Warren, William B.

Born: 1802-XX-XX Kentucky

Died: 1865-04-12 Morgan County, Illinois

Flourished: 1848-1860 Jacksonville, Illinois

William B. Warren was an army officer, Supreme Court clerk, and prominent member of the Freemasons in Illinois. Warren moved from his native state to Illinois, settling in Morgan County. An early supporter of the Whig Party, Warren represented Morgan County at the Illinois State Whig Convention in 1839, and the convention selected him as a delegate to the first Whig National Convention. In 1845, Warren won election as surveyor of Morgan County. He joined the Illinois State Militia, attaining the rank of major. In October 1845, he participated in quelling anti-Mormon violence in Hancock County, Illinois. When the Mexican War commenced, Warren volunteered for military duty, and secured a commission as a major in John J. Hardin's First Regiment of Illinois Volunteers. After U.S. forces occupied Northern Mexico, Warren served as military governor of Saltillo. After Hardin's death at the Battle of Buena Vista, soldiers in the First Regiment elected Warren lieutenant colonel of the regiment. He returned Hardin's body to Illinois for burial. In September 1848, Warren won election as clerk of the Illinois State Supreme Court (Central Grand Division). Failing health forced him to decline the nomination for reelection. A member of the Freemason from his early days in Kentucky, Warren held numerous positions of importance in the Grand Royal Arch Chapter and other lodges. In 1860, Warren gave his occupation as "gentleman" and he owned $65,000 worth of real estate.

Sangamo Journal (Springfield, IL), 11 October 1839, 2:5,6; 9 October 1845, 3:3; 16 October 1845, 3:1-2; 15 April 1847, 2:1; Illinois Journal (Springfield), 13 September 1848, 2:5; History of Morgan County, Illinois (Chicago: Donnelley, Loyd, 1878), 264; Illinois Mexican War Veterans, Illinois State Archives, Springfield, IL; Wm. Hugh Robarts, Mexican War Veterans: A Complete Roster of the Regular and Volunteer Troops in the War Between the United States and Mexico, from 1846 to 1848 (Washington, DC: Brentano's, 1887), 43; Souvenir of the Semi-Centennial of the Grand Royal Arch Chapter of Illinois (Chicago: Grand Royal Arch Chapter, 1900), 50; William B. Warren to Abraham Lincoln; William B. Warren to Abraham Lincoln; U.S. Census Office, Eighth Census of the United States (1860), Jacksonville, Morgan County, IL, 10; Gravestone, Jacksonville East Cemetery, Jacksonville, IL.