Ben Mitchell Williamson (October 16, 1864June 23, 1941) was a Democratic

U.S. Senator The United States Senate is the upper chamber of the United States Congress, with the House of Representatives being the lower chamber. Together they compose the national bicameral legislature of the United States. The composition and power ...

from

Kentucky Kentucky ( , ), officially the Commonwealth of Kentucky, is a state in the Southeastern region of the United States and one of the states of the Upper South. It borders Illinois, Indiana, and Ohio to the north; West Virginia and Virginia ...

. Born in

Pike County, Kentucky Pike County is a county in the U.S. state of Kentucky. As of the 2020 Census, the population was 58,669. Its county seat is Pikeville. The county was founded in 1821. With regard to the sale of alcohol, it is classified as a moist county–� ...

, Williamson attended the rural schools of Kentucky and Bethany College in

West Virginia West Virginia is a state in the Appalachian, Mid-Atlantic and Southeastern regions of the United States.The Census Bureau and the Association of American Geographers classify West Virginia as part of the Southern United States while the ...

. He engaged in the wholesale hardware business at

Catlettsburg, Kentucky Catlettsburg is a home rule-class city in and the county seat of Boyd County, Kentucky, United States. The city population was 1,856 at the 2010 census. Catlettsburg is a part of the Huntington-Ashland, WV-KY-OH, Metropolitan Statistical Ar ...

, from 1886 to 1924, and then at

Ashland, Kentucky Ashland is a home rule-class city in Boyd County, Kentucky, United States. The largest city in Boyd County, Ashland is located upon a southern bank of the Ohio River at the state border with Ohio and near West Virginia. The population was 21,6 ...

in 1924. He also engaged in banking and in coal mining. He was one of the founders of the Kentucky Crippled Children's Commission, serving as president from 1924 to 1941. He was also a member of the board of charities and correction for the State of Kentucky from 1929 to 1930, and the director of the International Society for Crippled Children. Williamson was elected as a Democrat to the

United States Senate The United States Senate is the upper chamber of the United States Congress, with the House of Representatives being the lower chamber. Together they compose the national bicameral legislature of the United States. The composition and po ...

on November 4, 1930, to fill the vacancy caused by the resignation of

Frederic M. Sackett Frederic Mosley Sackett (December 17, 1868May 18, 1941) served as a United States senator from Kentucky and ambassador to Germany during the Hoover Administration. Early life He was born in Providence, Rhode Island. His father, also named Fr ...

and his initial replacement by

John M. Robsion John Marshall Robsion (January 2, 1873February 17, 1948), a Republican, represented Kentucky in both the United States Senate and the United States House of Representatives. Robsion was born in Berlin, Kentucky. He attended National Northern ...

. He served only from December 1, 1930, to March 3, 1931, and was not a candidate for election to a full term. Afterwards Williamson resumed the wholesale hardware business at Ashland, with residence in

, and was interested financially in various other business enterprises. He died in

Cincinnati, Ohio Cincinnati ( ) is a city in the U.S. state of Ohio and the county seat of Hamilton County. Settled in 1788, the city is located at the northern side of the confluence of the Licking and Ohio rivers, the latter of which marks the state line w ...

, and was interred in the Ashland Cemetery Mausoleum.

Sources

* * {{DEFAULTSORT:Williamson, Ben Mitchell 1864 births 1941 deaths Democratic Party United States senators from Kentucky Kentucky Democrats Bethany College (West Virginia) alumni People from Pike County, Kentucky People from Catlettsburg, Kentucky