Horace Wheaton

Horace Wheaton (February 24, 1803 – June 23, 1882) was an American businessman and Democratic politician who served as a United States representative for New York’s 24th congressional district from 1843 to 1847. He was born in New Milford, Connecticut, on February 24, 1803, and in 1810 moved with his parents to Pompey, New York, then a developing community in central New York. His formal education was limited, but he attended and graduated from Pompey Academy, an institution that provided him with the foundational schooling that supported his later commercial and political activities.

After completing his education, Wheaton engaged in mercantile pursuits in Pompey, establishing himself in local business at a time when the region was growing in population and economic importance. His involvement in commerce helped bring him into local public life, and he became active in town affairs. He served as supervisor and city treasurer of Pompey, positions that placed him at the center of local governance and finance. In 1834 he was elected to the New York State Assembly, where he participated in state-level legislative work and gained broader political experience within the Democratic Party.

Wheaton’s career also reflected the era’s emphasis on internal improvements and transportation. He was appointed one of the commissioners to build a railroad between Syracuse and Utica, a key link in the expanding rail network of upstate New York that complemented the earlier success of the Erie Canal. In addition to these responsibilities, he served as postmaster of Pompey from 1840 to 1842, overseeing local postal operations, an important federal appointment that further underscored his standing in the community and his ties to the Democratic organization.

Building on his local and state service, Wheaton was elected as a Democrat to the Twenty-eighth and Twenty-ninth Congresses, representing New York’s 24th congressional district. He held office in the United States House of Representatives from March 4, 1843, to March 3, 1847. His two terms in Congress coincided with a significant period in American history marked by debates over territorial expansion, economic policy, and sectional tensions. As a member of the Democratic Party representing New York, Wheaton contributed to the legislative process during his two terms in office, participating in the democratic process and representing the interests of his constituents in central New York. He was not a candidate for renomination in 1846.

In 1846, the year he declined to seek another term in Congress, Wheaton moved from Pompey to Syracuse, New York, a rapidly growing city that was emerging as a commercial and transportation hub. There he resumed and expanded his business activities, engaging in hardware, saddlery, and other mercantile pursuits. His business interests in Syracuse complemented his continuing public service and reflected the city’s development as an industrial and trade center in the mid-nineteenth century.

Wheaton quickly became a prominent figure in Syracuse civic affairs. He was elected mayor of Syracuse, serving from 1851 to 1853, during which time he oversaw municipal administration in a period of urban growth and increasing public works. Later, he served as city treasurer of Syracuse in 1857 and 1858, managing the city’s financial affairs and drawing on his prior experience in both business and local government. These roles extended his long record of public service at the town, city, state, and national levels.

Horace Wheaton remained a resident of Syracuse for the rest of his life. He died there on June 23, 1882. He was interred at Oakwood Cemetery in Syracuse, a burial place for many of the city’s notable citizens, marking the final resting place of a businessman and public official who had participated in local, state, and national governance over the course of several decades in the nineteenth century.