William J. Graham

Who was William J. Graham?

William Johnson Graham was a U.S. Representative from Illinois.

Born near New Castle, Pennsylvania, Graham moved to Illinois with his parents, who settled near Aledo, Mercer County, in 1879. He attended the public schools. He was graduated from the law department of the University of Illinois at Urbana in 1893. He was admitted to the bar in 1895 and commenced practice in Aledo, Illinois. He served as prosecuting attorney of Mercer County 1901-1909. He served as delegate to the Republican National Convention in 1912. He served as member of the State house of representatives in 1915 and 1916.

Graham was elected as a Republican to the Sixty-fifth and to the three succeeding Congresses and served from March 4, 1917, to June 7, 1924, when he resigned. He served as chairman of the Committee on Expenditures in the Department of War. He was appointed by President Coolidge on May 29, 1924, as presiding judge of the United States Court of Customs Appeals, Washington, D.C., and served from June 8, 1924, until his death in Washington, D.C., November 10, 1937. He remains were cremated and the ashes interred in Aledo Cemetery, Aledo, Illinois.