William Winston Seaton

William Winston Seaton (1785-1866) was an American journalist, born in King William County, Va.

From 1812 until 1860 he was, with his brother-in-law Joseph Gales, proprietor of the "National Intelligencer" at Washington, D.C. From 1812 until 1820 the two were the only reporters of congressional proceedings. Their "Annals of Congress, Debates and Proceedings in the Congress of the United States from 3 March, 1798, till 27 May, 1824" (42 volumes, 1834-1856), and their "Register of Debates in Congress from 1824 till 1837" (29 volumes, 1827-37) are sources of the utmost importance on the history of the times.

Seaton served on the Washington Board of Alderman from 1819 to 1831, and was elected Mayor of Washington in 1840. However, Seaton was a Whig — the political party formed in opposition to the policies of the Democrats who then controlled both the Congress and the presidency. Federal officials were so distraught at Seaton's election that the Senate introduced legislation that would abolish the city's charter; thanks to petitions from District citizens and sympathetic Senators, the bill was tabled after three readings.

During his 10 years as mayor, Seaton was instrumental in the development of the city's public education system and in numerous civic improvements, including telegraph and gas lines as well as the construction of the first waterworks.

Seaton died in 1866 of skin cancer and was interred in an unmarked grave at Congressional Cemetery in Washington.

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