Representative William Henry Sowden

William Henry Sowden (June 6, 1840 – March 3, 1907) was a Democratic member of the U.S. House of Representatives from Pennsylvania who served two terms in Congress from 1885 to 1889. Over the course of a long legal and political career, he held a series of important local and county offices in Allentown and Lehigh County and participated actively in both state and national Democratic politics, later briefly affiliating with the Republican Party.

Sowden was born in Liskeard, Cornwall, England, on June 6, 1840. He emigrated to the United States in 1846 with his father, who initially settled in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. As a youth he later went to live with friends in Allentown, Pennsylvania, which would remain his principal home for the rest of his life. He attended the public schools there and continued his studies at Allentown Academy, receiving the education that prepared him for both military and professional service.

During the American Civil War, Sowden enlisted in the Union Army and served as a corporal in Company D of the 128th Pennsylvania Volunteer Infantry. His period of service extended from August 13, 1862, to May 19, 1863, during which he took part in the Union war effort at a formative time in his life. After his military service, he turned to the study of law. He was admitted to the bar in 1864 and completed his legal education with graduation from Harvard Law School in 1865. Upon completion of his studies, he commenced the practice of law in Allentown, building a reputation that soon led to public office.

Sowden’s early political and legal career was closely tied to Lehigh County and the city of Allentown. He served as solicitor of Lehigh County in 1868, providing legal counsel to the county government, and was elected district attorney of Lehigh County, serving from 1872 through 1874. A committed Democrat, he sought higher office and was an unsuccessful candidate for lieutenant governor of Pennsylvania in 1874. He also made an unsuccessful bid for election to Congress in 1876. Despite these setbacks, he remained active in party affairs and local governance, and his standing within the Democratic Party continued to grow.

By the mid-1880s, Sowden had become a recognized Democratic leader in Pennsylvania. He served as a delegate to the 1884 Democratic National Convention, participating in the selection of the party’s national ticket. In 1885 he was elected as a Democrat to the Forty-ninth Congress and was subsequently reelected to the Fiftieth Congress, serving in the U.S. House of Representatives from Pennsylvania from March 4, 1885, to March 3, 1889. During these two terms, he contributed to the legislative process in the House of Representatives and represented the interests of his Pennsylvania constituents during a significant period in American history marked by industrial expansion and political realignment. He was not a candidate for reelection in 1888 and returned to private life at the conclusion of his second term.

After leaving Congress, Sowden resumed the practice of law in Allentown and continued to hold local public offices. He served as city solicitor of Allentown in 1886 and again from 1900 to 1902, advising the municipal government on legal matters. He remained active in Democratic politics and was a delegate to the 1900 Democratic National Convention. In his later political career, he shifted his party affiliation in at least one race and was an unsuccessful Republican candidate for election to the Fifty-ninth Congress in 1904. In 1906 he was elected solicitor of Lehigh County once more, underscoring his enduring prominence in local legal and political affairs.

Sowden’s family life intersected with national political circles. In May 1888, his daughter married James L. Pugh, Jr., the son of U.S. Senator James L. Pugh of Alabama, linking the Sowden family to another prominent political household. Mrs. James L. Pugh, Jr. was born in Allentown and pursued her education at Allentown Female College in 1884, later attending the Lutherville Female Seminary near Baltimore, Maryland.

William Henry Sowden died in Allentown, Pennsylvania, on March 3, 1907, while serving as solicitor of Lehigh County. He was interred in Union Cemetery in Allentown. His career encompassed military service in the Civil War, decades of legal practice, multiple local and county offices, active participation in national party conventions, and two terms in the United States Congress as a Democratic Representative from Pennsylvania.