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

Connecticut Colony The Connecticut Colony, originally known as the Connecticut River Colony, was an English colony in New England which later became the state of Connecticut. It was organized on March 3, 1636, as a settlement for a Puritans, Puritan congregation o ...

Biography

Pitkin was born to a politically prominent family in

Hartford Hartford is the List of capitals in the United States, capital city of the U.S. state of Connecticut. The city, located in Hartford County, Connecticut, Hartford County, had a population of 121,054 as of the 2020 United States census, 2020 ce ...

(Now East Hartford) in 1694. His grandfather was William Pitkin IV, attorney general of Connecticut. and negotiating commissioner to Gov.

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of New York. Through his grandaunt Martha, he was a cousin of deputy governor Roger Wolcott, Founding Father

Oliver Wolcott Oliver Wolcott Sr. ( ; November 20, 1726 December 1, 1797) was an American Founding Father and politician. He was a signer of the United States Declaration of Independence and the Articles of Confederation as a representative of Connecticut, ...

, and Gov.

Oliver Wolcott Jr. Oliver Wolcott Jr. (January 11, 1760 – June 1, 1833) was an American politician and judge. He was the second United States Secretary of the Treasury, a judge of the United States circuit court, United States Circuit Court for the Second Circuit ...

, who succeeded

Hamilton Hamilton may refer to: * Alexander Hamilton (1755/1757–1804), first U.S. Secretary of the Treasury and one of the Founding Fathers of the United States * ''Hamilton'' (musical), a 2015 Broadway musical by Lin-Manuel Miranda ** ''Hamilton'' (al ...

as Secretary of the Treasury. 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 East Hartford for an expedition to the Spanish West Indies during the

War of Jenkins' Ear The War of Jenkins' Ear was fought by Kingdom of Great Britain, Great Britain and History of Spain (1700–1808), Spain between 1739 and 1748. The majority of the fighting took place in Viceroyalty of New Granada, New Granada and the Caribbean ...

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. He is commemorated by his town's Governor William Pitkin Elementary School. A descendant of his family is Yale missionary Horace Tracy Pitkin.E. Speer, Robert (1903)
A Memorial to Horace Tracy Pitkin
Flemming H. Revell Company, London and Edinburgh

References

External links

''The Pitkin Papers'' ''East Hartford: its History and Traditions''"> ''East Hartford: its History and Traditions''
* {{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 Speakers of the Connecticut House of Representatives (colonial period)