery is a Victorian era National Cemetery and arboretum located at Louisville, Kentucky. Its main entrance is on Baxter Avenue and there is a secondary one on Grinstead Drive. It is the largest cemetery by area and number of buri ...

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Thomasson, William Poindexter 1797 births 1882 deaths People from New Castle, Kentucky Indiana lawyers Union Army soldiers Burials at Cave Hill Cemetery American military personnel of the War of 1812 Whig Party members of the United States House of Representatives from Kentucky 19th-century American politicians People from Corydon, Indiana