ALDRICH, William (father of James Franklin Aldrich
and cousin of Nelson Wilmarth Aldrich), a Representative
from Illinois; born in Greenfield Center, Saratoga County,
N.Y., January 19, 1820; attended the common schools and
the local academy; taught school until twenty-six years of
age; moved to Jackson, Mich., in 1846 and engaged in mercantile pursuits; moved to Wisconsin and settled in Two
Rivers, Manitowoc County, in 1851; continued mercantile
pursuits and also engaged in the manufacture of lumber,
woodenware, and furniture; superintendent of schools 1855
and 1856; chairman of the county board of supervisors 1857
and 1858; member of the State house of representatives
in 1859; moved to Chicago, Ill., in 1861 and engaged in
the wholesale grocery business; member of the Chicago City
Council in 1876, serving as chairman; elected as a Republican to the Forty-fifth, Forty-sixth, and Forty-seventh Congresses (March 4, 1877-March 3, 1883); unsuccessful candidate for renomination in 1882; resumed his former business pursuits in Chicago and was also interested in the
milling business at Fond du Lac, Wis., where he died, while
on a business trip, December 3, 1885; interment in Rosehill
Cemetery, Chicago, Ill.
