William Van Ness Bay

William Van Ness Bay (November 23, 1818 – February 10, 1894) was an American attorney and judge from Missouri. He was most notable for serving as U.S. Representative from Missouri from 1849 to 1851, and a judge of the Supreme Court of Missouri from 1862 to 1865.

Early life Bay was born in Hudson, New York on November 23, 1818, a son of Thomas Bay and Harriet (Mansfield) Bay. His grandfather John Bay and father were also prominent attorneys. Among the prospective lawyers who studied under John Bay were Ambrose Spencer, who later practiced law in partnership with him, and William W. Van Ness. A Democrat, in 1842 he was elected to represent the two-member Franklin County district in the Missouri House of Representatives. In 1844, he was reelected in the two-member district. In 1846, he was reelected in what was then a single-member Franklin County district, and he served from November 1842 to December 1848. Their children included Cora, William, Frank, Harry, Harriet, and Elizabeth.