William Henry Seaman was born in New Berlin, Wisconsin Territory, on November 15, 1842. His father, William Seaman, had brought the family to the Wisconsin Territory from Buffalo, New York, the previous year. His mother, Arelisle Seaman, was descended from some of the earliest Puritan settlers at the Massachusetts Bay Colony. His paternal grandfather, Williams Seaman, was a Democratic state senator in the New York State Legislature. His father had intended to bring goods to the territory and set up a store, but the supplies were lost in a shipwreck. Instead, they settled in what was then western Milwaukee County and built a saw mill and log cabin, where our William H. Seaman was born. Unfortunately, in the winter after his birth, the saw mill burned down and the family had to relocate again. This time they moved to village of Milwaukee, where his father became a harness maker. The next year they moved to Ceresco, and finally, in 1845, to Sheboygan, where his father was finally able to prosper as a merchant. Seaman was educated in the public schools of Sheboygan until age 16, when he began working as a printer. He began studying law under Crosby W. Ellis in the nights after work, but his studies were interrupted by the outbreak of the American Civil War.
Civil War service
On September 19, 1861, Seaman volunteered for service in the Union Army and was enrolled as a private in Company H, 1st Wisconsin Volunteer Infantry Regiment. After a year, he was promoted to Corporal, and eventually Sergeant. When the regiment mustered out in October 1864, Sergeant Seaman continued his service as a quartermaster on the staff of General George Henry Thomas through the end of the war.
Legal career
Seaman returned to Sheboygan in September 1866, and resumed his legal studies under the tutelage of state senator John A. Bentley. In June 1868, Seaman was admitted to the State Bar of Wisconsin and entered into a partnership with Bentley, forming the law firm Bentley & Seaman. The partnership continued until 1876, when Bentley was appointed United States Pension Commissioner. Seaman subsequently partnered with Francis Williams, in 1882, in the firm Seaman & Williams, which endured for the next eleven years. Seaman served in many local offices, including city council, school board, and, in 1881, he was elected Mayor of Sheboygan. He was a staunch Democrat, was chosen as chairman of the 1888 Wisconsin Democratic Party convention, and was a delegate for Wisconsin to the 1888 Democratic National Convention. In 1891, he was appointed to the Board of Regents of the University of Wisconsin.
