William Barron Calhoun (December 29, 1796 – November 8, 1865) was a U.S. Representative from Massachusetts.
Calhoun, the eldest child of Andrew Calhoun and Martha (Chamberlain) Calhoun,[3] was born on December 29, 1796, in Boston, Massachusetts.[3] Calhoun graduated from Yale College[2] in 1814.
After his graduation from Yale, Calhoun studied law, first in Concord, New Hampshire,[3] and later in Springfield, Massachusetts.[2] Calhoun was admitted to the bar and commenced practice in Springfield.
Calhoun served as member of the Massachusetts House of Representatives 1825-1834, serving as speaker 1828-1834.[1]
Calhoun was elected as an Anti-Jacksonian to the Twenty-fourth Congress and as a Whig to the three succeeding Congresses (March 4, 1835 – March 3, 1843). Calhoun served as chairman of the Committee on Private Land Claims (Twenty-sixth Congress). Calhoun was not a candidate for renomination in 1842.
In 1844 Calhoun was a Presidential Elector for Henry Clay.[2]
Calhoun served as member of the Massachusetts Senate in 1846 and 1847, serving as its president. He served as Secretary of the Commonwealth of Massachusetts 1848-1851 and State bank commissioner from 1853 to 1855. He served as mayor of Springfield, Massachusetts in 1859.[1]He was again a member of the Massachusetts House of Representatives in 1861.[1]
Calhoun died in Springfield, Massachusetts, November 8, 1865, he was interred in Springfield Cemetery.
This article incorporates public domain material from the Biographical Directory of the United States Congress