William W. Wick | |
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| 2nd Secretary of State of Indiana | |
| In office January 14, 1825 – January 14, 1829 | |
| Governor | William Hendricks James B. Ray |
| Preceded by | Robert A. New |
| Succeeded by | James Morrison |
| Member of theU.S. House of Representatives fromIndiana's6th district | |
| In office March 4, 1839 – March 4, 1841 | |
| Preceded by | William Herod |
| Succeeded by | David Wallace |
| Member of theU.S. House of Representatives from Indiana's5th district | |
| In office March 4, 1845 – March 4, 1849 | |
| Preceded by | William J. Brown |
| Succeeded by | William J. Brown |
| Personal details | |
| Born | William Watson Wick (1796-02-23)February 23, 1796 Canonsburg, Pennsylvania, United States |
| Died | May 19, 1868(1868-05-19) (aged 72) Franklin, Indiana, U.S. |
| Resting place | Greenlawn Cemetery, Franklin, Indiana, United States |
| Party | Democratic |
| Parents |
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William Watson Wick (February 23, 1796 – May 19, 1868) was aU.S. representative fromIndiana andSecretary of State of Indiana. He was a lawyer and over his career he was a judge for 15 years. PresidentFranklin Pierce appointed him Postmaster ofIndianapolis, Indiana.
Wick proposed an amendment to extend theMissouri Compromise line west to the Pacific coast with theWilmot Proviso (1846). The provision that would make slave states of the American southwest was passed in the House, but defeated in the Senate. Wick supported thecolonization of blacks to Liberia. He campaigned forStephen A. Douglas in 1860.
William Watson Wick was born on February 23, 1796, inCanonsburg,Washington County, Pennsylvania.[1] He was the son of aPresbyterian minister, Rev.William Walter Wick and his wife, Elizabeth (née McFarland).[2][3][a]
In 1800, his parents moved the family to theConnecticut Western Reserve[1] for the purpose of missionary work in the region; his father became the first minister to settle in the Western Reserve.[4]
William completed preparatory studies, and after his father's death in 1815, he moved toCincinnati,Ohio, where he taught school and studied medicine until 1818. He then studied law and wasadmitted to the bar atFranklin, Indiana, in 1819.[1]
After practicing law inConnersville, Indiana, Wick served as Clerk of theIndiana House of Representatives in 1820 and Assistant Clerk for theIndiana Senate in 1821. Appointed to a state judgeship, he served as President Judge of the Fifth Judicial Circuit from 1822 to 1825,[1] presiding over the first court inMorgan County, Indiana.[5] He moved toIndianapolis in 1822. He was theQuartermaster General in 1826.[6]
He was thenIndiana's Secretary of State until 1829. He returned to the Fifth Judicial Circuit, first as a Prosecutor until 1831, and, from 1834 to 1837, he was again a President Judge.[1] He presided over the trial about theFall Creek massacre, which resulted in the first recorded case of a white man being sentenced to death for crimes againstNative Americans under U.S. law.[7]
In 1838, Wick was elected to theTwenty-sixthCongress as aDemocrat, and began his first term on March 4, 1839. Having failed in his bid for reelection, he resumed his private law practice in Indianapolis.[1]
He was elected to theTwenty-ninth andThirtieth Congress, and served from March 4, 1845, to March 3, 1849.[1] In 1846, during the debates about theWilmot Proviso, he proposed an amendment to extend theMissouri Compromise line to the Pacific coast. Wick feared that free blacks would "flood" the urban northeast. The proposal was defeated 89–54. The Wilmot Proviso passed the House and was defeated in the Senate.[citation needed]
Wick was a leading opponent of racial mixing and integration, and famous for his opposition to theannexation of Mexican territory. He stated: "I do not want any mixed races in our Union, nor men of any color except white, unless they be slaves. Certainly not as voters or legislators."[8] He served as Secretary of theIndiana Colonization Society (affiliated with theAmerican Colonization Society), which helped to establishLiberia as a homeland for free blacks.[9]
He sat as a judge of theCircuit Court for a third time from 1850 to 1853. In 1853, PresidentFranklin Pierce appointed him Postmaster of Indianapolis, in which capacity he served until April 6, 1857.[1][2] Later he served as Adjutant General in the State Militia. He moved to Franklin, Indiana, in 1857, where he continued his law practice.[1] He sat as a judge of the Circuit Court for a fourth time until the Autumn of 1859, for a total of 15 years on the bench.[10] In 1860, he supportedStephen A. Douglas's campaign for president by giving speeches throughout Indiana.[2]
Wick was married on August 20, 1820, to Laura (or Lora) Finch, the sister of the esteemed lawyer Fabius M, Finch, in Fayette County, Indiana.[6][11][b] They had two sons and a daughter. His wife died in 1832.[2] He married Isabella Graham Barbee on November 7, 1839, inWashington, Indiana.[6][12] Isabella was the daughter of Alice Bickerton Winston and Thomas Barbee. The Wicks had a daughter, Alice Barbee Wick.[13]
Around 1860, Wick moved toFranklin, Indiana, to live with his daughter, Laura W. Overstreet (Mrs. William H. Overstreet[2]), who was born about 1824. The Overstreets had four children by 1850 and the same year 20-year-old Cyrus Wick lived with them.[14] He died at his daughter's house in Franklin on May 19, 1868. He was interred inGreenlawn Cemetery.[1][2] He was described as "warm-hearted, humorous and improvident… and he took no thought for the morrow."[2] Isabella, his second wife, lived until 1875.[6]
This article incorporatespublic domain material fromBiographical Directory of the United States Congress.Federal government of the United States.| Political offices | ||
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| Preceded by | Secretary of State of Indiana 1825–1829 | Succeeded by |
| U.S. House of Representatives | ||
| Preceded by | Member of the U.S. House of Representatives fromIndiana's 6th congressional district 1839–1841 | Succeeded by |
| Preceded by | Member of the U.S. House of Representatives fromIndiana's 5th congressional district 1845–1849 | Succeeded by |
| International | |
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| National | |
| People | |
| Other | |
