William Anderson (Vermont politician)
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Shoreham, Vermont, US
Burlington, Vermont, US
William John Anderson Jr. | |
|---|---|
| Member of the Vermont House of Representatives | |
| In office 1945–1949 | |
| Personal details | |
| Born | February 14, 1876 Shoreham, Vermont, US |
| Died | August 28, 1959 (aged 83) Burlington, Vermont, US |
| Political party | Republican |
| Relations | Mary Annette Anderson |
| Education | Mount Hermon School |
| Occupation | Politician, farmer |
William John Anderson Jr. (February 14, 1876 – August 28, 1959)[1] was an American politician and farmer who served in the Vermont House of Representatives from 1945 to 1949. He was only the second African American to serve in the Vermont legislature after Alexander Twilight more than one hundred years earlier. His sister, Mary Annette Anderson, was the first Black woman to graduate from Middlebury College.[2]
Anderson was born to William John Anderson and Philomen Langlois in Shoreham, Vermont, on February 14, 1874.[1] His father was an emancipated slave from Virginia who had accompanied Col. Charles Hunsdon of the 11th Vermont Infantry Regiment home to Vermont after the American Civil War. Philomen Langlois was a Vermonter of French-Canadian and Native American heritage.[3] The couple became farmers in the small town of Shoreham, on the shore of Lake Champlain, where they were the only residents of color.[4] They purchased their farm from Dr. William Hitchcock, who had employed 17-year-old Anderson Sr. in 1866.[5]
Anderson attended school locally before attending Mount Hermon School for Boys in Massachusetts, where he earned his keep working in the school laundry starting in 1892. In 1897 or 1899, he was hired to work as a doorman at Hotel Champlain, summer residence of William McKinley. McKinley took an interest in the young man, asking him why he held so menial a position and thereby encouraging him to aspire to higher station in life.[4] Returning to Mount Hermon, Anderson became manager of the school's laundry and held this position from 1900 to 1920, supervising generations of young student helpers, including Reader's Digest co-founder DeWitt Wallace.[5] On May 19, 1902, Anderson married Lillian Jackson of Port Henry, New York. Their son, George William, was born at Mount Hermon on February 6, 1903.[5]
While in Massachusetts Anderson became active in the Republican Party, serving as a delegate to the 1918 Republican state convention that nominated Calvin Coolidge for governor and subsequently attending Governor Coolidge's inauguration in 1919.[1][6] He served in the US Army during World War I.[7]