William Weightman VALK, Congress, NY (1806-1879)

VALK, William Weightman, a Representative from New York; born in Charleston, S.C., October 12, 1806; attended the local school and was graduated from the University of South Carolina at Columbia in 1830; studied medicine and commenced practice in Bridgeport, Conn.; served as assistant surgeon on the U.S. frigate Constellation; went to California about 1849 during the gold rush; finally settled in Flushing, Long Island, N.Y., and continued the practice of medicine until elected to Congress; elected as a candidate of the American Party to the Thirty-fourth Congress (March 4, 1855-March 3, 1857); unsuccessful candidate for reelection in 1856 to the Thirty-fifth Congress; during the Civil War was surgeon in the Second Regiment, Maryland Volunteer Infantry; appointed a clerk in the United States Pension Office at Washington, D.C., in 1867 and served until his death in that city September 20, 1879; interment in Flushing Cemetery, Flushing, Queens County, N.Y.

Source: Biographical Directory of the United States Congress, 1771-Present