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William Halstead, Jr.


Gender:
Male
Born:
June 4, 1794
Died:
March 4, 1878
Home Town:
Elizabeth, NJ
Later Residences:
Trenton, NJ
Marriage(s):
Frances Bostwick Halstead (unknown)
Biographical Notes:
William Halstead Jr., born June 4, 1794, was the son of Dr. Caleb and Nancy Spencer Halstead of Elizabeth, New Jersey. In 1812 William attended the College of New Jersey (now Princeton University). Two years later he began his study of the law at the Litchfield Law School. His brother Oliver Spencer Halstead had studied in Litchfield in 1813. In 1816 William was admitted to the bar and began his legal career. He resided in Trenton, New Jersey and became actively involved in his community not only as a lawyer, but also as a politician. From 1824-1829 he served as the Prosecuting Attorney of Hunterdon County, and from 1821-1832 he was the Reporter for the New Jersey Supreme Court. Politically a Whig, William also became involved with law and politics at the federal level as well. From 1841-1842 ...
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Education
Years at LLS:
1814
Other Education:
Attended the College of New Jersey (now Princeton University) in 1812.

Profession / Service
Profession:
Military; Lawyer; Political Office
Admitted To Bar:
1816
Political Party:
Whig
Federal Posts:
U.S. Representative (NJ) 1837-1838, 1841-1842
U.S. Attorney for the District of NJ 1849-1853
Federal Committees:
Chairman of the Committee on Elections from 1841-1842.
State Posts:
Reporter of the Supreme Court (NJ) 1821-1832
Local Posts:
Prosecuting Attorney (Hunterdon County, NJ) 1824-1829

help The Citation of Attendance provides primary source documentation of the student’s attendance at the Litchfield Female Academy and/or the Litchfield Law School. If a citation is absent, the student is thought to have attended but currently lacks primary source confirmation.

Records for the schools were sporadic, especially in the formative years of both institutions. If instructors kept comprehensive records for the Litchfield Female Academy or the Litchfield Law School, they do not survive. Researchers and staff have identified students through letters, diaries, family histories and genealogies, and town histories as well as catalogues of students printed in various years. Art and needlework have provided further identification of Female Academy Students, and Litchfield County Bar records document a number of Law School students. The history of both schools and the identification of the students who attended them owe credit to the early 20th century research and documentation efforts of Emily Noyes Vanderpoel and Samuel Fisher, and the late 20th century research and documentation efforts of Lynne Templeton Brickley and the Litchfield Historical Society staff.
CITATION OF ATTENDANCE:
Roger S. Baldwin 4 July 1813 List.
Litchfield County Bar Association Records, 1814, Helga J. Ingraham Memorial Library, Litchfield Historical Society

Catalogue of the Litchfield Law School (Hartford, CT: Press of Case, Tiffany and Company, 1849), 12.

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