Home > William Alexander Graham

Born near Lincolnton, North Carolina, Graham graduated from the University of North Carolina in 1824. He studied law, was admitted to the bar in 1825, and commenced practice in HillsboroughHillsborough is a town located in Orange County, North Carolina. As of the 2000 census, the town had a total population of 5,446. It is the county seat of Orange County 6. History Hillsborough was originally established in 1759 as Childsburg; it was renam. From 1833Events January 3 Britain seizes control of the Falkland Islands in the South Atlantic. June 6 U. President Andrew Jackson becomes the first President to ride a train. September 29 The infant Isabella II becomes Queen of Spain, under the regency of her mot to 1840 he was a member of the North Carolina House of Commons from Orange CountyOrange County is a county located in the U. State of North Carolina. As of 2000, the population is 118,227. Its county seat is Hillsborough 6. History The county was formed in 1752 from parts of Bladen County, Granville County, and Johnston County. It was, serving twice as speaker .

In 1840 Graham was elected as a WhigThe United States Whig Party was a political party of the United States. The party was created in order to oppose the policies of Andrew Jackson and called itself the Whig Party by analogy with the English Whigs, who had opposed the power of the King in R to the United States Senate to fill the vacancy caused by the resignation of Robert StrangeOther uses: Robert Strange (painter), (1721-1792). Robert Strange ( 20 September 1796 19 February 1854) was a Democratic U. senator from the state of North Carolina between 1836 and 1840. Strange, Robert Strange, Robert Strange, Robert., and served from November 25, 1840, to March 3, 1843. In the Twenty-seventh Congress he was chairman of the Senate Committee on Claims. His older brother, James Graham, had been representing North Carolina in the House since 1833.

From 1845 to 1849 Graham was Governor of North Carolina. Having declined appointments as ambassador to Spain and Russia in 1849, he was appointed Secretary of the Navy in the cabinet of President Millard Fillmore in 1850, and served until 1852. In the 1852 presidential election he was the unsuccessful Whig candidate for vice president, as Winfield Scott's running mate. Returning to North Carolina, he was a member of the state senate from 1854 to 1866, and senator in the Confederate Congress from 1864 to 1865.

In 1866 Graham was once again elected to the United States Senate, but because North Carolina had not yet been readmitted to the Union, he did not present his credentials. From 1867 to 1875 he was a member of the board of trustees of the Peabody Fund , which provided educational assistance to the post- Civil War South. From 1873 to 1875 he was an arbitrator in the boundary line dispute between Virginia and Maryland. He died in Saratoga Springs, New York, and is buried in the Presbyterian Church Cemetery in Hillsborough.

This article incorporates facts obtained from the public domain Biographical Directory of the United States Congress.