William C. Bouck | |
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| 13th Governor of New York | |
| In office January 1, 1843 – December 31, 1844 | |
| Lieutenant | Daniel S. Dickinson |
| Preceded by | William H. Seward |
| Succeeded by | Silas Wright |
| AssistantTreasurer of the United States for theNew York City Sub-Treasury | |
| In office August 8, 1846 – June 30, 1849 | |
| Preceded by | Office established |
| Succeeded by | John Young |
| Member of theUniversity of the State of New York Board of Regents | |
| In office February 3, 1845 – May 6, 1847 | |
| Preceded by | Joseph Russell |
| Succeeded by | Samuel Luckey |
| Member of theErie Canal Commission | |
| In office March 21, 1821 – February 22, 1840 | |
| Preceded by | Office established |
| Succeeded by | David Hudson |
| Member of theNew York State Senate from the Middle District | |
| In office March 21, 1821 – December 31, 1822 | |
| Preceded by | Multi-member Middle District |
| Succeeded by | Multi-member 3rd District |
| Member of theNew York State Assembly fromSchoharie County | |
| In office January 1, 1813 – June 30, 1816 | |
| Preceded by | Herman Hickcok Peter A. Hilton |
| Succeeded by | Peter A. Hilton Isaac Barber Aaron Hubbard |
| In office July 1, 1817 – June 30, 1818 Serving with George H. Mann Nathan P. Tyler | |
| Preceded by | Peter A. Hilton Isaac Barber Aaron Hubbard |
| Succeeded by | Aaron Hubbard Jedediah Miller Peter Swart Jr. |
| Sheriff ofSchoharie County, New York | |
| In office March 10, 1812 – March 9, 1813 | |
| Preceded by | Stephen Lawrence |
| Succeeded by | Peter Swart Jr. |
| Personal details | |
| Born | (1786-01-07)January 7, 1786 |
| Died | April 19, 1859(1859-04-19) (aged 73) |
| Resting place | Middleburgh Cemetery, Middleburgh, New York |
| Political party | Democratic |
| Spouse | Catherine Lawyer (m. 1807–1859, his death) |
| Relations | Joseph Bouck (brother) |
| Children | 13 (includingGabriel Bouck) |
| Occupation | Farmer |
| Military service | |
| Branch/service |  New York Militia |
| Years of service | 1809–1822 |
| Rank | Colonel |
| Unit | 28th Brigade 113th Regiment |
| Commands | 18th Regiment |
William Christian Bouck (January 7, 1786 – April 19, 1859) was an American politician fromNew York. He was the thirteenthGovernor of New York, from 1843 to 1844.
A native ofFultonham, New York, Bouck was educated in the local schools while working on his family's farm and became a farmer himself. Originally a member of theDemocratic-Republican Party, and later aDemocrat, he began a government and politics career with election as town clerk ofFulton (1807–1808),town supervisor (1808–1809) and sheriff ofSchoharie County (1812–1813). Bouck served in the militia from 1809 to 1822 and rose through the ranks to become commander of New York's 18th Regiment with the rank ofcolonel.
As Bouck's career progressed, he served in theNew York State Assembly (1814–1816, 1817–1818) andNew York State Senate (1821–1822). From 1821 to 1840, Bouck served on theErie Canal Commission, and during his long tenure, he oversaw construction of the western portion of the canal and several branch canals.
In 1842, Bouck was elected governor, and he served from 1843 to 1844. His term was largely occupied with responding to theAnti-Rent War, and he was an unsuccessful candidate for renomination in 1844. After leaving office, Bouck served on the state Board of Regents (1845 to 1847) and from 1846 to 1849 was Assistant Treasurer of the United States at the New York City sub-treasury.
Bouck died inFulton, New York, on April 19, 1859. He was buried at Middleburgh Cemetery inMiddleburgh, New York.
Bouck was born inFultonham, New York, on January 7, 1786,[1] a son of Christian Bouck (1753–1836) and Margaret (Borst) Bouck (1762–1806).[2] His siblings includedJoseph Bouck, who served as a member of theUnited States House of Representatives.[3] He was raised on his father's farm and educated in the local schools of Schoharie County.[1] Bouck became a farmer and began a long career in government and public service in 1807, when he was elected asFulton's town clerk.[1] From 1808 to 1809, Bouck was Fulton'stown supervisor.[1] He served asSheriff ofSchoharie County from 1812 to 1813.[1]
In 1809 Bouck was appointedadjutant of theNew York Militia's 18th Regiment, a post he held until he was appointed sheriff.[4] Bouck continued his service in the militia; he was appointed quartermaster of the 28th Brigade in 1815.[5] In 1817, he was promoted tomajor in the 113th Regiment.[6] Later in 1817, Bouck was promoted tolieutenant colonel in the 28th Brigade.[7] From 1819 to 1822, Bouck commanded the 18th Regiment with the rank ofcolonel.[8][9]
As a member of theDemocratic-Republican Party, Bouck served in theNew York State Assembly from 1813 to 1816 and again from 1817 to 1818.[1] He was a member of theNew York State Senate from 1821 to 1822.[1] From 1821 to 1840, he was a member of theErie Canal Commission, first selected to fill a newly created seat.[1] When theFederalist Party became dormant and the Democratic-Republican followers ofAndrew Jackson began calling themselvesDemocrats, Bouck became a leader of theAlbany Regency, the clique led byMartin Van Buren which dominated New York state's Democratic Party.[10]
While serving as a canal commissioner, Bouck developed a strong reputation for both competence and integrity.[1] During the nineteen years he served on the commission, he oversaw construction of theErie Canal west of theGenesee River.[1] In addition, he supervised design and building of several branch canals connected to the Erie, including the Cayuga, Seneca, Crooked Lake, Chemung and Chenango Canals.[1] The canal projects overseen by Bouck required the expenditure of more than $8 million in state funds (more than $243 million in 2019), all of which he was able to account for during audits of his work.[1]
During his service as a canal commissioner, Bouck frequently carried large sums of cash from Albany in order to pay construction crews in western New York.[1] Both well-known and highly visible as he traveled alone on his favorite mount, he earned the nickname "White Horse Bouck", and was held in such great esteem that he was never accosted or robbed.[1] When theWhig Party came to power in New York in 1840, Bouck was so strongly identified with the Erie Canal that he could have obtained reappointment to the commission despite his party affiliation if he had desired it.[1]
During the New York Democratic Party's factional dispute between theBarnburners and Hunkers, Bouck was identified with the conservative Hunker faction, causing him to fall out with PresidentMartin Van Buren, who was the leader of the Barnburners.[11] InNovember 1840, Bouck was the Democratic nominee forgovernor andDaniel S. Dickinson the Democratic candidate forlieutenant governor, and they were defeated by theWhig incumbents,William H. Seward andLuther Bradish.[12]
In November 1842, Bouck and Dickinson ran again.[13] They won theNovember general election by defeating Whig candidates Bradish for governor andGabriel Furman for lieutenant governor.[13] Bouck's term was occupied primarily with the state's response to theAnti-Rent War.[14] Tenants who held perpetual leases under thepatroon system first implemented when New York was a Dutch colony objected to the "quarter sale" provision of their leases.[15] Under this provision if a tenant sold his lease, he had to pay his patroon one quarter of the sale price or one additional year's rent.[15] In addition, while the wealthiest patroon,Stephen Van Rensselaer, had generally proved a benevolent landlord usually willing to accept partial or late payments rather than evict tenants who fell behind on their rent, after his death in 1839 his heirs attempted to collect long-overdue payments.[16] When the tenants could not pay and could not negotiate for favorable repayment terms, they were threatened with eviction and a revolt ensued.[16] Bouck was sympathetic to the tenants,[17] but as part of the effort to restore order during a violent demonstration, near the end of his term he sent units of thestate militia toHudson, which was viewed unfavorably by the tenants and their supporters.[18]
In 1844, the Democratic Party desired to nominate a candidate who would consistently enforce the law against the rioters.[18] Rather than renominate Bouck, they nominatedSilas Wright, who won the general election.[13] During his term, Wright also used the militia to restore order, and in 1846 he was defeated for a second term by Whig nomineeJohn Young,[13] who had taken the side of the tenants.[19]
After completing his term as governor, Bouck served as a delegate to the 1846 state constitutional convention.[20] He served as a member of theBoard of Regents of the University of the State of New York from 1845 to 1847.[21] From 1846 to 1849 he served as Assistant United States Treasurer in New York City.[20]
In retirement, Bouck was a resident ofBouck's Island, his family'sBoucks Island farm on theSchoharie Creek in Fulton.[22] He died at his Bouck's Island home on April 19, 1859[22] and was buried at Middleburgh Cemetery in Middleburgh.[23]
In 1807, Bouck married Catherine Lawyer (1787–1865).[2] They were the parents of 13 children,[2] including:
Gabriel Bouck commanded the18th Wisconsin Volunteer Infantry Regiment during theAmerican Civil War.[24] He later served as Speaker of theWisconsin State Assembly,Attorney General of Wisconsin and a member of the U.S. House fromWisconsin's 6th congressional district.[24]
The hamlet ofBouckville in the town ofMadison, New York, is named for Bouck.[25] Bouck Hall, the student activities building at theState University of New York at Cobleskill is also named after him.[26] Bouck's Island, the Bouck family farm and home, is a New York State Historic Site.[27]
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| Preceded by | Democratic nominee forGovernor of New York 1840,1842 | Succeeded by |
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