Lorenzo P. Williston
Encyclopedia
Lorenzo Parsons Williston (1815–1887) was an American attorney, judge, and politician. He was a member of the Pennsylvania House of Representatives
, and a founding judge on the territorial supreme courts for both Dakota Territory
and Montana Territory
.
Williston was born at Binghamton, New York
. He received a liberal education
and studied law under his father, Judge Horace Williston, in Athens, Pennsylvania
. He was subsequently admitted to the bar
of Bradford County
, and moved to Wellsboro
in Tioga County
to enter a partnership with Judge Stephen Fowler Wilson.
Williston was elected to the Pennsylvania House of Representatives
from Tioga County and served from 1856 until 1860. In 1861, he was appointed by President Abraham Lincoln
to the Dakota Territorial Supreme Court, and served concurrently on the territorial district court. Lincoln then transferred him to serve as one of the first Associate Justices on the Montana Territorial Supreme Court
in 1864. He was initially nominated for a second term in 1868 by President Andrew Johnson
, but his nomination was withdrawn by Johnson two days later. Williston instead returned to Bradford County to resume the practice of law, first in Towanda, Pennsylvania
, and later in Wellsboro. He died of apoplexy
in 1887, at his home in Wellsboro.
The published record of the 1904 Tioga County Centennial Celebration included a brief biography of Williston in its section on the Tioga County bar, in which he was described as "a lawyer by intuition. Legal technicalities were not to his taste. He took a broad, liberal view of the law and seized at once the equities of a case and the legal principles involved. He had a strict regard for the ethics of his profession."
Williston married Martha A. Murphey, the daughter of one of the first physicians in Wellsboro. They had two sons and two daughters.
Pennsylvania House of Representatives
The Pennsylvania House of Representatives is the lower house of the bicameral Pennsylvania General Assembly, the legislature of the U.S. state of Pennsylvania. There are 203 members, elected for two year terms from single member districts....
, and a founding judge on the territorial supreme courts for both Dakota Territory
Dakota Territory
The Territory of Dakota was an organized incorporated territory of the United States that existed from March 2, 1861, until November 2, 1889, when the final extent of the reduced territory was split and admitted to the Union as the states of North and South Dakota.The Dakota Territory consisted of...
and Montana Territory
Montana Territory
The Territory of Montana was an organized incorporated territory of the United States that existed from May 28, 1864, until November 8, 1889, when it was admitted to the Union as the State of Montana.-History:...
.
Williston was born at Binghamton, New York
Binghamton, New York
Binghamton is a city in the Southern Tier of New York in the United States. It is near the Pennsylvania border, in a bowl-shaped valley at the confluence of the Susquehanna and Chenango Rivers...
. He received a liberal education
Liberal education
A Liberal education is a system or course of education suitable for the cultivation of a free human being. It is based on the medieval concept of the liberal arts or, more commonly now, the liberalism of the Age of Enlightenment...
and studied law under his father, Judge Horace Williston, in Athens, Pennsylvania
Athens, Pennsylvania
Athens is a borough in Bradford County, Pennsylvania, two miles south of the N. Y. State line on the Susquehanna and Chemung rivers. Population in 1900, 3,749; and in 1910, 3,796. The population was 3,415 at the 2000 census...
. He was subsequently admitted to the bar
Admission to the bar
An admission to practice law, also called admission to the bar, is acquired when a lawyer receives a license to practice law. Becoming a lawyer is a widely varied process around the world. Common to all jurisdictions are requirements of age and competence; some jurisdictions also require citizenship...
of Bradford County
Bradford County, Pennsylvania
-Demographics:As of the census of 2000, there were 62,761 people, 24,453 households, and 17,312 families residing in the county. The population density was 54 people per square mile . There were 28,664 housing units at an average density of 25 per square mile...
, and moved to Wellsboro
Wellsboro, Pennsylvania
Wellsboro is a borough in Tioga County, Pennsylvania, 52 miles northwest of Williamsport. Early in the twentieth century, Wellsboro was the shipping point and trade center for a large area...
in Tioga County
Tioga County, Pennsylvania
Tioga County is a county located in the U.S. state of Pennsylvania. As of the 2010 census, the population was 41,981. Tioga County was created on March 26, 1804, from part of Lycoming County and named for the Tioga River. Its county seat is Wellsboro....
to enter a partnership with Judge Stephen Fowler Wilson.
Williston was elected to the Pennsylvania House of Representatives
Pennsylvania House of Representatives
The Pennsylvania House of Representatives is the lower house of the bicameral Pennsylvania General Assembly, the legislature of the U.S. state of Pennsylvania. There are 203 members, elected for two year terms from single member districts....
from Tioga County and served from 1856 until 1860. In 1861, he was appointed by President Abraham Lincoln
Abraham Lincoln
Abraham Lincoln was the 16th President of the United States, serving from March 1861 until his assassination in April 1865. He successfully led his country through a great constitutional, military and moral crisis – the American Civil War – preserving the Union, while ending slavery, and...
to the Dakota Territorial Supreme Court, and served concurrently on the territorial district court. Lincoln then transferred him to serve as one of the first Associate Justices on the Montana Territorial Supreme Court
Montana Supreme Court
The Montana Supreme Court is the highest court of the Montana state court system in the U.S. state of Montana. It is established and its powers defined by Article VII of the 1972 Montana Constitution...
in 1864. He was initially nominated for a second term in 1868 by President Andrew Johnson
Andrew Johnson
Andrew Johnson was the 17th President of the United States . As Vice-President of the United States in 1865, he succeeded Abraham Lincoln following the latter's assassination. Johnson then presided over the initial and contentious Reconstruction era of the United States following the American...
, but his nomination was withdrawn by Johnson two days later. Williston instead returned to Bradford County to resume the practice of law, first in Towanda, Pennsylvania
Towanda, Pennsylvania
Towanda is a borough in and the county seat of Bradford County, Pennsylvania, United States, northwest of Wilkes Barre, on the Susquehanna River. The name means "burial ground" in the Algonquian language...
, and later in Wellsboro. He died of apoplexy
Apoplexy
Apoplexy is a medical term, which can be used to describe 'bleeding' in a stroke . Without further specification, it is rather outdated in use. Today it is used only for specific conditions, such as pituitary apoplexy and ovarian apoplexy. In common speech, it is used non-medically to mean a state...
in 1887, at his home in Wellsboro.
The published record of the 1904 Tioga County Centennial Celebration included a brief biography of Williston in its section on the Tioga County bar, in which he was described as "a lawyer by intuition. Legal technicalities were not to his taste. He took a broad, liberal view of the law and seized at once the equities of a case and the legal principles involved. He had a strict regard for the ethics of his profession."
Williston married Martha A. Murphey, the daughter of one of the first physicians in Wellsboro. They had two sons and two daughters.