William Endicott
Photograph of Endicott,c. 1886
36thUnited States Secretary of War
In office March 5, 1885 – March 5, 1889
President	Grover Cleveland
Preceded by	Robert Todd Lincoln
Succeeded by	Redfield Proctor
Associate Justice of theMassachusetts Supreme Judicial Court
In office March 5, 1873 – October 31, 1882
Appointed by	William B. Washburn
Preceded by	Seat established
Succeeded by	Waldo Colburn
Personal details
Born	(1826-11-19)November 19, 1826 Salem, Massachusetts, U.S.
Died	May 6, 1900(1900-05-06) (aged 73) Boston,Massachusetts, U.S.
Party	Whig (formerly) Democratic
Spouse	Ellen Peabody ​ (m. 1859)​
Education	Harvard University (BA)
Signature

William Crowninshield Endicott (November 19, 1826 – May 6, 1900)^[1] was an American politician and Secretary of War in the first administration ofPresident Grover Cleveland (1885–1889).

Endicott was born inSalem, Massachusetts on November 19, 1826. He was a son of William Putnam Endicott and Mary (néeCrowninshield)^[2][3] Endicott. He was a direct descendant of the Massachusetts governor,John Endecott, and a first cousin three times removed of another Massachusetts governor,Endicott Peabody.^[4]

He graduated fromHarvard University in 1847 and attendedHarvard Law School in 1849–1850. He studied law with Nathaniel J. Lord prior to his admission to the Massachusetts bar in 1850.^[1]

In 1852, he was elected a member of the Salem Common Council and, five years later, became City Solicitor.^[1] He was elected a member of theAmerican Antiquarian Society in 1862.^[5] In 1853, he entered into a law partnership with J. W. Perry under the name Perry & Endicott, which was dissolved in 1873 upon his appointment to the bench. From 1857 to 1873, also served as president of the Salem Bank.^[4]

Endicott, although a Democrat (and originally aWhig), was appointed by Republican governorWilliam B. Washburn to theMassachusetts Supreme Judicial Court, where he served from March 5, 1873 to October 31, 1882.^[6] In 1879, he unsuccessfully ran for Congress, followed by an unsuccessful gubernatorial race in 1884.^[7]Grover Cleveland appointed EndicottSecretary of War and he served in that capacity in the administration between 1885 and 1889. Endicott oversaw many important changes in the organization of theUnited States Army, including the establishment of a system of examinations to determine the promotion of officers.

Endicott convened and chaired theBoard of Fortifications in 1885 (usually called the Endicott Board), which would provide detailed recommendations and designs for the generation of Americancoastal defense fortifications constructed in the era of theSpanish–American War. Most of theseEndicott Period fortifications served through early World War II.

On December 13, 1859, Endicott was married to Ellen Peabody (1833–1927) in Salem. Ellen was the daughter of philanthropist George Peabody and Clarissa Peabody of Salem.^[8] Her grandfather was the distinguished Salem ship owner,Joseph Peabody, who made a fortune importing pepper from Sumatra and was one of the wealthiest men in the United States at the time of his death in 1900.^[9] Together, William and Ellen had two children:

• William Crowninshield Endicott Jr. (1860–1936),^[10] a lawyer who married Marie Louise Thoron (1864–1958), daughter of Joseph Thoron and Anna Barker (née Ward) Thoron, in 1889.^[11] William C. Endicott Jr. was the president of theMassachusetts Historical Society for ten years.^[12]
• Mary Crowninshield Endicott (1864–1957), who married the British statesmanJoseph Chamberlain in 1888. After his death, she married the Anglican clergyman William Hartley Carnegie (1859–1936), in 1916.

Endicott died of acute pneumonia inBoston, Massachusetts on May 6, 1900.^[1][13] His wife lived another twenty-seven years, until her death in Boston on August 20, 1927, after which she was buried with William in the Endicott Lot atHarmony Grove Cemetery in Salem.^[8]

• William Crowninshield Endicott atFind a Grave
• Biography inSecretaries of War and Secretaries of the Army a publication of theUnited States Army Center of Military History.

• 1826 births
• 1900 deaths
• Crowninshield family
• United States secretaries of war
• Politicians from Salem, Massachusetts
• Lawyers from Salem, Massachusetts
• Justices of the Massachusetts Supreme Judicial Court
• Cleveland administration cabinet members
• Massachusetts Democrats
• Harvard Law School alumni
• Burials at Harmony Grove Cemetery
• 19th-century Massachusetts state court judges
• Massachusetts Whigs
• Peabody family
• Harvard College alumni

• Articles with short description
• Short description is different from Wikidata
• Use mdy dates from March 2022