William Harris Crawford

Willaim Harris Crawford was born in Virginia in 1772. After his family moved to Georgia, he studied and practiced law, and prepared one of the early digests of Georgia law. He was elected to the Georgia State Senate, then the U.S. Senate - where he rose to the position of President pro tempore. Later he served as minister to France and Secretary of War under President James Madison, then was appointed Secretary of the Treasury by Madison, a post he continued to hold under President James Monroe. He unsuccessfully ran for President himself in 1824, then retired back to Georgia, where he died in 1834. Crawfored County had already been named in his honor in 1822; a town in Oglethorpe County is also named for him.

Biographical Information from U.S. Congress

Biography (Wikipedia)

Biography (Infoplease)

© Carl Vinson Institute of Government, University of Georgia

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