William McMurtry

Who was William McMurtry?

William McMurtry was the 11th Lieutenant Governor of Illinois and Civil War colonel.

McMurtry was born in Mercer County, Kentucky. William's parents were James and Elizabeth McMurtry. His great-grandfather, John McMurtry, who descended from French Huguenots, fought in the American Revolution; dying in the Battle of Cowpens. He and his family settled in Crawford County, Indiana in 1818. It was here that William married Ruth Champion, on November 23, 1826. In 1829, William and his young family moved to Knox County, Illinois along with his father and brother James and his wife. It was here that William McMurtry's home remained until his death.

McMurtry was appointed in Knox County's first ever election in 1830 as foreman of the grand-jury of the Circuit Court. In 1832 he was elected as the county's first school commissioner. From 1836 to 1840, William was a member of the Illinois House of Representatives. In 1842 he was elected to the Illinois State Senate, where he stayed until being added to the Democratic ticket of Governor Augustus French after the previous Lt. Governor Joseph Wells decided not to run again.