Horace Wheaton (February 24, 1803 – June 23, 1882) was an American businessman and politician who served as a

United States representative The United States House of Representatives is a chamber of the Bicameralism, bicameral United States Congress; it is the lower house, with the U.S. Senate being the upper house. Together, the House and Senate have the authority under Artic ...

for

New York's 24th congressional district New York's 24th congressional district is located in Upstate New York in the Finger Lakes region, stretching alongside Lake Ontario from near Buffalo in the west to Watertown in the east. The district does not include Rochester, which is in ...

from 1843 to 1847.

Early life and education

Born in

New Milford, Connecticut New Milford is a town in Litchfield County, Connecticut, United States. The town, part of Greater Danbury, as well as the New York Metropolitan Area, has a population of 28,115 as of the 2020 census. New Milford lies north of Danbury on the ...

, he moved with his parents to

Pompey, New York Pompey is a town in the southeast part of Onondaga County, New York, United States. As of the 2020 Census, the population was 7,080. The town was named after the Roman general and political leader Pompey by a late 18th-century clerk interested in ...

in 1810. He received limited schooling and graduated from Pompey Academy.

Career

Wheaton engaged in mercantile pursuits and was a member of the

New York State Assembly The New York State Assembly is the lower house of the New York State Legislature, with the New York State Senate being the upper house. There are 150 seats in the Assembly. Assembly members serve two-year terms without term limits. The Ass ...

in 1834. He was one of the commissioners to build a railroad between

Syracuse Syracuse most commonly refers to: * Syracuse, Sicily, Italy; in the province of Syracuse * Syracuse, New York, USA; in the Syracuse metropolitan area Syracuse may also refer to: Places * Syracuse railway station (disambiguation) Italy * Provi ...

and Utica, and was

postmaster A postmaster is the head of an individual post office, responsible for all postal activities in a specific post office. When a postmaster is responsible for an entire mail distribution organization (usually sponsored by a national government), ...

of Pompey from 1840 to 1842. He was supervisor and city treasurer of Pompey and was elected as a

Democrat Democrat, Democrats, or Democratic may refer to: Politics *A proponent of democracy, or democratic government; a form of government involving rule by the people. *A member of a Democratic Party: **Democratic Party (Cyprus) (DCY) **Democratic Part ...

to the Twenty-eighth and Twenty-ninth Congresses, representing New York's 24th congressional district, holding office from March 4, 1843, to March 3, 1847. He was not a candidate for renomination in 1846 and that year moved to Syracuse. He was mayor of Syracuse from 1851 to 1853 and city treasurer in 1857 and 1858. He also engaged in hardware, saddlery, and mercantile pursuits.

Personal life

Wheaton died in Syracuse in 1882. He was interred at the Oakwood Cemetery.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Wheaton, Horace 1803 births 1882 deaths People from New Milford, Connecticut New York (state) postmasters City and town treasurers in the United States Democratic Party members of the New York State Assembly Mayors of Syracuse, New York Democratic Party members of the United States House of Representatives from New York (state) Burials at Oakwood Cemetery (Syracuse, New York) 19th-century mayors of places in New York (state) 19th-century members of the New York State Legislature 19th-century members of the United States House of Representatives