Hiram Willey

Hiram Willey (May 5, 1818 – March 8, 1910) was an American attorney who served as the United States Attorney for the District of Connecticut under two presidents.^[1] He was also a judge, member of the Connecticut senate, author, and the mayor of New London, Connecticut.

Hiram Willey
Connecticut General Assembly
In office 1847–?
In office 1857–?
In office 1877–?
Connecticut Senate
In office 1859–1860
Connecticut Probate Courts Judge
In office 1860–1861
Mayor of New London, Connecticut
In office 1862–1865
Preceded by	Jonathan N. Harris
Succeeded by	Fredrick L. Allen
United States Attorney for the District of Connecticut
In office 1861–1869
President	Abraham Lincoln Andrew Johnson
Preceded by	Tilton E. Doolittle
Succeeded by	Calvin G. Child
Connecticut Judge of Common Pleas
In office 1870–1873
Personal details
Born	(1818-05-23)May 23, 1818 East Haddam, Connecticut
Died	March 8, 1910(1910-03-08) (aged 91) Hadlyme, Connecticut
Children	2
Alma mater	Wesleyan University (1839)

Biography

Hiram was born on May 5, 1818, to Eathan Allen Willey and Mary Brockway in East Haddam, Connecticut. His ancestors moved to Connecticut in 1645 and his grandfather Abraham Willey was a captain in the Revolutionary War. He was one of the first graduates of Wesleyan University of Middletown graduating in 1839. After passing the bar in 1841,^[2] he would be involved in numerous political and legal positions throughout Connecticut. He became State's Attorney; was a member of the Legislature and State Senate; Mayor of New London; Judge of Probate Court and of the Court of Common Pleas;^[3] returned to Hadlyme to reside in 1875; was lay reader in the P.E. Church of Hadlyme, member of F.& A.M.; First Grand Commander of the Encampment in New London.^[4] As the mayor of New London, he established the cities police force.^[5] In addition he wrote multiple books and was a professor at Yale.^[6]

References

1. "About the Office". www.justice.gov. 2015-03-18. Retrieved 2020-11-11.
2. The Judicial and Civil History of Connecticut.
3. Brown, J. T. (1917). Catalogue of Beta Theta Pi. Beta Theta Pi.
4. Warner, Lucien C. (1919). From the Descendants of Andrew Warner. p. 195. This article incorporates text from this source, which is in the public domain.
5. "Welcome to New London, Connecticut - History". newlondonct.org. Retrieved 2020-11-20.
6. "Yale University Catalogue 1859". 1859.