Henry D. Barron Explained

Honorific-Prefix:The Honorable
Henry D. Barron
Office:Wisconsin Circuit Court Judge
Term Start:July 1876
Term End:January 22, 1882
Predecessor:Solon H. Clough
Successor:Solon H. Clough
Office1:Wisconsin Circuit Court Judge
Term Start1:July 1860
Term End1:January 1, 1861
Appointer1:Alexander Randall
Predecessor1:S. S. N. Fuller
Successor1:Lucien P. Wetherby
Order2:17th & 23rd
Office2:Speaker of the Wisconsin State Assembly
Term Start2:January 8, 1873
Term End2:January 14, 1874
Predecessor2:Daniel Hall
Successor2:Gabriel Bouck
Term Start3:January 10, 1866
Term End3:January 9, 1867
Predecessor3:William W. Field
Successor3:Angus Cameron
State4:Wisconsin
State Senate4:Wisconsin
District4:24th
Term Start4:January 1, 1874
Term End4:July 1876
Predecessor4:Joseph E. Irish
Successor4:Sam S. Fifield
State Assembly5:Wisconsin
District5:Ashland - Barron - Bayfield - Burnett - Douglas - Polk
Term Start5:January 1, 1872
Term End5:January 1, 1874
Predecessor5:Samuel S. Vaughn
Successor5:Sam S. Fifield
Term Start6:January 1, 1866
Term End6:January 1, 1870
Predecessor6:Albert C. Stuntz
Successor6:Samuel B. Dresser
State Assembly7:Wisconsin
District7:Ashland - Burnett - Dallas - Douglas -  - Polk
Term Start7:January 1, 1863
Term End7:January 1, 1865
Predecessor7:George R. Stuntz
Successor7:Amos S. Gray
Birth Date:10 April 1833
Birth Place:Wilton, New York, U.S.
Death Place:St. Croix Falls, Wisconsin, U.S.
Restingplace:Prairie Home Cemetery,
Spouse:Ella Kellogg (died 1889)
Profession:lawyer

Henry Danforth Barron (April 10, 1833January 22, 1882) was an American lawyer, politician, and judge. He was the 17th and 23rd speaker of the Wisconsin State Assembly, served six years as a Wisconsin circuit court judge, and was a member of the Wisconsin State Senate. He also held several local offices and was a member of the University of Wisconsin Board of Regents.[1] He is the namesake of Barron County, Wisconsin.

Biography

Born in Wilton, New York, he graduated from law school at Ballston Spa, New York, and moved to Wisconsin in 1851.[2] After arriving in Wisconsin, he became a publisher of the Waukesha Democrat and its successor, the Chronotype. He was also appointed Postmaster of Waukesha by President Franklin Pierce. He relocated to Pepin County in 1857 and began a law practice. He was appointed Wisconsin circuit court judge by Governor Alexander Randall in 1860 and served until the election of a successor.[1]

In 1862, he was elected to the Wisconsin State Assembly from the vast northwestern assembly district comprising the lightly populated counties of Ashland, Burnett, Dallas (now Barron), Douglas, La Pointe (now Bayfield), and Polk. He was re-elected in 1863, 1865, 1866, 1867, 1868, 1871, and 1872.[1]

In 1869, he was offered appointment as chief justice for the Dakota Territory by President Ulysses S. Grant but turned it down. He was subsequently appointed fifth auditor of the United States Treasury, in April 1869, and served in that role until he returned to the Assembly in January 1872.[1]

He was chosen as speaker for the 1866 and 1873 legislative sessions. In 1873, he was elected to the Wisconsin Senate, and was elected president pro tem of the Senate in 1875. He was re-elected to his senate seat in 1875, but was then elected to the Wisconsin circuit court again in the Spring of 1876, defeating incumbent judge Solon Clough.[3] He remained on the court until his death in 1882.[1]

In addition to his public offices, he was a Republican presidential elector in the 1868 and 1872 presidential elections and was chosen president of the electoral college for both elections. He was a Vice President of the Wisconsin Historical Society, and a member of the University of Wisconsin Board of Regents.[1]

Barron lived in St. Croix County, Wisconsin. Barron County, Wisconsin, which he represented for many years as "Dallas County", was named after him by act of the legislature in 1869.[4] [5]

Notes and References

  1. http://digital.library.wisc.edu/1711.dl/WI.WIBlueBk1876 . The legislative Manual of the State of Wisconsin . Bashford . R. M. . State of Wisconsin. 1876 . 457 . Official Directory . December 11, 2019.
  2. Web site: Barron, Henry Danforth 1833 - 1882 . . December 17, 2021 .
  3. News: Judicial Elections . . April 15, 1876 . 1 . December 17, 2021 . .
  4. Web site: The Political Graveyard: Index to Politicians: Barrett-england to Barrus.
  5. Book: Chicago and North Western Railway Company. A History of the Origin of the Place Names Connected with the Chicago & North Western and Chicago, St. Paul, Minneapolis & Omaha Railways. 1908. 159.