William Lyman (congressman)

William Lyman
Member of the U.S. House of Representatives from Massachusetts's 2nd district
In office March 4, 1793 – March 3, 1797 Serving with Dwight Foster, Theodore Sedgwick, and Artemas Ward from 1793-1795 (General ticket)
Preceded by	Benjamin Goodhue
Succeeded by	William Shepard
Member of the Massachusetts House of Representatives
In office 1789
Personal details
Born	December 7, 1755 Northampton, Massachusetts
Died	September 22, 1811 (aged 55) London, England
Resting place	Gloucester Cathedral, Gloucester, England.
Political party	Anti-Administration
Spouse(s)	Jerusha Welles, d. June 11, 1803 [1]
Alma mater	Yale College[1]

William Lyman (December 7, 1755 – September 22, 1811) was an American politician from Northampton, Massachusetts who served in the United States House of Representatives.

Lyman was born in Northampton, Massachusetts to Captain William and Jemima (Sheldon) Lyman.^[1] He graduated from Yale College in 1776.^[1] He was a militia veteran of the American Revolution. During Shays’ Rebellion he was an aide to General William Shepard with the rank of major.

In about 1781, Lyman married Jerusha Welles, of East Hartford, Connecticut; they had eight children. Jerusha died at age 43, on June 11, 1803.^[1] Lyman served in the Massachusetts House of Representatives in 1787 and in the Massachusetts State Senate in 1789.^[1]

Lyman was a candidate for the first congress and ran in the Hampshire Berkshire District as an Anti-Federalist against the Federalist candidate Theodore Sedgwick. Sedgwick was elected. Seventeen towns that were favorable to Lyman were late in sending in their returns; had these towns reported in a timely manner, Lyman would have been elected.^[2]

Lyman represented Massachusetts in the United States House of Representatives from March 4, 1793 to March 3, 1797.

In 1804 Lyman was appointed U.S. consul in London. He died while on duty 22 September 1811 and is interred in the Cathedral at Gloucester, England.

External links

• United States Congress. "William Lyman (id: L000530)". Biographical Directory of the United States Congress.
• Lyman's memorial at Find A Grave

Notes

1. Dexter, Franklin Bowditch (1903), Biographical sketches of the graduates of Yale college with annals of the College History Vol. III, New York, NY: Henry Holt and Company, pp. 619–620.
2. Stephens, Frank Fletcher (1909), The transitional period, 1788-1789, in the government of the United States, Columbia, MO: E. W. Stephens Publishing Company, p. 59.