Sterling Price - Early Life and Career

Early Life and Career

Sterling "Old Pap" Price was born near Farmville, in Prince Edward County, Virginia, into a family of Welsh origin. His mother was Elizabeth Williamson, and his father was Pugh Price, whose ancestor John Price was born in Brecknock, Wales, in 1584 and settled in the Virginia Colony. Price attended Hampden-Sydney College in 1826 and 1827, where he studied law and worked at the courthouse near his home. He was admitted to the Virginia bar and established a law practice.

In the fall of 1831, Price and his family moved to Fayette, Missouri. A year later, he moved to Keytesville, Missouri, where he ran a hotel and mercantile. On May 14, 1833, Price married Martha Head from Randolph County, Missouri. They had seven children, five of whom survived to adulthood; Edwin Williamson, Herber, Celsus, Martha Sterling, and Quintus.

During the Mormon War of 1838, Price served as a member of a delegation sent from Chariton County, Missouri to investigate reported disturbances between Latter-day Saints and anti-Mormon mobs operating in the western part of the state. His report was favorable to the Mormons, stating that they were not guilty, in his opinion, of the charges levied against them by their enemies. Following the Mormon capitulation in November 1838, Price was ordered by Missouri governor Lilburn Boggs to Caldwell County with a company of men to protect the Saints from further depredations following their surrender. He was elected to the Missouri State House of Representatives from 1836–1838, and again from 1840–1844, and was chosen as its speaker. He was then elected as a Democrat to the 29th United States Congress, serving from March 4, 1845, to August 12, 1846, when he resigned from the House to participate in the Mexican-American War.