William Henry Bissell

William Henry Bissell
11th Governor of Illinois
In office January 12, 1857 – March 18, 1860
Lieutenant	John Wood
Preceded by	Joel Aldrich Matteson
Succeeded by	John Wood
Member of the U.S. House of Representatives from Illinois's 8th district
In office March 4, 1853 – March 3, 1855
Preceded by	District created
Succeeded by	James L. D. Morrison
Member of the U.S. House of Representatives from Illinois's 1st district
In office March 4, 1849 – March 3, 1853
Preceded by	Robert Smith
Succeeded by	Elihu B. Washburne
Personal details
Born	(1811-04-25)April 25, 1811 Hartwick, New York
Died	March 18, 1860(1860-03-18) (aged 48) Springfield, Illinois
Political party	Democratic, Republican
Spouse(s)	Emily Susan Jones
Profession	Physician, lawyer, politician
Religion	Roman Catholic
Signature
Military service
Service/branch	United States Army
Years of service	1846-1847
Rank	Colonel
Commands	2nd Illinois Infantry Regiment
Battles/wars	Mexican-American War Battle of Buena Vista

William Henry Bissell (April 25, 1811 – March 18, 1860) was the 11th Governor of the U.S. state of Illinois from 1857 until his death. He was one of the first successful Republican Party candidates, winning the election of 1856 just two years after the founding of his party.

Biography

Bissell was born in Hartwick, Otsego County, New York, son of Luther Bissell (1773-1853) and Hannah Shepard.^[1] He attended the public schools and was graduated from the Philadelphia Medical College in 1835. He moved to Monroe County, Illinois in 1837 where he taught school and practiced medicine until 1840.

From 1840 to 1842, Bissell was a member of the Illinois House of Representatives. He studied law, was admitted to the bar and commenced practice in Belleville, St. Clair County, Illinois. He was prosecuting attorney of St. Clair County in 1844. He served in the Mexican War as colonel of the Second Regiment, Illinois Volunteer Infantry.

Bissell was elected as a Democrat to the Thirty-first and Thirty-second Congresses and as an Independent Democrat to the Thirty-third Congress (March 4, 1849 – March 3, 1855); he was chairman of the Committee on Military Affairs (Thirty-second and Thirty-third Congresses). He was not a candidate for renomination in 1854.

Bissell, true to his anti-slavery convictions, held a very definite dislike for his Southern colleagues, whom he described collectively as "insolent, overbearing and bullying beyond all belief." A nearly hour-long speech on the House floor, in retaliation for distortive comments made by James A. Seddon (D-VA), re: the Battle of Buena Vista, won approval from Bissell's fellow Illinoisans, but inflamed Jefferson Davis, who felt personally slighted by the speech. Davis challenged Bissell to a duel, which Northern Congressmen were known to refuse. Bissell not only accepted the challenge, but in his rights as the party challenged, specified army muskets, loaded with ball and buckshot, at close range. Davis then cleverly accepted further explanation for the seemingly offensive comments in Bissell's speech, but lost face with some in backing down.

An interesting note, is that this incident, though hostilities were never commenced on the field of honor, disqualified Bissell from holding state office in Illinois, according to the state Constitution of 1848. All state officials, as a part of their inauguration oath, had to swear as to never having participated in a duel, either by fighting in one, accepting a challenge or even acting as a second. Once back in Illinois, Bissell, who had broken ties with Stephen A. Douglas over the slavery extension issue, came under the wing of Lincoln and the Republicans. In the gubernatorial election of 1856, Abraham Lincoln determined that a former Democrat stood the best chance of defeating the Democratic candidate, William Alexander Richardson of Quincy, a subordinate of Douglas'. Bissell, by the mid-1850s, was partially paralyzed, able to walk only with use of a cane and "the aid of a friendly arm". He was nominated unopposed, on May 29, 1856, at Bloomington.

The Democrats made good work of the "duel" issue throughout the campaign and even after the election, which Bissell carried by 4787 votes in a three-candidate field. The facts were plain: If Bissell took the anti-duelling oath, he was to therefore perjure himself. Bissell slipped the bonds of the charge by pointing out that the duel acceptance occurred in the District of Columbia, and was therefore not subject to the Illinois Constitution. The actual offense, of course, was the perjury itself, perpetrated when Bissell, with embarrassed but tacit approval from the Republicans, took the oath at Springfield.^[2]

Bissell, able only now to walk with crutches, was the only governor of Illinois ever to be inaugurated in the Executive Mansion itself; he never entered the Capitol building, during the 3-plus years he served. All official business, was transacted from the second floor of the Executive Mansion. Bissell served as Governor of Illinois from January 12, 1857 until his death. He died at the Illinois Executive Mansion in Springfield and was interred in Oak Ridge Cemetery. He was the first Illinois Governor to die in office.

Bissell was married to Elizabeth Kane, daughter of former Illinois Governor and United States Senator Elias Kane.^[3]

References

• William Henry Bissell at the Biographical Directory of the United States Congress
•  This article incorporates public domain material from websites or documents of the Biographical Directory of the United States Congress.
• This article incorporates facts obtained from: Lawrence Kestenbaum, The Political Graveyard 

Governors of Illinois Colonial administrators List of commandants of the Illinois Country Territorial Governors Edwards Governors Bond Coles Edwards Reynolds Ewing Duncan Carlin Ford French Matteson Bissell Wood Yates (father) Oglesby Palmer Oglesby Beveridge Cullom Hamilton Oglesby Fifer Altgeld Tanner Yates, Jr. Deneen Dunne Lowden Small Emmerson Horner Stelle Green Stevenson Stratton Kerner Shapiro Ogilvie Walker Thompson Edgar Ryan Blagojevich Quinn Rauner

Chairmen of the United States House Committee on Armed Services Military Affairs Committee (1822–1947) Eustis Hamilton Vance Hamilton Drayton R. Johnson McKay C. Johnson Thompson Dawson Stanly Haralson Botts Burt Bissell Benton Quitman Faulkner B. Stanton Blair Buffington Schenck Garfield Logan Coburn Banning Sparks Henderson Rosecrans Bragg Townshend Cutcheon Outhwaite Hull Hay Dent Kahn McKenzie Morin James Quin McSwain Hill May Naval Affairs Committee (1822–1947) Fuller Crowninshield Storrs Hoffman Anderson White Jarvis Ingham Thomas Wise Parmenter Holmes King F. Stanton Bocock Benson Bocock Morse Sedgwick Rice Pike Scofield Whitthorne Harris Cox Herbert Boutelle Herbert Cummings Geissenhainer Boutelle Foss Padgett Butler Britten Vinson Armed Services Committee (1947–) Andrews Vinson Short Vinson Rivers Philbin Hébert Price Aspin Dellums Spence Stump Hunter Skelton McKeon Thornberry

United States Ambassadors to Argentina Minister Resident Caesar Augustus Rodney John M. Forbes Francis Baylies William Brent, Jr. William Alexander Harris John Pendleton William Henry Bissell James A. Peden Mirabeau B. Lamar Benjamin C. Yancey John F. Cushman Robert M. Palmer Robert C. Kirk Alexander Asboth Henry G. Worthington Robert C. Kirk Julius White Thomas O. Osborn Bayless W. Hanna Envoy Extraordinary and Minister Plenipotentiary Bayless W. Hanna John R. G. Pitkin William Insco Buchanan William Paine Lord John Barrett Arthur M. Beaupre Spencer F. Eddy Charles Hitchcock Sherrill Huntington Wilson Charles Hitchcock Sherrill John Ridgely Carter John W. Garrett Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary Frederick Jesup Stimson John W. Riddle Peter A. Jay Robert Woods Bliss Alexander W. Weddell Norman Armour Spruille Braden George S. Messersmith James Bruce Stanton Griffis Ellsworth Bunker Albert F. Nufer Willard L. Beaulac Roy R. Rubottom, Jr. Robert M. McClintock Edwin M. Martin Carter L. Burgess John Davis Lodge Robert C. Hill Raúl Héctor Castro Harry W. Shlaudeman Frank V. Ortiz, Jr. Theodore E. Gildred Terence Todman James Richard Cheek Ronald D. Godard Manuel Rocha Hassan Nemazee James Donald Walsh Lino Gutierrez Earl Anthony Wayne Vilma Socorro Martínez Noah Mamet