Page:The Biographical Dictionary of America, vol. 10.djvu/453

 WILSON

WILSON

playing comedy roles, and at the end of the season joined Annie Pixley's '• Mliss" company. In ISTi) he returned to the Chestnut Street theatre, where he scored a success as Lamp in '• Wild Oats," Sam George in " Caste," and later played in the musical comedy "Our Goblins," which he purchased and took to San Francisco. This speculation was a failure, and he formed a companj^ playing " Pinafore," playing Sir Joseph Porter. He was comedian with the McCauU Opera company, 1884-85, and later with the Casino company, where in 1886 he made his great success in " Erminie." In 1889, he began his career as a star in comic operas, including : " The Oolah"; " Tlie Gondoliers"; ''The Merry Mon- arch" in 1890; "The Lion Tamer", 1891-93; "The Chieftain " ; " Devil's Deputy" ; " Half a King " ; "The Little Corporal ", 1898-99 ; " Cyrano de Bergerac ", 1899-1900; "The Monks of Mala- bar " 1900-01, and " The Toreador ", 1901-03. He was married at Minneapolis, Minn., in 1881, to Mira Barrie of Chicago. 111. He is the author of : The Eugene Field I Kneio ; Recollections of a Player (1895) ; Going on the Stage, and contri- butions to various magazines.

WILSON, Henry, Vice-President of the United States, %vas born in Farmington, N.H., Feb. 12, 1812 ; son of Winthrop and Abigail (Witham) Colbath ; grandson of Winthrop Colbath, and great-grandson of James Colbath. He was christened Jeremiah Jones Colbath, and was bound by inden- ture to a farmer. He attended the com- mon school in the winter, and in Feb- ruary, 1833, his term of service having ex- pired, he had his name changed by act of legislature to Henry Wilson. He worked as a laborer, and in December, 1833, removed to Natick, Mass., where Tie obtained employment in a shoe manufactory. He organized the Natick lyceum, where his powers as an orator first became apparent. His health failing from overwork in 1836, he traveled in the South, visiting Washington, D.C., and there became impressed with the injustice of slavery. On his return North, he attended the academy at Strafford, N.H., and at the close of his scholastic term, in 1836, delivered an oration on the question " Ought Slavery to be Abolislied in the District of Columbia?" He subsequently attended the academies at Wolfsboro and Con- X. — 28

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cord, N.H., until 1837; taught in the district school at Natick. Mass., and subsequently suc- cessfully engaged there in the manufacture of shoes for the southern market. He was married, Oct. 28, 1840, to Harriet Malvina, daughter of Amasa and Maiy (Toombs) Howe. He made campaign speeches for Harrison and Tyler, in 1840, during the "Tippecanoe and Tyler too " hurrah campaign and was chosen a representa- tive in the state legislature of 1841. He was state senator, 1844-46, serving as chairman of the com- mittee on the military ; was elected major of the 1st regiment of artillery, M.V.M.. in 1843; colonel in June, 1846, and brigadier-general in July, 1846. He was president of a convention held in Cam- bridge, Oct. 21, 1845, and with John G. Whittier, presented to congress a petition signed by sixty- five thousand names against the admission of Texas as a state in the Union. He was a delegate to the Whig national convention held at Phila- delphia, June 7, 1848, but on the nomination of General Taylor, for the Presidency by that body, withdrew from the convention and held a meet- ing of a few northern men, who called the Free Soil convention at Buffalo, Aug. 9, 1848, that nominated Martin Van Bui-en as their candidate. In September, 1850, Mr. Wilson purchased the Boston Republican, which he edited as a Free Soil organ until 1857. He was chairman of the Free Soil state committee in 1849 ; a representa- tive in the state legislature, 1850-51, and was elected state senator in 1851, serving as president of the senate until 1853. He was a member of the convention appointed to revise the constitu- tion of Massachusetts, May 4, 1853, serving as chairman during the illness of N. P. Banks ; was the unsuccessful candidate for governor of Massachusetts on the Free Democratic ticket in 1853, and was elected U.S. senator as successor to Julius Rockwell (appointed in place of Edward Everett, resigned) and took his seat, Feb. 10, 1855, the term to expire March 3, 1859. His first speech in the senate was made in defence of the rights of the colored race. He opposed the Kansas bill and made a strong reply to Senator Butler of South Carolina after the assault of Preston Brooks on Charles Sumner, denouncing the act as " brutal, murderous and cowardly." In January, 1859, he was I'e-elected to the U.S. senate for the full term expiring March 3, 1865, serving as chair- man of the military committee, and on July 6, 1861, introduced into the senate a bill authoriz- ing the call for 500.000 volunteers, and also the bills to increase and re-organize the military establishment of the United States. On July 22, 1861. he introduced the bill authorizing the Presi- dent to accept the services of volunteers " in such numbers as the exigencies of the public might, in his opinion, demand," and other bills,