William Gay Brown

Unconditional Unionist Representative of West Virginia

Congresses Served

House Terms

September 25, 1800 (83 years old)

Birthday

April 19, 1884

Death

Nineteenth-century politician and lawyer
Twice elected to the Virginia General Assembly
Elected three times to the U.S. House of Representatives
Served at the Virginia Constitutional Convention of 1850
Opposed secession at the Virginia Secession Convention of 1861
Unconditional Unionist during the American Civil War
One of the founders of West Virginia
Received a private education and read law
Married twice and had a son who also served in the U.S. Congress
Practiced law in Kingwood, Preston County, and owned slaves
Served as Commonwealth attorney and county prosecutor
Delegate to the Democratic National Convention in 1860
Spoke and voted against secession at the Virginia Secession Convention
Represented Virginia and then West Virginia in the U.S. House of Representatives as a Unionist
Resumed legal practice after not seeking re-election post-Civil War
Died in Kingwood, West Virginia, and was interred in Maplewood Cemetery