William H. Wiley
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William Halsted Willey, born in New York City July 10, 1842 was a US Representative from New Jersey.
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[edit] Education
In 1861 he graduated from the College of the City of New York in 1861 and proceeded to enter the Union Army in 1860 as a member of the Seventh New York Volunteers. He was promoted to first lieutenant of Volunteers in 1862 and mustered out with the rank of brevet major in 1864 by the consolidation of his regiment. After successful Artillery commanding and the end of the war he went to Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute. He was a founding member of the Theta Xi fraternity's alpha chapter at Rensselaer and remained involved in that fraternity for 60 years. After graduating with a degree in engineering he attended the Columbia College School of Mines in 1868. There he was engaged in civil engineering and also as a superintendent of a mine for several years and a member of the township committee of East Orange, N.J., 1886-1888, and president one year. Actively involved in politics, he was was also president of one of the juries at the International Exposition in Brussels and a member of the superior jury appointed by the Governor of New Jersey a member of the commission for the Louisiana Purchase Exposition at St. Louis, Mo., in 1904.
[edit] Congressional stay
Willey was first elected as a Republican to the 58th congress and re-elected to the 59th congress (March 4, 1903-March 3, 1907). His run for re-election in 1906 was unsuccessful, however. But he did manage a re-election the next term into the 61st Congress (March 4, 1909-March 3, 1911). After another unsuccessful bid for reelection in 1910 he moved on to work with his family in founding a publishing company in NYC.
[edit] Publishing company
In 1876 he entered the publishing business with his father and brother, under the firm name of John Wiley & Sons. The family company had published works by Cooper, Emerson, Melville, and Poe. Once in charge, Wiley phased out all publishing programs not concerned with science and technology, and established the firm as America's premier publisher of scientific and technical books. By 1895 the company became a worldwide organization, distributing American scientific knowledge around the globe, including the work of Rensselaer faculty.
[edit] External links
- Biography at the Biographical Directory of the United States Congress
- Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute Alumni Hall of Fame Entry
- John Wiley & Sons, Inc. Corporate History
This article incorporates facts obtained from the public domain Biographical Directory of the United States Congress.
