William Prescott Jr. (October 19, 1762 in

Pepperell, Massachusetts Pepperell is a town in Middlesex County, Massachusetts, United States. The population was 11,604 at the 2020 census. It includes the village of East Pepperell. Pepperell is home to the Pepperell Center Historic District, a covered bridge, and ...

– December 8, 1844 in

Boston, Massachusetts Boston is the capital and most populous city in the Commonwealth (U.S. state), Commonwealth of Massachusetts in the United States. The city serves as the cultural and Financial centre, financial center of New England, a region of the Northeas ...

) was a lawyer, banker, and politician best known for representing

Massachusetts Massachusetts ( ; ), officially the Commonwealth of Massachusetts, is a U.S. state, state in the New England region of the Northeastern United States. It borders the Atlantic Ocean and the Gulf of Maine to its east, Connecticut and Rhode ...

at the 1814–15

Hartford Convention The Hartford Convention was a series of meetings from December 15, 1814, to January 5, 1815, in Hartford, Connecticut, United States, in which New England leaders of the Federalist Party met to discuss their grievances concerning the ongoing War ...

Biography

Prescott was the only child of American Revolution leader Colonel

William Prescott William Prescott (February 20, 1726 – October 13, 1795) was an American officer in the Revolutionary War best known for his service at the Battle of Bunker Hill. Life Prescott was born in Groton, Massachusetts to Benjamin Prescott (169 ...

, who served at Bunker Hill in 1775. William Prescott Jr., graduated from

Harvard Harvard University is a private Ivy League research university in Cambridge, Massachusetts, United States. Founded in 1636 and named for its first benefactor, the Puritan clergyman John Harvard, it is the oldest institution of higher lear ...

in 1783, and then taught at

Brooklyn, Connecticut Brooklyn is a New England town, town in Windham County, Connecticut, Windham County, Connecticut, United States. The town is part of the Northeastern Connecticut Planning Region, Connecticut, Northeastern Connecticut Planning Region. The populat ...

, and later at

Beverly, Massachusetts Beverly is a city in Essex County, Massachusetts, United States, and a suburb of Boston. The population was 42,670 at the time of the 2020 United States census. A resort, residential, and manufacturing community on the Massachusetts North Sho ...

. He passed the bar exam in 1787 after studying law in Beverly with Nathan Dane. Prescott founded a law practice in Beverly. In 1789, he moved his practice to

Salem, Massachusetts Salem ( ) is a historic coastal city in Essex County, Massachusetts, United States, located on the North Shore (Massachusetts), North Shore of Greater Boston. Continuous settlement by Europeans began in 1626 with English colonists. Salem was one ...

, where he became a well-known attorney. He represented Salem for several years in the

Massachusetts Legislature The Massachusetts General Court, formally the General Court of Massachusetts, is the state legislature of the Commonwealth of Massachusetts located in the state capital of Boston. The name "General Court" is a holdover from the earliest days o ...

. He was elected a

state senator A state senator is a member of a State legislature (United States), state's senate in the bicameral legislature of 49 U.S. states, or a member of the unicameral Nebraska Legislature. History There are typically fewer state senators than there ...

by the

Federal party Federal Party may refer to: *Federal Party (1973) – a provincial political party in modern Argentina * Federal Party (Philippines) – political parties in the Philippines from 1953 to 1961 and 1981 *Federal Party (Puerto Rico) *Federal Par ...

for Essex County, first in 1806, and again in 1813. He twice declined a seat on the bench of the Supreme Court of Massachusetts. In 1808 he moved to

Boston Boston is the capital and most populous city in the Commonwealth (U.S. state), Commonwealth of Massachusetts in the United States. The city serves as the cultural and Financial centre, financial center of New England, a region of the Northeas ...

, and was for several years a member of the

Governor's Council The governments of the Thirteen Colonies of British America developed in the 17th and 18th centuries under the influence of the British constitution. The British monarch issued colonial charters that established either royal colonies, propriet ...

. Prescott was elected as a representative to the 1814 secessionist

. In 1815, he was elected a Fellow of the

American Academy of Arts and Sciences The American Academy of Arts and Sciences (The Academy) is one of the oldest learned societies in the United States. It was founded in 1780 during the American Revolution by John Adams, John Hancock, James Bowdoin, Andrew Oliver, and other ...

. In 1818, Prescott purchased 50

shares In financial markets, a share (sometimes referred to as stock or equity) is a unit of equity ownership in the capital stock of a corporation. It can refer to units of mutual funds, limited partnerships, and real estate investment trusts. Sha ...

of the Suffolk Bank, a clearinghouse bank on State Street in

. He married Catherine Greene Hickling, a daughter of Thomas Hickling, for many years United States consul at the Azores. Their son William H. Prescott became a well-known historian.

Notes

References

* * {{DEFAULTSORT:Prescott Jr., William People from colonial Boston Massachusetts Federalists Massachusetts state senators Members of the Massachusetts House of Representatives Fellows of the American Academy of Arts and Sciences Harvard University alumni 1844 deaths 1762 births People from Pepperell, Massachusetts Presidents of the Boston Common Council