William H. Calkins
Member of the U.S. House of Representatives
from Indiana's 13th district
In office
March 4, 1877 – October 20, 1884
Preceded byDistrict created
Succeeded byBenjamin F. Shively
Personal details
Born(1842-02-18)February 18, 1842
Pike County, Ohio
DiedJanuary 29, 1894(1894-01-29) (aged 51)
Tacoma, Washington
Political partyRepublican Party
OccupationAttorney

William Henry Calkins (February 18, 1842 – January 29, 1894) was an American lawyer and Civil War veteran who served four terms as a U.S. Representative from Indiana from 1877 to 1884.

Early career

Born in Pike County, Ohio, Calkins studied law. He was admitted to the bar and practiced. During the Civil War served in the Union Army from May 1861 to December 1865, except three months in 1863, attached to the Fourteenth Iowa Infantry and the Twelfth Indiana Cavalry. He was promoted to major on March 4, 1864 and served until November 10, 1865. Took up his residence in La Porte, Indiana. State's attorney for the ninth Indiana judicial circuit 1866-1870. He served as member of the Indiana House of Representatives in 1871.

Congress

Calkins was elected as a Republican to the Forty-fifth and to the three succeeding Congresses and served from March 4, 1877, to October 20, 1884, when he resigned.

Later career

He served as chairman of the Committee on Elections (Forty-seventh Congress). He moved to Tacoma, Washington, and resumed the practice of law. He was appointed United States associate justice of the Territory of Washington in April 1889 and served until November 11, 1889, when the Territory was admitted as a State into the Union.

Death

He died in Tacoma, Washington, on January 29, 1894. He was interred in Tacoma Cemetery.

References

Party political offices Preceded byAlbert G. Porter Republican nominee for Governor of Indiana 1884 Succeeded byAlvin Peterson Hovey U.S. House of Representatives Preceded byWilliam S. Haymond Member of the U.S. House of Representatives from Indiana's 10th congressional district March 4, 1877 – March 3, 1881 Succeeded byMark L. De Motte Preceded byJohn Baker Member of the U.S. House of Representatives from Indiana's 13th congressional district March 4, 1881 – October 20, 1884 Succeeded byBenjamin F. Shively