Collins, William

Born: 1818-02-22 Lowville, New York

Died: 1878-06-18 Cleveland, Ohio

Collins was a New York and Ohio attorney, banker, politician, and railroad executive. He read law, earned admittance to the New York bar, and commenced practicing his profession in Lowville. From 1845 to 1847, he served as district attorney for Lewis County. In 1846, Collins won election as a Democrat to the U.S. House of Representatives, serving until 1849. Declining the nomination for a second term, he resumed his law practice. In 1853, Collins moved to Cleveland where he practiced law, engaged in banking, and became the director of the Lake Shore Railroad and the East Cleveland Railroad. In 1856, he shifted his political allegiance to the nascent Republican Party.

Gravestone, Section 8, Lot 147-0, Lake View Cemetery, Cleveland, OH; Biographical Directory of the American Congress 1774-1996 (Alexandria, VA: CQ Staff Directories, 1997), 847.