William Whitney Rice (March 7, 1826 – March 1, 1896) was a

U.S. Representative The United States House of Representatives, often referred to as the House of Representatives, the U.S. House, or simply the House, is the lower chamber of the United States Congress, with the Senate being the upper chamber. Together they c ...

from

Massachusetts Massachusetts (Massachusett: ''Muhsachuweesut Massachusett_writing_systems.html" ;"title="nowiki/> məhswatʃəwiːsət.html" ;"title="Massachusett writing systems">məhswatʃəwiːsət">Massachusett writing systems">məhswatʃəwiːsət'' En ...

. Born in

Deerfield, Massachusetts Deerfield is a town in Franklin County, Massachusetts, United States. Settled near the Connecticut River in the 17th century during the colonial era, the population was 5,090 as of the 2020 census. Deerfield is part of the Springfield, Massachu ...

, Rice attended

Gorham Academy Gorham Academy was a preparatory school for boys and girls in Gorham, Maine. Origins In 1802, Hon. Stephen Longfellow presented a petition in favor of an academy in Gorham to the Massachusetts State Legislature. Governor Caleb Strong approved ...

, Maine, and graduated from Bowdoin College in

Brunswick, Maine Brunswick is a town in Cumberland County, Maine, United States. The population was 21,756 at the 2020 United States Census. Part of the Portland-South Portland-Biddeford metropolitan area, Brunswick is home to Bowdoin College, the Bowdoin Intern ...

, in 1846. He served as the preceptor of Leicester Academy,

Leicester, Massachusetts Leicester ( ) is a town in Worcester County, Massachusetts. The population was 11,087 at the 2020 United States Census. History What is now Leicester was originally settled by the Nipmuc people and was known by them as ''Towtaid''. On January 27 ...

from 1847 to 1851 before studying law in

Worcester Worcester may refer to: Places United Kingdom * Worcester, England, a city and the county town of Worcestershire in England ** Worcester (UK Parliament constituency), an area represented by a Member of Parliament * Worcester Park, London, Engla ...

. He was

admitted to the bar An admission to practice law is acquired when a lawyer receives a license to practice law. In jurisdictions with two types of lawyer, as with barristers and solicitors, barristers must gain admission to the bar whereas for solicitors there are dist ...

in 1854 and commenced practice in Worcester. In 1858 he was appointed judge of insolvency for Worcester County. Rice was elected mayor of the city of Worcester in December 1859. He served as district attorney for the middle district of Massachusetts from 1869 to 1874 and was a member of the State house of representatives in 1875. Rice was elected a member of the

American Antiquarian Society The American Antiquarian Society (AAS), located in Worcester, Massachusetts, is both a learned society and a national research library of pre-twentieth-century American history and culture. Founded in 1812, it is the oldest historical society i ...

in 1885. Rice was elected as a

Republican Republican can refer to: Political ideology * An advocate of a republic, a type of government that is not a monarchy or dictatorship, and is usually associated with the rule of law. ** Republicanism, the ideology in support of republics or agains ...

to the Forty-fifth and to the four succeeding Congresses (March 4, 1877 – March 3, 1887). After a failed re-election bid in 1886, he returned to Worcester and resumed the practice of law. He died there on March 1, 1896, at age 69, and was interred at Worcester

Rural Cemetery A rural cemetery or garden cemetery is a style of cemetery that became popular in the United States and Europe in the mid-nineteenth century due to the overcrowding and health concerns of urban cemeteries. They were typically built one to five ...

Rice family and relations

William was a direct descendant of Edmund Rice, an English immigrant to Massachusetts Bay Colony.Edmund Rice (1638) Association, 2007. Descendants of Edmund Rice: The First Nine Generations. He married Alice Miller (1840–1900), whose mother Nancy Merrick Miller was sister to Massachusetts judge Pliny T. Merrick.Merrick, George B. ''Genealogy of the Merrick-Mirick-Myrick Family 1636-1902''. Madison, WI: Tracy, Gibbs & Co.,1902, p. 283.]''Alice Miller Rice'', privately printed commemorative pamphlet, ca. 1900. Alice's own sister, Ruth Ann Miller, married U.S. Senator

George Frisbie Hoar George Frisbie Hoar (August 29, 1826 – September 30, 1904) was an American attorney and politician who represented Massachusetts in the United States Senate from 1877 to 1904. He belonged to an extended family that became politically prominen ...

, making Rice and Hoar brothers-in-law. Alice founded a children's day nursery in Worcester.

References

*William Whiitney Rice
''New York Times'' obituary March 2, 1896
*Hoar, Rockwood:
William Whitney Rice A Biographical Sketch (1897)

Notes

External links

* * {{DEFAULTSORT:Rice, William W. 1826 births 1896 deaths Mayors of Worcester, Massachusetts Bowdoin College alumni Republican Party members of the Massachusetts House of Representatives District attorneys in Worcester County, Massachusetts Massachusetts Free Soilers Republican Party members of the United States House of Representatives from Massachusetts Burials at Rural Cemetery (Worcester, Massachusetts) People from Deerfield, Massachusetts 19th-century American politicians Members of the American Antiquarian Society

Rice family and relations

See also

References

Notes

External links