William Findley | |
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| Member of theU.S. House of Representatives fromPennsylvania | |
| In office March 4, 1803 – March 3, 1817 | |
| Preceded by | John Stewart |
| Succeeded by | David Marchand |
| Constituency | 8th district (1803–1813) 11th district (1813–1817) |
| In office March 4, 1791 – March 3, 1799 | |
| Preceded by | district established |
| Succeeded by | John Smilie |
| Constituency | 8th district (1791–1793) at-large district (seat H) (1793–1795) 11th district (1795–1799) |
| Member of theSupreme Executive Council of Pennsylvania fromWestmoreland County | |
| In office November 25, 1789 – December 20, 1790 | |
| Preceded by | John Proctor |
| Succeeded by | Position dissolved |
| Personal details | |
| Born | 1741 |
| Died | April 4, 1821(1821-04-04) (aged 80) Greensburg, Pennsylvania, U.S. |
| Political party | Anti-Administration Republican |
| Profession | Politician, farmer |
William Findley (c. 1741 – April 4, 1821) was an Irish-born farmer and politician fromWestmoreland County, Pennsylvania. He served in both houses of thestate legislature and representedPennsylvania in theU.S. House from 1791 until 1799 and from 1803 to 1817. By the end of his career, he was the longest serving member of the House, and was the first to hold the honorary title "Father of the House". Findley was elected to theAmerican Philosophical Society in 1789.[1]
William Findley was born inUlster,Ireland and emigrated toPennsylvania in 1763. In 1768, he bought a farm inCumberland County, Pennsylvania,[2] where he married and started a family. Findley also worked for a time as a weaver.[3] He owned slaves as well.[4] In theAmerican Revolution he served on the Cumberland CountyCommittee of Observation, and enlisted as a private in the local militia, and rose to the rank of captain of the Seventh Company of the Eighth Battalion of Cumberland CountyAssociators. In 1783 he moved his family across theAllegheny Mountains toWestmoreland County, Pennsylvania.
Upon arrival in Westmoreland County, Findley was almost immediately elected to theCouncil of Censors. On this Council, which was to decide whether the radicalPennsylvania Constitution of 1776 needed revision, he established himself as an effective supporter of what the "best people" considered the radical position in state politics.[citation needed]
In the following years Findley served in the Ninth through TwelfthGeneral Assemblies and on theSupreme Executive Council. Findley was an early exponent of a political style in which candidates openly expressed their interests and proposals, as opposed to the "disinterested" style of governance many Founding Fathers envisioned.[5] In 1786 he was a critic of theBank of North America, the nation's first central bank; he accusedRobert Morris, theContinental Congress's Superintendent of Finance, of using the bank to enrich himself personally.[5] Findley also publicized the statement of fellow legislatorHugh Henry Brackenridge that "the people are fools" for opposing the bank, contributing to Brackenridge's defeat in the subsequent election.[6]
Findley was also a major opposition voice[7][8] in the Pennsylvania convention that ratified the federalConstitution and was a signer of the Minority Dissent.[9] Findley was regularly mocked during convention's debates by gentry who attempted to portray him an uneducated ' country hick '. At one point, Constitutional Convention delegateJames Wilson and Pennsylvania Chief JusticeThomas McKean disputed one of Findley's statements about jury trials in Sweden; Findley returned two days later withWilliam Blackstone'sCommentaries on the Laws of England and demonstrated that his reference had been correct.[10]
Findley was one of the leaders in the convention that, in 1789, wrote a newConstitution for Pennsylvania. As anAnti-Federalist, Findley wrote papers under the name of "An Officer of the Late Continental Army".
After serving in thePennsylvania House of Representatives, he was elected to theSecond Congress from the district west of the mountains in 1791, after being an unsuccessful candidate for the prior Congress in 1788.[11] William Findley served in the Second through theFifth congresses. A Jeffersonian Republican, Findley opposed the financial plans of FederalistTreasury SecretaryAlexander Hamilton and supported the cause ofstates' rights.[12] As a voice of reason, in 1794 he helped to calm the passions of theWhiskey Insurrection.[citation needed] Unlike manyDemocratic-Republicans, he opposed slavery.[12]
After declining nomination to the Sixth Congress, he was elected to thePennsylvania State Senate because he allowed his name to be placed on the local ticket to rally western support forThomas McKean's campaign forgovernor.
Elected to theEighth Congress, he served through theFourteenth, the turbulent years of theBurrconspiracy, theembargo, and theWar of 1812 as a strong supporter ofThomas Jefferson andJames Madison. He was known as "The Venerable Findley," and because he was the senior representative in years of service, he was in 1811 designated "Father of the House", the first man to be awarded that honorary title.[12] He died in his home along theLoyalhanna Creek on April 5, 1821, and is buried inLatrobe's Unity Cemetery.
| Political offices | ||
|---|---|---|
| Preceded by John Proctor | Member of theSupreme Executive Council of Pennsylvania representingWestmoreland County November 25, 1789 – December 20, 1790 | Succeeded by Position dissolved |
| U.S. House of Representatives | ||
| Preceded by District created | Member of the U.S. House of Representatives fromPennsylvania's 8th congressional district March 4, 1791 – March 3, 1793 | Succeeded by District eliminated |
| Preceded by District created | Member of the U.S. House of Representatives fromPennsylvania's at-large congressional district March 4, 1793 – March 3, 1795 Served alongside:Fitzsimons,Muhlenberg,Kittera,Hartley,Scott,Armstrong,Muhlenberg,Gregg,Hiester,Irvine,Smilie &Montgomery | Succeeded by District eliminated |
| Preceded by District created | Member of the U.S. House of Representatives fromPennsylvania's 11th congressional district March 4, 1795 – March 3, 1799 | Succeeded by |
| Preceded by | Member of the U.S. House of Representatives fromPennsylvania's 8th congressional district March 4, 1803 – March 3, 1813 | Succeeded by |
| Preceded by | Member of the U.S. House of Representatives fromPennsylvania's 11th congressional district March 4, 1813 – March 3, 1817 | Succeeded by |
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| National | |
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