Legrand (or ''Le Grand'') Winfield Perce (June 19, 1836 – March 16, 1911) was a

U.S. Representative The United States House of Representatives is a chamber of the 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 Article One of th ...

from

Mississippi Mississippi ( ) is a U.S. state, state in the Southeastern United States, Southeastern and Deep South regions of the United States. It borders Tennessee to the north, Alabama to the east, the Gulf of Mexico to the south, Louisiana to the s ...

. Born in

Buffalo, New York Buffalo is a Administrative divisions of New York (state), city in the U.S. state of New York (state), New York and county seat of Erie County, New York, Erie County. It lies in Western New York at the eastern end of Lake Erie, at the head of ...

, Perce completed preparatory studies. He attended Genesee College in

Lima, New York Lima (, the name is a shibboleth) is a town in Livingston County, New York, United States. The population was 4,154 at the 2020 census. The town is in the northeast part of the county, south of Rochester. The village of Lima is located withi ...

, and graduated from

Albany Law School Albany Law School is a private law school in Albany, New York. It was founded in 1851 and is the oldest independent law school in the nation. It is accredited by the American Bar Association The American Bar Association (ABA) is a voluntary ...

in 1857. He was admitted to the bar the same year and commenced practice in

. In 1859 he travelled to St. Louis, Missouri intending to live there, but he decided that, due to his anti-slavery views, he could never live in a slave state and instead settled in Chicago, Illinois. At the outbreak of the

Civil War A civil war is a war between organized groups within the same Sovereign state, state (or country). The aim of one side may be to take control of the country or a region, to achieve independence for a region, or to change government policies.J ...

, he volunteered his services to Governor Yates of Illinois and served for 4 months on General Prentiss' staff in Cairo, Illinois, with the rank of captain.Pierce Genealogy
/ref> In August 1861 he accepted an offer to join the Sixth Regiment, Michigan Volunteer Infantry and was commissioned a second lieutenant. He was promoted to the rank of captain in June 1862. He was appointed captain in the United States Volunteers in August 1863 and was brevetted lieutenant colonel and colonel in 1865. He settled in

Natchez, Mississippi Natchez ( ) is the only city in and the county seat of Adams County, Mississippi, United States. The population was 14,520 at the 2020 United States census, 2020 census. Located on the Mississippi River across from Vidalia, Louisiana, Natchez was ...

. He was appointed register in bankruptcy in June 1867. Upon readmission of the State of Mississippi to representation, Perce was elected as a Republican to the Forty-first Congress. He was reelected to the Forty-second Congress and served from February 23, 1870, to March 3, 1873. He served as chairman of the Committee on Education and Labor (Forty-second Congress). He was not a candidate for reelection in 1872. He engaged in the practice of law and also in the real estate business at

Chicago Chicago is the List of municipalities in Illinois, most populous city in the U.S. state of Illinois and in the Midwestern United States. With a population of 2,746,388, as of the 2020 United States census, 2020 census, it is the List of Unite ...

Illinois Illinois ( ) is a U.S. state, state in the Midwestern United States, Midwestern United States. It borders on Lake Michigan to its northeast, the Mississippi River to its west, and the Wabash River, Wabash and Ohio River, Ohio rivers to its ...

, where he died March 16, 1911. He was interred in

Rosehill Cemetery Rosehill Cemetery (founded 1859) is a historic rural cemetery on the North Side of Chicago, Illinois in the United States. At , it is the largest cemetery in the city of Chicago and its first private cemetery. The Entrance Gate and Administration ...

References

External resources

*''Memorials of Deceased Companions of the Commandery of the State of Illinois'', Chicago, 1912, p. 639-44. {{DEFAULTSORT:Perce, Legrand Winfield 1836 births 1911 deaths Burials at Rosehill Cemetery Union army colonels Albany Law School alumni Republican Party members of the United States House of Representatives from Mississippi 19th-century members of the United States House of Representatives