Thaddeus C. Pound Explained

Thaddeus C. Pound
State:Wisconsin
Term Start:March 4, 1877
Term End:March 3, 1883
Predecessor:George W. Cate
Successor:William T. Price
Order2:10th
Office2:Lieutenant Governor of Wisconsin
Governor2:Lucius Fairchild
Term Start2:January 3, 1870
Term End2:January 1, 1872
Predecessor2:Wyman Spooner
Successor2:Milton H. Pettit
State3:Wisconsin
State Assembly3:Wisconsin
District3:Chippewa, Dunn
Term Start3:January 1, 1869
Term End3:January 1, 1870
Predecessor3:Samuel W. Hunt
Successor3:Jedediah W. Granger
State Assembly4:Wisconsin
District4:Chippewa, Dunn, Eau Claire
Term Start4:January 1, 1866
Term End4:January 1, 1868
Predecessor4:Francis R. Church
Term Start5:January 1, 1864
Term End5:January 1, 1865
Predecessor5:William H. Smith
Successor5:Francis R. Church
Birth Name:Thaddeus Coleman Pound
Birth Date:6 December 1832
Birth Place:Elk Township, Warren County, Pennsylvania
Death Place:Chicago, Illinois
Restingplace:Forest Hill Cemetery
Chippewa Falls, Wisconsin
Party:Republican

Thaddeus Coleman Pound (December 6, 1832 – November 20[1] or 21, 1914) was an American businessman from Wisconsin who served in both houses of the Wisconsin legislature, as the tenth Lieutenant Governor of Wisconsin, and as a U.S. Representative (1877–1883).[2] His brother was Albert Pound, who also served in the Wisconsin Assembly.[3] He was the grandfather of poet Ezra Pound.[4]

Life and career

Born in Elk Township, Warren County, Pennsylvania, Pound moved with his parents, Judith (Coleman) and Elijah Pound, to Monroe County, New York in 1838 and then to the city of Rochester, New York, afterwards moving to what is now Rock County, Wisconsin. He became a member of the Wisconsin State Assembly and the Wisconsin State Senate. Pound was elected as Lieutenant Governor of Wisconsin serving under Governor Lucius Fairchild from January 3, 1870 until January 1, 1872.

In 1876, Pound was elected as a Republican to the Forty-fifth Congress, replacing Democrat George W. Cate in representing Wisconsin's 8th congressional district. He was reelected to the Forty-sixth and Forty-seventh Congresses (March 4, 1877 – March 3, 1883), and was succeeded in the 48th Congress by fellow Republican William T. Price.

During his time as a representative, Pound was a prominent businessman in Wisconsin. He was president of the Chippewa Falls and Western Railway and the St. Paul Eastern Grand Trunk Railway (both predecessors of the Soo Line Railroad). He also served as president of the Chippewa Spring Water Company (a company still in business as of 2008) as well as the Union Lumber Company, which was reorganized as the Chippewa Falls Lumber and Boom Company in 1879.

Death and legacy

Pound died in Chicago, Illinois on November 20[1] or 21, 1914, aged 81. The village of Pound, Wisconsin, is named in his honor.[5]

Notes and References

  1. News: Thaddeus C. Pound Dead . Oshkosh Daily Northwestern. November 21, 1914. 7. Newspapers.com. April 21, 2016.
  2. Web site: Thaddeus C. Pound, 1870-1872. Office of the Lieutenant Governor, Wisconsin. 2008-03-21 .
  3. The United States Biographical Dictionary and Portrait Gallery of Eminent and Self-made Men: Wisconsin Volume, Volume 1, American Biographical Publishing Company: 1877, Biographical Sketch of Albert Pound, pp. 256-257
  4. https://www.jstor.org/stable/24726523 Profile
  5. The Soo. The Soo Line Historical and Technical Society. Summer 2007. 29. 3. The Wisconsin Central in Eau Claire. 9–43. Easton, Larry E. .