Wade, BENJAMIN FRANKLIN (1800-1878), an American statesman, born near Springfield Mass. In 1821 he removed to Ohio, was admitted to the bar and began the practice of law as a partner of Joshua R. Giddings. In 1837 he was elected state senator, and in 1847 he was appointed judge of the third judicial district of Ohio. In 1851 he was elected United States senator as a Whig and was reelected by the Republicans in 1857 and again in 1863. In the Senate he constantly opposed slavery, voted repeal the Fugitive Slave Law and worked against the Kansas-Nebraska Bill. During and after the Civil War, he was one of the most radical Republicans in his view of reconstruction; he was joint author of the Wade-Davis Bill, which President Lincoln vetoed and he consistently opposed President Johnson's policy.