Sears, W. H. (William Henry), 1858-1933

Cowboy in Colorado; later commanded National Guard in Kansas.

William Henry Sears lived a checkered and full life. Born in Benton County, Iowa in 1858, as a teenager he worked as a cowboy in the Dodge City area. In the 1880s he went to the University of Kansas and received a law degree; later he received another degree from the University of Michigan. Also in the 1880s Sears joined the Kansas National Guard and became brigadier general of the state militia. A Democrat, he joined the Populist party when that political party was created, and he was involved in the 1893 Kansas legislative wars. Other positions Sears held over the years included being private secretary to a number of influential people, such as former Kansas Governor Charles Robinson, U.S. Senator W. A. Harris, and Clara Barton. He also served as assistant superintendent to the Haskell Institute in Lawrence. He lived in both Kansas and Michigan as an adult, practicing law in both states as well as in Washington, D.C. He was admitted to both the Kansas and the United States Supreme Court bar. In 1884 Sears married Alice Hibbard Peabody. They had one son, Burton. William Henry Sears died in 1933 at his home in Lawrence.