William Hiester Jr. (October 10, 1790 – October 13, 1853) was an American politician from Pennsylvania who served as an Anti-Masonic member of the United States House of Representatives for Pennsylvania's 4th congressional district from 1831 to 1837."William Hiester" (biography). Harrisburg, Pennsylvania: Pennsylvania State Senate, retrieved online October 25, 2022.
As a member of the Hiester Family political dynasty,Hess, Stephen. America's Political Dynasties, pp. 158, 660. London and New York: Routledge, 2017. he was the father of U.S. Congressman Isaac Ellmaker Hiester and the uncle of Pennsylvania State Senator and U.S. Congressman Hiester Clymer."Memories of Old Lancaster: Two Hiesters, Father and Son. Both in Congress." Lancaster, Pennsylvania: The New Era, January 3, 1912, p. 4 (subscription required).
Biography A son of William Hiester, Sr. and Anna Maria (Myer) Hiester, William Hiester Jr. was born in Berne, Pennsylvania on October 10, 1790. After attending the local, public schools, he became a farmer and merchant in Lancaster County."William Hiester" (biography), Pennsylvania State Senate.
On February 8, 1824, he wed Lucy Ellmaker (1797-1854).William Hiester Jr. and Lucy Ellmaker, in "Married." Lancaster, Pennsylvania: Lancaster Intelligencer, March 2, 1821, p. 3 (subscription required). As a member of the prominent Ellmaker family, she was the only child of Isaac Ellmaker (1762-1830) and Christiana Ellmaker (1764-1802). William and Lucy Hiester's son, Isaac Ellmaker Hiester, who was born in New Holland, Lancaster, Pennsylvania on May 29, 1824, would go on to become a member of the U.S. House of Representatives."William Hiester" (biography), Pennsylvania State Senate."The Ellmakers: A Sketch of One of County's Oldest Families." Lancaster, Pennsylvania: Lancaster Daily Intelligencer, May 23, 1908, p. 6 (subscription required).
Military service William Hiester Jr. served as second lieutenant"Muster Roll of a Company of Infantry in the Actual Service of the United States Commanded by Capt. Jacob Marshall in the 1st Regiment of 2nd Brigade Penna. Militia Under the Command of Lieut. Jeremiah Sharpell from the 1st of September to the 4th of December 1814," in Pennsylvania Archives, Sixth Series, Vol. III, pp. 1153, 1158. Harrisburg, Pennsylvania: Harrisburg Publishing Company, State Printer, 1907. with Captain Jacob Marshall's infantry company of the Pennsylvania Militia's First Regiment, Second Brigade during the War of 1812."A Soldier of the War of 1812" (includes roster of men in Marshall's company). Reading, Pennsylvania: The Reading Eagle, October 12, 1879. His unit left Reading, Pennsylvania on September 2, 1814, and was assigned to duties in York, Pennsylvania until March 4, 1815, according to Pennsylvania historian Morton L. Montgomery.Montgomery, Morton L. History of Berks County in Pennsylvania, p. 175. Philadelphia, Pennsylvania: Everts, Peck & Richards, 1886.
Political career During the early and mid-1820s, Hiester practiced law in Lancaster County. His duties including assisting clients with the resolution of family estate matters.William Hiester, in "Notice." Lancaster, Pennsylvania: Lancaster Intelligencer, November 18, 1825, p. 4 (subscription required). He was also active in local politics and government, serving as Lancaster County Justice of the Peace from 1823 to 1828 and as Secretary of the State Caucus for the Anti-Masonic Convention in 1828."William Hiester" (biography), Pennsylvania State Senate.
Although Hiester ran unsuccessfully for the United States House of Representatives in 1819"Berks County Federal Ticket," in "Democratic Ticket." Lancaster, Pennsylvania: Lancaster Intelligencer, September 25, 1819, p. 3 (subscription required). and 1828, he was a successful Anti-Masonic Party candidate for Congress in 1830, serving three terms from March 4, 1831 to March 4, 1837."William Hiester" (biography), Pennsylvania State Senate."Twenty-Second Congress." Lancaster, Pennsylvania: The Lancaster Examiner, November 17, 1831, p. 2 (subscription required)."Official Election Returns of Lancaster County, for 1834." Lancaster, Pennsylvania: The Lancaster Examiner, October 23, 1834, p. 3 (subscription required). During his tenure, he advocated for various economic reform measures, including tariffs"County Tariff Meeting." Lancaster, Pennsylvania: The Lancaster Examiner, October 27, 1831, p. 3 (subscription required). and the "re-establishment of a sound National Currency.""The Next Governor." Lancaster, Pennsylvania: The Lancaster Examiner, November 8, 1843, p. 2 (subscription required).
Hiester was then appointed as a delegate to the Pennsylvania Constitutional Convention, 1837-1838,"The Constitution of the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, As amended by the Convention of one thousand eight hundred and thirty-seven—thirty-eight." Lancaster, Pennsylvania: The Lancaster Examiner, April 19, 1838, p. 4 (subscription required). remained active with Democratic Anti-Masonic politics,"Voice of the 'Old Guard': Lancaster County Democratic Antimasonic Meeting." Lancaster, Pennsylvania: The Lancaster Examiner, August 16, 1838, p. 2 (subscription required). subsequently served in the Pennsylvania State Senate for the 6th district from 1840 to 1842,The Antimasonic Convention. Lancaster, Pennsylvania: Lancaster County Weekly Gazette, August 29, 1840, p. 2 (subscription required). and was elected Speaker of the Pennsylvania Senate in 1842.
Later years During the final phase of his life, Hiester devoted his time to farming."William Hiester" (biography), Pennsylvania State Senate. He also remained active in local politics"Township Meetings and County Convention" and "The Clay Call." Lancaster, Pennsylvania: The Lancaster Examiner, July 12, 1843, p. 2 (subscription required)."Antimasonic and Whig Convention." Lancaster, Pennsylvania: The Lancaster Examiner, December 27, 1843, p. 2 (subscription required). and in charitable and civic affairs."Business Convention." Lancaster, Pennsylvania: The Lancaster Examiner, May 19, 1841, p. 3 (subscription required)."William Hiester," in "An Example." Lancaster, Pennsylvania: The Lancaster Examiner, June 4, 1845, p. 2 (subscription required).
Illness, death and burial Sometime during the final decade of his life, Hiester fell ill with a disease which caused paralysis."Lancaster County." Lancaster, Pennsylvania: The Lancaster Examiner, February 21, 1844, p. 2 (subscription required). After several years of worsening health, he died from Apoplexy at his home in New Holland, Pennsylvania on October 13, 1853."The Late William Hiester." Lancaster, Pennsylvania: Intelligencer & Journal, November 1, 1853, p. 2 (subscription required). He was interred at the Lancaster Cemetery in Lancaster, Pennsylvania.
In 1854, a large, four-piece monument was erected above the graves of William Hiester and his wife, Lucy. In addition to a roughly eleven-foot-tall obelisk adorned with a wreath of lilies and roses and marked with the Hiester surname in raised letters, a die "beautifully worked, the top ... finished with scrolls and carving, and on each of the four narrow sides ... a scroll Console highly ornamented," and a roughly four-foot-tall plinth supporting the console, with a roughly five-by-twelve-inch base. Crafted from Italian marble, it reportedly weighed 18,000 pounds."Beautiful Works of Art." Lancaster, Pennsylvania: The Lancaster Examiner, September 27, 1854, p. 2 (subscription required).
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