William Pitt Preble

William Pitt Preble (November 27, 1783 – October 11, 1857) was an American lawyer, judge, diplomat and businessman.

This appointment came about because the King of the Netherlands had agreed to mediate between the United States and Great Britain to resolve the question of the border between Maine and New Brunswick, and Preble's work as a U.S. Attorney and Judge made him knowledgeable on the subject.

[2][3] In the 1840s Preble became interested in railroads, with his primary interest being the construction of a line through the United States and Canada that would connect Portland to the St. Lawrence River, the Great Lakes Region and the Mississippi River as a way to enhance Portland's trade and commerce.

When the St. Lawrence and Atlantic Railroad was incorporated in 1845 Preble was named its President, and he negotiated with governments in England, Canada and the United States to obtain rights of way and other concessions needed to accomplish construction and begin operations.

His granddaughter Marian Longfellow O'Donoghue was a founder of the National League of American Pen Women in 1897.