Joseph Kerr (Wisconsin politician)

Summary

Joseph Kerr (1804 – January 22, 1855) was an American farmer, Whig politician, and Wisconsin pioneer. He represented Columbia County in the Wisconsin State Assembly during the 1st and 2nd legislatures (1848, 1849).[1]

Joseph Kerr
Member of the Wisconsin State Assembly
from the Columbia district
In office
June 5, 1848 – January 7, 1850
Preceded byPosition established
Succeeded byHugh McFarlane
Personal details
Born1804
Ohio, U.S.
DiedJanuary 22, 1855(1855-01-22) (aged 50–51)
Randolph, Wisconsin, U.S.
Resting placeFriesland Cemetery, Friesland, Wisconsin
Political partyWhig
SpouseLydia H. Langdon (died 1884)
Children
  • Samuel Kerr
  • (b. 1846; died 1919)

Background and election to the Assembly edit

He was born in Ohio shortly after the state's admission to the Union, and arrived in Columbia County in the fall of 1846.[2] When Wisconsin achieved statehood, he was elected to the Assembly's Columbia County seat as a Whig, and was re-elected in the fall of 1848 for the following year. When in April 1849 Randolph was organized as a Town, he was the (unsuccessful) Whig candidate for chairman of the town board.[3] He was succeeded in the Assembly seat for 1850 by Hugh McFarlane of Portage.

After the Assembly edit

In November 1851 he was a founding member, and was elected First Vice-president, of the Columbia County Agricultural Society.[3] He remained active therein, and in November 1853 was elected President of the Society.[4]

He died January 22, 1855, in Randolph.[5][6] At the time of his death he had been for years Chairman of the Town of Randolph Board of Supervisors, and thrice been elected Chairman of the Columbia County Board; and was a Director of the La Crosse & Milwaukee Railroad Company. He was married, and was or had been a parent.[3]

References edit

  1. ^ "Members of the Wisconsin Legislature 1848–1999 State of Wisconsin Legislative Bureau. Information Bulletin 99-1, September 1999. p. 70 Archived 2006-12-09 at the Wayback Machine
  2. ^ "List of Members of the Assembly of the State of Wisconsin". Wisconsin Express. January 30, 1849. Retrieved August 22, 2021 – via Newspapers.com.
  3. ^ a b c The History of Columbia County, Wisconsin, Containing an Account of Its Settlement, Growth, Development and Resources. Chicago: Western Historical Company, 1880; pp. 458, 529, 845, 851
  4. ^ Milwaukee Free Democrat November 15, 1853; p. 2, col. 2
  5. ^ "Joseph Kerr". Daily Free Democrat. Milwaukee, WI. January 31, 1855. p. 3. Retrieved October 16, 2021 – via Newspapers.com.  
  6. ^ "Death of Joseph Kerr". Wisconsin State Journal. Madison, WI. February 5, 1855. p. 2. Retrieved October 16, 2021 – via Newspapers.com.  

External links edit

Wisconsin State Assembly
New state government Member of the Wisconsin State Assembly from the Columbia district
June 5, 1848 – January 7, 1850
Succeeded by