William Gaston, Governor

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/William_Gaston_(Massachusetts)

William Gaston (October 3, 1820 – January 19, 1894) was the 29th Governor of Massachusetts in 1875-1876.

William Gaston had established a successful legal practice in the City of Roxbury, Massachusetts before entering politics. He served as a Representative in the State Legislature (1853–1854), as Roxbury's City Solicitor (1856–60), and as its Mayor (1861 and 1862). He resumed his private practice of law until 1868, when he served in the Massachusetts Senate for a year.

The City of Boston annexed Roxbury in 1868, and in 1871, Gaston was elected Mayor of Boston. Running for Governor as a Democrat, Gaston defeated incumbent Thomas Talbot who had supported the continuance of statewide prohibition by his veto. Gaston promoted a law repealing the Commonwealth's prohibition law, leaving such restrictions to the determination of localities. Governor Gaston was defeated in his reelection bid by Alexander Rice. Gaston returned to his extremely successful legal practice, gaining renown as a trial attorney. He served as President of the Boston Bar Association from 1880 to 1881.

Gaston and his wife Louisa Augusta (Beecher) were the parents of William Alexander Gaston (1859–1927), who ran for governor of Massachusetts in 1902 and 1903 but lost.

Massachusetts Governor. He graduated from Brown University, in 1840, studied law, was admitted to the bar in 1844 and established a successful legal career in Roxbury, Massachusetts. He was a member of the Massachusetts House of Representatives, (1853-54, 56), served as the Roxbury City Solicitor, (1856-60) and was the Mayor of Roxbury, (1861-62). He also served as a member of the Massachusetts State Senate, in 1868, was the Mayor of Boston, (1871-72). In 1874, he was the first member of the Democratic Party to be elected as Governor of Massachusetts, serving until 1876. During his term, the state's prohibition law was rescinded and new legislation was initiated that provided localities the authority to determine their liquor restrictions. After leaving office, he retired from public service and practiced law until his death at age 73.* Reference: Find A Grave Memorial - SmartCopy: Mar 22 2020, 3:41:26 UTC