William Soden Hastings

William Soden Hastings ( born June 3, 1798 in Mendon, Worcester County, Massachusetts, † June 17, 1842 in Red Sulphur Springs, Virginia ) was an American politician. Between 1837 and 1842 he represented the state of Massachusetts in the U.S. House of Representatives.

Career

William Hastings was the son of Congressman Seth Hastings ( 1762-1831 ). He attended the common schools and graduated in 1817 from Harvard University. After a subsequent law degree in 1820 and its recent approval as a lawyer, he started working in Mendon in this profession. At the same time he embarked on a political career. In 1828 he was a member of the House of Representatives of Massachusetts; 1829-1833 he was a member of the State Senate. Mid-1830s he became a member of the Whig Party, founded at that time.

In the congressional elections of 1836 Hastings was the ninth electoral district of Massachusetts in the U.S. House of Representatives in Washington DC chosen, where he became the successor of William Jackson on March 4, 1837. After two re- elections he could remain until his death on June 17, 1842 in Congress. He died in Red Sulphur Springs in what is now West Virginia, where he was for health reasons.