21st Wisconsin Legislature explained

21st Wisconsin Legislature
Body:	Wisconsin Legislature
Before:	20th
After:	22nd
Chamber1:	Senate
Membership1:	33
Control1:	Republican
Chamber1 Leader2:	Newton Littlejohn (R)
Chamber2:	Assembly
Membership2:	100
Control2:	Republican

The Twenty-First Wisconsin Legislature convened from to in regular session.

Senators representing even-numbered districts were newly elected for this session and were serving the first year of a two-year term. Assembly members were elected to a one-year term. Assembly members and even-numbered senators were elected in the general election of November 5, 1867. Senators representing odd-numbered districts were serving the second year of their two-year term, having been elected in the general election held on November 6, 1866.^[1]

Major events

• February 24, 1868: The United States House of Representatives voted to impeach U.S. President Andrew Johnson for violating the Tenure of Office Act.
• April 29, 1868: General William Tecumseh Sherman brokered the Treaty of Fort Laramie between the United States and the Plains Indians.
• May 26, 1868: In the United States Senate, the impeachment trial of U.S. President Andrew Johnson ended with a verdict of "not guilty".
• July 9, 1868: Fourteenth Amendment to the United States Constitution was ratified by the required three-fourths of U.S. states.
• July 27, 1868: The U.S. Expatriation Act of 1868 was enacted.
• August 11, 1868: U.S. Representative Thaddeus Stevens, a leader of the Radical Republican faction, died at Washington, D.C.
• October 10, 1868: An uprising in Cuba initiated Ten Years' War for Cuban independence from the Spanish Empire.
• October 28, 1868: Thomas Edison applied for his first patent, the electric vote recorder.
• November 3, 1868: Ulysses S. Grant elected 18th President of the United States.
• December 25, 1868: U.S. President Andrew Johnson granted an unconditional pardon to all American Civil War rebels.

Major legislation

• January 22, 1868: Joint Resolution declaring it to be the duty of the general government to protect American citizens in the enjoyment of all their rights as such while sojourning in foreign countries, 1868 Joint Resolution 1, endorsing the proposed federal Expatriation Act of 1868.
• February 6, 1868: An Act to punish frauds upon insurance companies, 1868 Act 14.
• February 19, 1868: An Act to abolish the office of bank comptroller, and transfer his duties to the state treasurer, 1868 Act 28.
• February 22, 1868: Joint Resolution defining the duty of the nation towards its native and adopted citizens, 1868 Joint Resolution 8, also relating to the proposed federal Expatriation Act of 1868.
• February 29, 1868: An Act to legalize dissections, 1868 Act 53.
• March 4, 1868: An Act to provide for the completion of the state capitol, 1868 Act 93.
• March 5, 1868: An Act to accept a grant of lands made to the state of Wisconsin by act of congress, to aid in the construction of the Sturgeon Bay and Lake Michigan ship canal and harbor, in the county of Door, to connect the waters of Green Bay with Lake Michigan, and to provide for the construction of the same, 1868 Act 105.
• March 6, 1868: Joint Resolution instructing senators and representatives in congress to preserve the equilibrium between the coordinate branches of government, 1868 Joint Resolution 23.
• March 6, 1868: An Act to authorize the state treasurer to close up the circulation of certain banks, and for other purposes, 1868 Act 144.
• March 6, 1868: An Act to transfer the war fund to the general fund and discontinue the war fund, 1868 Act 148.
• March 6, 1868: An Act to provide for establishing town libraries in this state, 1868 Act 174.

Party summary

Senate summary

	Party (Shading indicates majority caucus)			Total
	Democratic	Union	Republican		Vacant
End of previous Legislature	11		20		0	31	2
1st Session	15	0		18	33	0
Final voting share
Beginning of the next Legislature	14	0		19	33	0

Assembly summary

	Party (Shading indicates majority caucus)			Total
	Democratic	Union	Republican		Vacant
End of previous Legislature	26		74		0	100	0
Start of 1st Session	41	0		59	100	0
Final voting share
Beginning of the next Legislature	32	0		68	100	0

Sessions

• 1st Regular session: January 8, 1868March 6, 1868

Leaders

Senate leadership

• President of the Senate: Wyman Spooner (R)
• President pro tempore: Newton Littlejohn (R)

Assembly leadership

• Speaker of the Assembly: Alexander M. Thomson (R)

Members

Members of the Senate

Members of the Wisconsin Senate for the Twenty-First Wisconsin Legislature:^[2]

Dist.	Counties	Senator	Residence	Party
	Sheboygan		Plymouth		Dem.
02	Brown, Door, Kewaunee		Green Bay		Dem.
03	Ozaukee		Ozaukee		Dem.
04	Washington		Addison		Dem.
05	Milwaukee (Northern Half)		Milwaukee		Dem.
06	Milwaukee (Southern Half)		Milwaukee		Dem.
07	Racine		Caledonia		Rep.
08	Kenosha		Kenosha		Rep.
09	Adams, Juneau, Monroe		Sparta		Rep.
10	Waukesha		Oconomowoc		Dem.
11	Dane (Eastern Part)		Windsor		Rep.
12	Walworth		Whitewater		Rep.
13	Lafayette		Shullsburg		Dem.
14	Sauk		Delton		Rep.
15	Iowa		Dodgeville		Rep.
16	Grant		Boscobel		Rep.
17	Rock		Beloit		Rep.
18	Dodge (Western Part)		Beaver Dam		Dem.
19	Manitowoc		Manitowoc		Dem.
20	Fond du Lac		Fond du Lac		Dem.
21	Winnebago		Oshkosh		Rep.
22	Calumet, Oconto, Outagamie, Shawano		Medina		Dem.
23	Jefferson		Jefferson		Dem.
24	Green		Monticello		Rep.
25	Columbia		Poynette		Rep.
26	Dane (Western Part)		Madison		Dem.
27	Marathon, Portage, Waupaca, Wood		Waupaca		Rep.
28	Ashland, Bayfield, Burnett, Dallas, Douglas, Pierce, St. Croix		Prescott		Rep.
29	Green Lake, Marquette, Waushara		Wautoma		Rep.
30	Crawford, Richland				Rep.
31	La Crosse, Vernon		West Salem		Rep.
32	Buffalo, Chippewa, Clark, Dunn, Eau Claire, Jackson, Pepin, Trempealeau		Trempealeau		Rep.
33	Dodge (Eastern Part)		Horicon		Dem.

Members of the Assembly

Members of the Assembly for the Twenty-First Wisconsin Legislature:^[2]

Senate District	County	District	Representative	Party	Residence
09	text-align="left" colspan="2"	Adams			Rep.	Big Spring
28	text-align="left" colspan="2"	Ashland, Bayfield, Burnett, Dallas, Douglas, Polk			Rep.	St. Croix Falls
02	text-align="left" rowspan="2"	Brown	1			Rep.	Green Bay
	2			Rep.	Fort Howard
32	text-align="left" colspan="2"	Buffalo			Rep.	Alma
22	text-align="left" colspan="2"	Calumet			Dem.	New Holstein
32	text-align="left" colspan="2"	Chippewa & Dunn			Rep.	Menomonie
	text-align="left" colspan="2"	Clark & Jackson			Rep.	Neillsville
25	text-align="left" rowspan="3"	Columbia	1			Rep.	Kilbourn City
	2			Rep.	Columbus
	3			Rep.	Portage
30	text-align="left" colspan="2"	Crawford			Dem.	Eastman
11	text-align="left" rowspan="5"	Dane	1			Rep.	Stoughton
	2			Rep.	Cambridge
26	3			Dem.	Mendota
	4			Rep.	Mount Vernon
	5			Dem.	Madison
18	text-align="left" rowspan="4"		1			Dem.	Fox Lake
	2			Dem.	Lowell
33	3			Dem.	Mayville
	4			Dem.	Alderley
02	text-align="left" colspan="2"	Door & Kewaunee			Dem.	Baileys Harbor
32	text-align="left" colspan="2"	Eau Claire & Pepin			Rep.	Eau Claire
20	text-align="left" rowspan="6"		1			Rep.	West Rosendale
	2			Rep.	Brandon
	3			Rep.
	4			Rep.
	5			Dem.	Eden
	6			Dem.	Moria
16	text-align="left" rowspan="5"		1			Rep.	Platteville
	2			Dem.	Potosi
	3			Rep.	Lancaster
	4			Rep.	Fennimore
	5			Rep.	Wyalusing
24	text-align="left" rowspan="2"	Green	1			Rep.	Monticello
	2			Rep.	Monroe
29	text-align="left" colspan="2"	Green Lake			Rep.	Markesan
15	text-align="left" rowspan="2"	Iowa	1			Dem.	Helena
	2			Rep.	Mifflin
23	text-align="left" rowspan="4"	Jefferson	1			Dem.	Watertown
	2			Rep.	Christiana
	3			Dem.	Bark River
	4			Rep.	Helenville
09	text-align="left" colspan="2"	Juneau			Dem.	Kildare
08	text-align="left" colspan="2"				Rep.	Bassett
31	text-align="left" rowspan="2"	La Crosse	1			Dem.	La Crosse
	2			Rep.	West Salem
13	text-align="left" rowspan="2"		1			Dem.	Shullsburg
	2			Rep.	Gratiot
19	text-align="left" rowspan="3"	Manitowoc	1			Dem.	Meeme
	2			Dem.	Manitowoc
	3			Dem.	Manitowoc
27	text-align="left" colspan="2"	Marathon & Wood			Dem.	Wausau
29	text-align="left" colspan="2"	Marquette			Dem.	Westfield
05	text-align="left" rowspan="10"	Milwaukee	1			Dem.	Milwaukee
	2			Dem.	Milwaukee
06	3			Dem.	Milwaukee
	4			Dem.	Milwaukee
	5			Dem.	Milwaukee
05	6			Dem.	Milwaukee
	7			Rep.	Milwaukee
	8			Dem.	Milwaukee
06	9			Dem.	Hales Corners
	10			Dem.	Ten Mile House
09	text-align="left" colspan="2"	Monroe			Rep.	Melvina
22	text-align="left" colspan="2"	Oconto & Shawano			Rep.	Marinette
22	text-align="left" colspan="2"	Outagamie			Dem.	Appleton
03	text-align="left" colspan="2"				Dem.	Cedarburg
28	text-align="left" colspan="2"	Pierce			Rep.	Maiden Rock
27	text-align="left" colspan="2"	Portage			Dem.	Stevens Point
07	text-align="left" rowspan="2"		1			Rep.	Racine
	2			Rep.	North Cape
30	text-align="left" colspan="2"	Richland			Rep.	Loyd
17	text-align="left" rowspan="5"		1			Rep.	Orfordville
	2			Rep.	Milton
	3			Rep.	Johnstown
	4			Rep.	Beloit
	5			Rep.	Janesville
14	text-align="left" rowspan="2"	Sauk	1			Rep.
	2			Rep.	Dellona
01	text-align="left" rowspan="3"		1			Dem.
	2			Dem.
	3			Rep.	Sheboygan Falls
28	text-align="left" colspan="2"	St. Croix			Rep.	Hudson
32	text-align="left" colspan="2"	Trempealeau			Rep.	Trempealeau
31	text-align="left" rowspan="2"	Vernon	1			Rep.	Chaseburg
	2			Rep.	Viroqua
12	text-align="left" rowspan="3"		1			Rep.	Darien
	2			Rep.	Geneva
	3			Rep.	La Grange
04	text-align="left" rowspan="2"		1			Dem.	West Bend
	2			Dem.	Cedar Creek
10	text-align="left" rowspan="3"		1			Dem.	Waukesha
	2			Rep.	Oconomowoc
	3			Dem.	St. Martin
27	text-align="left" colspan="2"	Waupaca			Rep.	New London
29	text-align="left" colspan="2"				Rep.	Pine River
21	text-align="left" rowspan="3"		1			Rep.	Oshkosh
	2			Rep.	Winneconne
	3			Rep.	Omro

Employees

Senate employees

• Chief Clerk: L. B. Hills^[2]
  • Assistant Clerk: John S. Wilson
    • Bookkeeper: A. W. Wilson
  • Engrossing Clerk: W. L. Abbott
  • Engrossing Clerk: Joseph Copp
  • Transcribing Clerk: David Schreiner
• Sergeant-at-Arms: W. H. Hamilton
  • Assistant Sergeant-at-Arms: S. M. Bond
  • Sergeant-at-Arms' Porter: Thomas Goss
• Postmaster: Frank Leland
  • Assistant Postmaster: J. S. Cavert
• Doorkeeper: Franklin Kelly
  • Assistant Doorkeeper: W. G. McEwen
  • Assistant Doorkeeper: Walter Cook
  • Assistant Doorkeeper: Henry Taylor
  • Assistant Doorkeeper: Thornton Thompson
• Fireman: Francis Downs
• Messengers:
  • Robert B. McCord
  • William Keyes
  • Charlton Turner

Assembly employees

• Chief Clerk: Ephraim W. Young^[2]
  • Assistant Clerk: William M. Newcomb
    • Bookkeeper: O. A. Southmayd
  • Engrossing Clerk: Fred Dennett
  • Enrolling Clerk: William A. Prentiss Jr.
  • Transcribing Clerk: William H. Holt
• Sergeant-at-Arms: Charles L. Harris
  • Assistant Sergeant-at-Arms: Alex Stevens
• Postmaster: Luther Poland
  • Assistant Postmaster: D. B. Crandall
• Doorkeepers:
  • Henry Collins
  • Frank Fletcher
  • Thomas Healy
• Firemen:
  • Nahum Bangs
  • John Flood
• Porter: Edwin Glenn
• Speaker's Messenger: Frank Thompson
• Chief Clerk's Messenger: John J. Norton
• Messengers:
  • Thomas A. Robbins
  • T. W. Sutliff
  • William H. Denison
  • Charlie J. Johnson
  • James Burke
  • C. E. Conger

Notes and References

1. The Blue Book of the state of Wisconsin . State of Wisconsin . 1882 . Heg . J. E. . https://images.library.wisc.edu/WI/EFacs/WIBlueBks/BlueBks/WIBlueBk1882/reference/wi.wibluebk1882.i0011.pdf . Annals of the Legislature . 217–219 . November 4, 2021 .
2. The Legislative Manual of the State of Wisconsin . State of Wisconsin . 1868 . https://images.library.wisc.edu/WI/EFacs/WIBlueBks/BlueBks/WIBlueBk1868/reference/wi.wibluebk1868.i0009.pdf . Legislative Department . 167–168, 171–174 . November 4, 2021.