William Miller (North Carolina)

William Miller (1770–1825) was the 18th Governor of the U.S. state of North Carolina from 1814 to 1817.

Born in Warren County, North Carolina, William Miller was orphaned at the age of 22 and inherited a substantial plantation. He briefly attended the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill in 1802, but did not complete a degree. He began practicing law in 1805 and was named North Carolina Attorney General in 1810. That same year, he was elected to the North Carolina House of Commons, where he served until 1814, for two years as Speaker of the House (1812–1814).

In November 1814, Miller was elected Governor of North Carolina by the General Assembly, at the close of the War of 1812, which he supported. During his term, Miller laid the groundwork for the expansion of the state's educational system, and he served on the University of North Carolina Board of Trustees until his death.

After serving the maximum number of three one-year terms as governor, Miller left office in 1817. He returned to the North Carolina Senate in 1821, but lost a re-election bid the following year.

U.S. President John Quincy Adams appointed Miller as an envoy to Guatemala in 1825; Miller died there shortly after his arrival.

Sources

• Biographical Directory of the Governors of the United States, 1789-1978, Robert Sobel and John Raimo, eds. Westport, CT: Meckler Books, 1978. (ISBN 0-930466-00-4)

Governors and Lieutenant Governors of North Carolina Governors Caswell Nash Burke A. Martin Caswell Johnston A. Martin Spaight Ashe Davie Williams Turner Alexander Williams Stone Smith Hawkins Miller Branch Franklin Holmes Burton Iredell Owen Stokes Swain Spaight Jr. Dudley Morehead Graham Manly Reid Winslow Bragg Ellis Clark Vance Holden Worth Holden Caldwell Brogden Vance Jarvis Scales Fowle Holt Carr Russell Aycock Glenn Kitchin Craig Bickett Morrison McLean Gardner Ehringhaus Hoey Broughton Cherry W. K. Scott Umstead Hodges Sanford Moore R. W. Scott Holshouser Hunt J. Martin Hunt Easley Perdue McCrory Lieutenant Governors Caldwell Brogden Jarvis Robinson Stedman Holt Doughton Reynolds Turner Winston Newland Daughtridge O. Gardner Cooper Long Fountain Graham Horton Harris Ballentine Taylor, Sr. Hodges Barnhardt Philpott Scott Taylor, Jr. Hunt Green Jordan J. Gardner Wicker Perdue Dalton Forest