William Anderson | |
|---|---|
| Member of theU.S. House of Representatives fromPennsylvania's1st district | |
| In office 1817–1819 | |
| In office 1809–1815 | |
| Personal details | |
| Born | 1762 (1762) |
| Died | December 16, 1829(1829-12-16) (aged 66–67) Chester, Pennsylvania, U.S. |
| Resting place | Old St. Paul's Church Cemetery, Chester, Pennsylvania, U.S. |
| Party | Democratic-Republican |
William Anderson (1762 – December 16, 1829) was an American politician who served as aDemocratic-Republican member of theU.S. House of Representatives forPennsylvania's 1st congressional district from 1809 to 1815 and from 1817 to 1819.
William Anderson was born inAccomack County in theColony of Virginia in 1762. During theRevolutionary War, he joined theContinental Army at the age of fifteen and served until the end of the war. He was a major on the staff of GeneralLafayette and distinguished himself atGermantown andYorktown.
He was married to Elizabeth Dixon. In 1796, Anderson became engaged in the hotel business through the purchase of the Columbia House inChester, Pennsylvania.[1]
He served asDelaware County auditor in 1804 and county director of the poor in 1805.[2] He was a Jeffersonian democrat and held many public offices.
Anderson was elected as aDemocratic-Republican to theEleventh,Twelfth, andThirteenth Congresses. He was elected to theFifteenth Congress. He was appointed an associate judge of the county court on January 5, 1826, and resigned in 1828 to become an inspector of customs inPhiladelphia. He served until his death inChester, Pennsylvania in 1829 and was interred in OldSt. Paul's Church Cemetery.[3]
UnderPennsylvania gradual abolition law, enslavers had six months to register the children of women they held in bondage. On July 2, 1806, Anderson registered a nineteen-week-old "male mulatto bastard child" named Francis as his property for twenty-eight years with the Delaware County clerk of courts.[4][5] This registration reveals that Anderson owned Francis' mother, whom he held in either lifetime or term slavery.
| U.S. House of Representatives | ||
|---|---|---|
| Preceded by | Member of the U.S. House of Representatives fromPennsylvania's 1st congressional district 1809–1815 1809–1815 alongside:Adam Seybert | Succeeded by |
| Preceded by | Member of the U.S. House of Representatives fromPennsylvania's 1st congressional district 1817–1819 alongside:Joseph Hopkinson,Adam Seybert andJohn Sergeant | Succeeded by |
