William Pickering (politician)

William Pickering

William Pickering (born March 15, 1798 in Yorkshire , England , † April 22, 1873 in Illinois ) was an Anglo -American politician and from 1862 to 1866 the fifth governor of the Washington Territory .

Early years

William Pickering attended Oxford University until 1820 . A year later he came to Edwards County , Illinois. There he bought some real estate and participated in various businesses.

Political career

Pickering was an MP in the Illinois House of Representatives between 1842 and 1852 . In 1860 he was a delegate to the Republican National Convention , where Abraham Lincoln was nominated as a presidential candidate. In 1862, President Lincoln offered him both a position at the American Embassy in England and the post of governor in the Washington Territory . Pickering chose the governor's office. In June 1862 he arrived in his capital, Olympia . Pickering held this office until 1866. During this time the area was connected to the east by telegraph. He also took care of the health care system in his territory, with particular attention to the mentally handicapped. Since there was no money for a hospital, a contract was signed with the nuns of the Sisters of Charity , who then took care of the disabled. In 1863, eastern areas were separated and assigned to the Idaho Territory . The border was set in the extreme southeast of the state on the Snake River . North of the confluence with the Clearwater River , the boundary was defined as the meridian that runs north from this confluence of the Snake and Clearwater. This meridian is not - as is often assumed - exactly the 117th degree of longitude, but is about three kilometers further to the west. The remaining territory corresponds to the current borders of Washington State.

Another résumé

After the end of his governorship, Pickering returned to Illinois, where he died in 1873. He was married to Martha Flowers since 1824.

Web links

• The governors of Washington (English)