Willis A. Gorman

Willis A. Gorman with his wife Martha

Willis Arnold Gorman (born January 22, 1816 in Flemingsburg , Fleming County , Kentucky , † May 20, 1876 in St. Paul , Minnesota ) was an American politician and governor of the Minnesota Territory from 1853 to 1857 . Between 1849 and 1853 he represented the state of Indiana in the US House of Representatives .

Early years and advancement

Willis Gorman came to Bloomington with his parents in 1835 . He studied law at Indiana University there . After his admission to the bar in 1845, he began working in Bloomington in his new profession. Gorman was a member of the Democratic Party . Between 1837 and 1838 he was secretary in the Indiana Senate ; from 1841 to 1844 he was a member of the State House of Representatives . At the start of the Mexican-American War , he volunteered in the US Army . By the end of the war, he rose to the rank of colonel in the army . He took part in several battles and was wounded several times.

Congressman and Territorial Governor

On his return to Indiana, Gorman was elected as his party's candidate for the US House of Representatives. After being re-elected, he was able to exercise this mandate between March 4, 1849 and March 3, 1853. After his time in Congress , Gorman was appointed governor of the Minnesota Territory by the new US President Franklin Pierce . He held this office between May 15, 1853 and April 23, 1857. In 1857 he was a delegate to the Minnesota Constituent Assembly. From 1857 to 1861 he worked as a lawyer in St. Paul. He was also a member of the Minnesota House of Representatives from 1858 to 1859 .

Another résumé

When the civil war broke out , Gorman joined the Union Army as a colonel. He participated in a few battles again and was promoted to brigadier general. After the war he was again a lawyer in St. Paul and from 1869 to 1875 he was also a public prosecutor there. Willis Gorman died on May 20, 1876. Since 1836 he was married to Martha Stone.

Web links

• Willis A. Gorman in the Biographical Directory of the United States Congress (English)
• Willis A. Gorman in the database of Find a Grave (English)