James W. Patterson

James Willis Patterson
Member of the U.S. House of Representatives from New Hampshire's 3rd district
In office March 4, 1863 – March 3, 1867
Preceded by	Thomas M. Edwards
Succeeded by	Jacob Benton
United States Senator from New Hampshire
In office March 4, 1867 – March 3, 1873
Preceded by	George G. Fogg
Succeeded by	Bainbridge Wadleigh
Member of the New Hampshire House of Representatives
In office 1862
Personal details
Born	July 2, 1823 Henniker, Merrimack County New Hampshire, USA
Died	May 4, 1893 (aged 69) Hanover, Grafton County New Hampshire, USA
Resting place	Dartmouth College Cemetery Hanover, Grafton County New Hampshire
Political party	Republican
Spouse(s)	Sarah Parker Wilder
Children	George Willis Patterson Arthur Hubert Patterson
Parents	William Pattersona Frances M. Shepard Patterson
Alma mater	Dartmouth College
Profession	Professor Politician

James Willis Patterson (July 2, 1823 – May 4, 1893) was an American politician and a United States Representative and Senator from New Hampshire.

Early life, education and family

Born in Henniker, Merrimack County, New Hampshire, he was the son of William and Frances M. Shepard Patterson.^[1]

Patterson pursued classical studies, graduated from Dartmouth College in 1848,^[2] and was principal of the Woodstock Academy in Connecticut for two years. He attended the Theological Seminary at New Haven, Connecticut, where he studied law.^[3]

He married Sarah Parker Wilder and they had two children, George Willis Patterson and Arthur Hubert Patterson.^[1]

Early career

Patterson was a professor of mathematics, astronomy, and meteorology at Dartmouth College from 1854 to 1865.^[3]

Patterson was a member of the New Hampshire House of Representatives in 1862.

U.S. Representative

Elected as a Republican to the Thirty-eighth and Thirty-ninth Congresses Patterson was a United States Representative for the third district of New Hampshire from (March 4, 1863 - March 3, 1867). He was elected to the U.S. Senate and served from March 4, 1867, to March 3, 1873. In the Senate he was chairman of the Committee on Enrolled Bills during the Forty-first Congress and a member of the Committee on the District of Columbia during the Forty-first and Forty-second Congresses.^[4]

Later career

Patterson was a regent of the Smithsonian Institution and in 1877-1878 was again a member of the State house of representatives. He was State superintendent of public instruction from 1881 to 1893, and president of American Institute of Instruction.

Death

Patterson died in Hanover, Grafton County, New Hampshire, on May 4, 1893 (age 69 years, 306 days). He is interred at Dartmouth College Cemetery, Hanover, New Hampshire.

The Patterson School, which was merged with the Garnett school in 1929 and then became Shaw Middle School at Garnett-Patterson, in Washington, DC was named in his honor because he sponsored the legislation creating a public school system for black students in Washington, DC. It was closed in 2013.

References

1. "James W. Patterson". 1997-2014 Ancestry.com. Retrieved 30 June 2014.
2. Dartmouth College. General catalogue of Dartmouth college and the associated institutions: including the officers of government and instruction, graduates and all others who have received honorary degrees. 1890. p. 220. Retrieved 30 June 2014.
3. Smith, Baxter Perry. The History of Dartmouth College. Houghton, Osgood, 1878. p. 871. Retrieved 30 June 2014.
4. Grossman, Mark. Political Corruption in America: An Encyclopedia of Scandals, Power, and Greed. ABC-CLIO, 2003. pp. 253–255. Retrieved 30 June 2014.

External links

• United States Congress. "James W. Patterson (id: P000120)". Biographical Directory of the United States Congress. Retrieved on 2009-5-12
• Find A Grave