William Pitkin (April 30, 1694 – October 1, 1769) was a colonial governor of the Connecticut Colony.

Biography

Pitkin was born to a politically prominent family in

Hartford Hartford is the capital city of the U.S. state of Connecticut. It was the seat of Hartford County until Connecticut disbanded county government in 1960. It is the core city in the Greater Hartford metropolitan area. Census estimates since t ...

(Now

East Hartford East Hartford is a town in Hartford County, Connecticut, United States. The population was 51,045 at the 2020 census. The town is located on the east bank of the Connecticut River, directly across from Hartford, Connecticut. It is home to aerospac ...

) in 1694. He married Mary Woodbridge on May 7, 1724, and had five children, William, Timothy, George, Epraphas, and Ashebel; one of whom, William IV, was elected a member of the US Congress.

Career

Pitkin was first elected to the colonial assembly in 1728, where he served through 1734, the last two years as speaker of the house. He was a member or the Council of Assistants from 1734 to 1754. He was Captain of the Trainband, East Society from 1730 to 1738; Major of the 1st Regiment from 1738 to 1739; and Colonel of the 1st Regiment from 1739 to 1754. He was also active in the colonial militia, raising troops in

for an expedition to the Spanish West Indies during the

War of Jenkins' Ear The War of Jenkins' Ear, or , was a conflict lasting from 1739 to 1748 between Britain and the Spanish Empire. The majority of the fighting took place in New Granada and the Caribbean Sea, with major operations largely ended by 1742. It is con ...

in 1740. In 1735 Pitkin was elected county judge, and in 1741 he became a superior court judge, a post he would hold until he was elected governor in 1766. In 1754 he was also elected deputy governor, serving under Thomas Fitch, and as Chief Justice, Connecticut Superior Court, an office tied to the deputy governorship. Fitch's attempts to implement the unpopular Stamp Act may have led to Pitkin's election ahead of Fitch in the 1766 election. Pitkin was opposed to the Stamp Act and other attempts by the British Parliament to tax the colonies, and he served as governor from 1766 to 1769.

Death and legacy

Pitkin died in East Hartford (then Hartford) on October 1, 1769, while serving as governor, and is interred there at

Center Cemetery Center Cemetery is a historic cemetery on the south side of Sam Hill Road in Worthington, Massachusetts. The cemetery was established c. 1774 (the date of its earliest marker), and continues to be used today. Its burials include many of the f ...

. He is commemorated by his town's Governor William Pitkin Elementary School.

References

External links

''The Pitkin Papers'' ''East Hartford: its History and Traditions''
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{{DEFAULTSORT:Pitkin, William Politicians from Hartford, Connecticut 1694 births 1769 deaths Colonial governors of Connecticut Members of the Connecticut General Assembly Council of Assistants (1662–1818) Speakers of the Connecticut House of Representatives State treasurers of Connecticut